On Foot in Bath: Fifteen Walks Around a World Heritage CIty

‘Bath is not only one of the best cities in the world to explore on foot; it is also surrounded on all sides by unspoilt countryside whose beauty is matched by its variety.’ This new edition of the best-selling walking guide to the city does full justice to that unique inheritance. As well as featuring its main attractions, it leads the reader to hidden corners and panoramic views over Bath and beyond. As well as tracing some of Jane Austen’s expeditions around the city, it also looks at the rigours of eighteenth-century social life, the architecture of John Wood and his successors, the city’s industrial heritage and the story of how window tax affected the design of its buildings. Finally, a postscript looks at the transformation of the city since the opening of Thermae Bath Spa in 2006. This new edition has not only been fully revised and updated; the opportunity has also been taken to improve some of the walks. As a result, the first walk now includes a visit to a newly accessible courtyard overlooked by one of Bath’s finest buildings, Walk 5 includes a riverside path and Walk 9 takes advantage of a recently-opened path with superb views. Walk 10 has been rerouted across a new footbridge to the historic Newark Works, and several other walks have been rerouted to include hidden gems or follow paths through green fields rather than city streets. Much new information has also been included, along with many new photographs.

Table of Contents:
Introduction 1 Within the Walls: The Old City (1.25 miles) 2 Palladian Pleasures: The Georgian Expansion (3 miles) 3 A Constellation of Crescents: The Northern Slopes (3 miles) 4 Beyond the North Gate: Walcot Street, the Paragon & Broad Street (2 miles) 5 Into the East: Larkhall & the London Road (5 miles) 6 A Place in the Country: Lyncombe & Widcombe (3.5 miles) 7 The New Town of Bath: Over the River to Bathwick (3 miles) 8 A Glimpse of Tivoli: Combe Down & Prior Park (6.5 miles) 9 The Caliphate of Lansdown: A Visit to Beckford's Tower (6.5 miles) 10 River, Rail & Industry: Westwards to Twerton ((7 miles) 11 Over the Fields to Weston: In the Footsteps of Jane Austen (5.5 miles) 12 A Succession of Panoramas: Sham Castle & Smallcombe (4.5 miles) 13 Dreaming of Suburbia: Bear Flat, Oldfield Park & East Twerton (4 miles) 14 The Green Roofs: Snow Hill & the London Road (2.5 miles) 15 Where Every Prospect Pleases: With Jane Austen on Beechen Cliff (2.5 miles) Postscript: The Metamorphosis of Bath Acknowledgements Further Reading