This excursion will be back soon. In the meantime we’d be happy to organise a private tour for you. Please contact us on 020 7624 3978 | [email protected] to make a booking.
Bath & Avebury
Paddington Railway Station (meet by the main ticket office - it's near Platforms 1 & 2)
Guided by Simon
Adult: £139 · Students & Seniors: £134 · Children: £98
THE ESSENTIALS
This is not mass tourism. There are only so many places available. Equally to the point, the tour can only go ahead if the uptake reaches the (low) minimum required number of participants.
Not surprisingly, the tour often sells out so early booking is advisable. As soon as you book you will receive a confirmation that your place has been reserved. The link you use to pay for the tour will be sent to you a few days before the tour.
The total cost is £139 per adult; £134 for Super Adults (over 65s), Loyalty Card holders and full-time students ; £98 for children.
The charge covers the guide’s fee, your return train fare, entrance fees, and the coach fare (we charter a local coach for our Avebury excursion). The charge covers everything except your lunch!
N.B., the deadline for late booking – should there be places available – is mid-day on the day before the tour. Payment must be made by 6 pm that day.
Some Tasty Advice
It’s a good idea to buy a packed lunch in London. If you bring a packed lunch you can either chow down on the coach to Avebury or picnic in the beautiful gardens where we end the Bath walk. There is a lovely cafe up there too but its always a good plan to have food for emergencies. If you get to Paddington early on the morning Sainsbury’s Supermarket is near the 9 am meeting point.
OK, LET’S GO TO BATH & AVEBURY
Always drink upstream from the herd
Another way of putting that: “In Simon – and London Walks – we trust.”
So we’ve rethought – and reworked – our trip to Bath.
These days the standard Bath ‘route’ is a little bit like the South Col route up Everest, the South Side of Everest. It’s overcrowded with inexperienced climbers.
We – well, Simon – the Zeus of the Olympia of London Walks guides (to mix my mountaineering metaphors) – has taken stock and said, “Bath is better than that. Can be done better than that. Much better. Time’s have changed, that’s no longer the best way of doing Bath. Of seeing it. Experiencing it. Ascending it. That’s not London Walks. We give the madding crowd a miss. We don’t take people to places they can go to off their own bat.”
So much for the South Col – the Roman Baths – the hordes of tourists – we’re giving all that a miss. We’re going the route less travelled. Eschewing tourist Bath, showing you off-the-beaten path Bath, the Bath you wouldn’t find off your own bat.
The very best of Georgian Bath. Jane Austen’s Bath. (For the record, Stonehenge has pretty much gone the way of Roman Baths Bath. Which is why we’ve also parted company with it; why we’re going to Avebury instead.)
So where do we go? What do you see? In a dozen words: we get off the train and go on the perfect Bath walk. It’s sheer beauty – might be a Constable painting. We go off the beaten path, thread our way through back street Bath, show you a Bath that’s more quirky, not touristy. Needless to say, it’s very London Walks that.
We start by walking along the river. We go through Bath market. Medley after medley of Georgian houses, of honey-coloured stone. Step by step it builds to its climax: Bath at its best, Georgian England at its best, Jane Austen’s and Beau Nash’s Bath. In short, the Circus, the Royal Crescent, Queen’s Square. And for a peroration, Number 1, Royal Crescent, the magnificently restored town-house museum. And, you can go inside if you wish. Historic furniture, pictures and objects that reveal what life was like for Bath’s fashionable residents – both upstairs and downstairs. Welcome to the 1770s and 1780s.
Bath’s got it all. Even an English Montmartre in places.
So that’s 250 years ago. And then we switch the afterburner on. We go back 5,000 years. Back to the Neolithic Bronze Age. We go to Avebury.
Whoa! “Avebury surpasses Stonehenge as a cathedral doth a parish church.”
Avebury! Beggars all description. Largest stone circle complex on earth. Speaks to us across the ages, speaks of a secret geometry and lost science, of an ancient time more clairvoyant and star-born than ours. And, yes, you walk amongst them, touch them, selfie with the stones.
