Eighteen days of chalets around the Abbey, and the busiest fortnight in Bath’s year.
What it is
Bath Christmas Market fills the streets around Bath Abbey and the Roman Baths with wooden chalets selling craft, food and drink. It is one of the larger Christmas markets in the UK and it has a particular advantage over most: the setting. The chalets sit in genuinely beautiful Georgian streets rather than a car park, which is most of why people travel for it.
It usually runs for around eighteen days from late November into the middle of December. Exact dates shift each year, so check the organiser’s site before you book anything around it.
Go on a weekday
Saturdays are extremely busy from late morning. A Thursday is a different and much more pleasant experience.
Go early or late
The first hour after opening is calm; the last two hours are atmospheric once the lights are on and the day visitors have left.
Book dinner first
Restaurants in the centre fill weeks ahead through market season. For a group of more than eight this is not optional.
Getting there and parking
Bath Spa station is a few minutes’ walk from the market, with direct trains from London Paddington in around ninety minutes and from Bristol Temple Meads in about fifteen. During the market the train is comfortably the easiest way in.
Driving is harder. The city centre has a congestion charge zone for older vehicles, parking is limited and expensive, and the central car parks fill early on market weekends. If you are staying outside the city, the park and ride services are the sensible option – check their running times, because they do not all operate late into the evening.
Making a weekend of it
The market is a half-day rather than a full one, which is why it works best as part of a weekend rather than the whole reason for the trip. The Roman Baths are especially good in winter, when the steam off the water is at its best, and Thermae Bath Spa’s rooftop pool on a cold evening is the single most memorable thing most visitors do in Bath.
For a group, the pattern that works is the market on one day, something indoors on the other, and the evenings back at the house. Mid-December weekends get cold, and a house with a hot tub earns its keep.
Coming as a group?
Bath fills up fast around its big events. The houses nearby sleep fourteen to thirty-six, and every one has a hot tub.
When is Bath Christmas Market?
Usually around eighteen days from late November to mid-December. The dates move each year, so confirm with the official site before booking travel.
Is it free to enter?
Yes, the market itself is free to walk around. Some separate events and attractions nearby charge admission.
Is it suitable for a large group?
Yes, but agree a meeting point and a time before you set off – the streets are narrow and crowded, and a group of twenty will not stay together.
Where should a group stay?
Accommodation inside Bath is limited and expensive during the market. Most large groups stay in a house outside the city and travel in; there are houses nearby sleeping from fourteen up to thirty-six.