SpringRaine

We're a group of two adults and two kids (6 and 8) who will be spending a week near Bath next month. We tend to appreciate the non-touristy things most. Also, even though we're traveling with kids, we like historical and educational attractions as opposed to some of the things dubbed "kid-friendly". Yeah, I'm a mean mom.

Pegontheroad

I loved "Bizarre Bath Walks." It was very silly and very enjoyable.

tjhome1

Hi, Glad the trip is on this time. As I posted last time I grew up 6 miles south of Bath but am guessing you are staying north, in the Cotswolds - my own pick, simply because I grew up there, would be some of the villages south of Bath - Wellow, Combe Hay, Hinton Charterhouse, Norton St Philip, Farleigh Hungerford - all five of these are right next to each other but walking from one to another would be almost a days task in itself, so hope you are getting a car - they are completely non-touristy and yet each have their own very special attractions - Wellow has a church that was built in 1372 by the first speaker of our Parliament, Combe Hay has a great restaurant in a pub called The Wheatsheaf that is amongst the best in the whole region, Norton St Philip has an old pub (The George) that is little changed from the when it was offering the same service to travellers 700 years ago - one of the oldest continually licenced Inns in the country http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Geo...rton_St_Philip Farleigh Hungerford has a 14th century castle that has few visitors but where you can get a free audio guide that, along with the castle, the setting and the fact that there are so few other visitors will bring history alive in way that other places are'n't able to - to my mind this would be a perfect day, you would get to see some brilliant non-touristy but typically English places and am sure your kids would love the castle - such a better experience than visting typical tourist places.

SpringRaine

Thanks Pegontheroad! I'll look into it.

Tjhome1, I tried to see if I could PM you because I remembered you were very knowledgeable about the area, but I guess Fodor's doesn't have an option for that. Anyhow, I'm so glad you replied! Yes, the trip is on. My grandfather passed away in August so we completely scrapped our initial plans. Also, when we purchased our airfare, we accidentally picked the same dates as the Cheltenham Festival (silly us), so it ends up that we will be staying in a cottage south of Bath to avoid crowds. Thanks again for your advice. We definitely plan to visit some of the smaller villages you mentioned... they sound perfect!

annhig

the southern cotswolds will be within reach - Westonbirt arboretum, Tetbury, Circencester - all nice places to explore.

and a day -trip on the train to Bristol - a very neglected great city - would be very interesting.

SpringRaine

Thank you annhig! We probably will only venture a little bit into the Cotswolds, but we are perfectly content with that. Also, we're spending 2 days at the beginning of our trip on the Isle of Wight and 1 day at the end in London (to be close to the airport; honestly not too keen to spend much time there). Bristol sounds like a good day trip. What would you recommend there?

tjhome1

Hi, sorry to hear about your Grandfather. I hope though that the length of time it's taken to get here will only add to your experience. It's so exciting that you are staying south of Bath - let me know whereabouts - I can let you have a whole load more suggestions and hopefully can assist you in getting the very best out of whatever you end up deciding to do. Please feel free to email me if you'd like - it's [email protected]
Just off the top of my head though an ideal week would be:-
one day walking round/exploring your local area
two days spent in Bath
one train trip to Bristol
one train trip to London for the day - this was such an exciting trip when we were kids
one day exploring the villages south of Bath
one day at Longleat Safari Park - another thing we loved when we were kids - my older brother (13 year gap) worked in the Lion enclosure and we absolutely loved going to see him.
Tim

RosemaryM

We have spent three separate weeks in a farm cottage south of Bath and have enjoyed our exploration of the region very much. Particular favourites have been Wells with its lovely cathedral and moated Bishops Palace, Glastonbury's monastery ruins with its Arthurian connections, Wookey Hole Caves and Cheddar Gorge. We also loved Farleigh Hungerford Castle and the glorious gardens of Stourhead.
I hope you love the area as much as we did.

Rosemary

RosemaryM

Hi again
I have just remembered one of the days we really enjoyed from Bath last year. Our family really enjoys canals and Bath sits on the Kennet and Avon Canal. We hired a little day boat from Bath Narrowboats and had a great day tootling slowly along the canal up to the Avoncliffe aqueduct and back. It is great fun for kids, take your picnic lunch and relax.
Rosemary

annhig

ah, Bristol. Well, i suspect that it's changed a bit since I was a student there 30 + years ago, but you might like the SS Great Britain, the Clifton Suspension Bridge, the Zoo, the Arnolfini Gallery and harbour area, the Museum - that should do for starters!

SpringRaine

Thanks so much to all of you for taking the time to reply!

Tjhome1, I'll let you know if I have any other specific questions for you, but the advice you've already given is truly appreciated! Thank you!

RosemaryM, of course I'd already done some research prior to posting, but I wanted to see what the Fodor's Folks would suggest. Farleigh Hungerford Castle (thanks to tjhome1's prior recommendation), Wells, and a Bath canal ride were all things we'd put on our list. I think you and I are similar travel types! I was a little worried about Glastonbury being too tourist-y (not that we'll be there during peak times)... did you find it to be so?

Annhig, Bristol was not a place I'd researched, but now that I have,I think we'll definitely take a day trip there. I also read a really nice Bristol trip report here on Fodor's that was helpful. Thanks for the suggestion!

Mimar

Another vote for Longleat; just to see -- without touring -- a traditional English "stately home" is educational, not to speak of the Safari Park.

And you're not far from Stonehenge and Old Sarum. The stones at Amesbury might be more enjoyable for your kids: you can walk among them and touch them.

chartley

Some other suggestions, with young children in mind.

Big Pit (www.museumwales.ac.uk/en/bigpit/). This is over in Wales, but is a visit to a real coal mine. There are height requirements for children that you would need to check, but otherwise it is quite an experience. I think it is free - there are no mention of entrance charges.

Castles. Farleigh Hungerford is nice, but small. A much larger ruin is Chepstow Castle. Berkeley Castle is still inhabited, but does not re-open until April.

Longleat is certainly good for kids. If the weather is bad, they might like @Bristol, a hands-on science centre. Bristol also has an aquarium and a zoo.

All the other suggestions are good ones. It depends on the weather and your preferences. Many of them are "touristy", but the tourists you meet will be mostly locals.

Schiermonnik

"we like historical and educational attractions"
A daytrip to Oxford?