Bath - Autumn & Upcoming Events

My Mum and I enjoying the Autumn leaves at a local arboretum

Greetings from Bath! Here in the West of England we are currently being bedazzled by some amazing Autumn colours. Mother Nature's impressive annual canvas display! Following the warmest summer on record the Autumn colours this year in England are particularly vibrant. I am enjoying driving my guests to Stonehenge where trees displaying greens, yellows and reds provide a feast of colours for the eyes as we journey to and from the historic site. Earlier this week I took my Mum to the Westonbirt Arboretum which is located approximately 45 minutes from Bath. Created by a wealthy landowner back in the mid 1800s the arboretum is a fabulous place to enjoy the Autumn colours with Maples, Acers amongst the 2,500 species of tree that can be seen. If you are on Instagram I have uploaded some of the photos I took during the trip (@bathinsider). My Mum continues to impress me with her knowledge of the different species. She is often my go-to during tours when I need help to identify a flower/tree for guests! Wherever you are in the world I hope you are having the chance to pause and take in the Autumn display near you :)

Events...

October 31st is fast approaching. Here in England some people do celebrate Halloween but it is not on the same scale as countries like the USA. The bigger celebration for us is around November 5th, a celebration you won't find in other countries ... remember remember the 5th of November! The day is known as Bonfire Night or Guy Fawkes Night and originates from an event that took place back in the year 1605 when there was an attempt to blow up the Houses of Parliament in London! The attempt failed and up until 1959 it was illegal NOT to celebrate Bonfire Night! If you are interested in learning more about this unique British celebration you can check out my blog post here.

Today families often celebrate the day and the days around it by setting off fireworks in their garden and towns and cities often have big public firework displays on the weekend closest to the 5th. If you are travelling in the UK during this time do not be surprised if you hear bangs and whistles as it starts to get dark!

The two most famous public firework displays in Bath are:

1. The Bath Rotary Fireworks Display which takes place in the centre of Bath at the Rec. This year the display will be taking place on Saturday 1st November. For more information and tickets please click here.
   

2. The Bath Racecourse Fireworks Display which takes place at the racecourse on the outskirts of Bath. This year their display will be taking place on Friday 31st October. For more information and tickets please click here.

From the 14th November, locals and visitors can enjoy outdoor ice-skating on a small rink located in Bath's Royal Victoria Park. A possible fun activity for families! Glow Golf is also returning. In the darker evenings you can enjoy putting a glow-in-the-dark golf ball on an obstacle course! Both activities are scheduled to continue until January 4th. Pre-booking, particularly on the weekends, is recommended. You can find out more by clicking here.

If you are travelling to Bath during this time - do not worry - it is unlikely to be super cold (although that of course depends upon your temperature tolerance!) The ice-skating rink is artificial. We can get snow in Bath but it is not very often and when it does snow, the snow does not last for very long.

I apologise for mentioning the "C" word in October but Bath's famous Christmas market actually kicks off on the 27th November! The market is one of the most famous Christmas markets in England. The streets are lined with stalls selling gifts and produce - many from local suppliers and artisans. This year the market will be running until 14th December.

The Christmas market is a popular event so the centre of Bath does become crowded during this time. Traffic entering and leaving the city can become congested and parking is a nightmare so please bear this in mind if you are driving! The stalls open at 10am and stay open until the evening (typically 7 or 8pm). If you are wanting to explore the city before the crowds I recommend getting out before the stalls open. This year I am trialling a new start time of 8:30am for my Bath City Tour to help give the best possible experience during this time. You can read more about my Bath City Tour here. If you are staying in Bath during this time do check the market out but also - do make dinner reservations in advance!

These are arguably the biggest events and activities taking place between now and the end of November but there are many smaller events, shows and sporting events taking place. Bath is now officially the best rugby club in the country and have already got off to a flying start this season so you may like to try and get tickets for one of the local games! You can search for events and activities using the Visit Bath website here.

I hope you find the above useful. One last thing to mention - if you are in the UK on the 25th October weekend - don't forget that our clocks will change on Sunday 26th October! At 2am the clocks will go back 1 hour to 1am and we will return to the Greenwich Mean Time (GMT). Enjoy that extra hour in bed!

Wherever you are in October and November, I wish you lots of great experiences :)