Avebury! Avebury, Wiltshire! On the River Kennet at the foot of the Marlborough Downs.
Avebury! Window on time-honoured England, the best of England.
BATH & AVEBURY – IT ALL COMES DOWN TO THE GUIDING
The 75 London Walks guides are the crème de la crème of London guides. They’ve garnered nearly 5,000 ***** (five star) reviews. Simon Law all by himself has pulled in hundreds of those rave reviews. His ‘review portfolio’ is the northern lights of London Walks reviews. Bottom line, don’t just take it from us that you can’t do better than entrust your precious time to Simon Law. This is one special guide.
Heidi Wagner –
If you want to visit Bath or Avebury, but don’t know where to begin, let me tell you, it’s with this tour! We wanted to visit Bath, but were put off by the cost and orchestrating travel, but when we looked at London Walks we changed our minds! Extremely cost effective, no planning required and absolutely delightful! Simon was our guide and he was fantastic! Kept us on track, filled our heads with knowledge mingled with laughter. Just when you think that the day can’t get better, we were back on the coach headed to Avebury. And what a delight that is; your own personal henge! SO much better than Stonehenge. This tour is a perfectly laid out/planned experience that I would recommend to everyone, young and old. I would take it again and again! If you are thinking an all day tour is too much walking, you are wrong. As with all the guides, Simon is very aware and has just the right amount of walking, talking, stopping and relaxing! Very do-able and very worthwhile!
John Gallo –
What a delightful day with Simon; he’s knowledgeable, affable, and well paced. This was the first excursion tour with London Walks that my wife and I have taken. Avebury was a delight. It is so much better than Stonehenge: you can actually touch the rocks! Our walk through Bath captured all the exterior highlights that you would want to see. This trip has made us want to return to Bath for a full day to see more.
LJ –
Fabulous day in Bath and Avebury. My advice? Just go on this tour!
Simon meets you at the train station and takes care of all transportation and logistics. Once in Bath, you get a picturesque walk with Simon as he guides you through Bath. You will learn history that spans the centuries. And… my favorite, you get to walk in the footsteps of Jane Austen. Simon brings history alive in a storytelling format which is memorable.
Following Bath, you go by motor coach to Avebury. What a sight to walk around and through these majestic stones. Free time in the village provides a variety of options for all kinds of interests.
Wonderful day. The weather was rainy but we were not deterred. Thank you Simon for your wonderful guidance. Appreciate you!
Mary –
The Bath/Avebury tour is delightful. Guide Simon knows his stuff! Avebury is amazing. I would definitely take other London Walks day tours.
Carolyn M. –
What a wonderful day. Simon took us all around the lovely city of Bath, showing us the Roman baths, the pump rooms, the crescent, with lots of history and architecture thrown in. It was really interesting and enjoyable. We were given a little free time in Bath to do whatever we liked and then boarded a bus which took us to Avebury to see and learn about the large stone circle there. Again after our tour of the circle we were given a little free time to spend as we liked. I thoroughly enjoyed myself today. I definitely recommend it.
Christoph Karner –
A wonderful tour, perfectly organized by Simon. He is a very knowledgeable guide and
a good “entertainer”, too.
The combination of Bath and Avebury is a very good idea.
So the tour can be warmly recommended.
In the future I will book tours, led by Simon, that’s sure. Even if I know the places already.
I am sure that I will get valuable in depth information, that I still don’t know.
Louise Reilly and Alexis LaPia –
A good balance of places in history. Debra said it well. Simon was a font of knowledge about the many centuries we covered throughout the day. We had the added advantage of a warm and sunny day. We had a tranquil lunch break on the Haha below the Royal Crescent. Folks should be aware that there is quite a lot of uphill walking with pauses along the way. A good start to a new tour.
Debra Goldentyer –
What a whirlwind of a day. Not only do we see so much, we also go flying through time, from 3000BC through the Roman era through the Victorian (and some others, but again, so much!). Bath is a beautiful city, walkable and charming. Avebury is astonishing and quite the ways off the beaten path. Simon is a charming host, caring for the group and ensuring that we get all we can out of the trip.