Gainsborough Bath Spa

Gainsborough Bath Spa

Ninety-nine rooms at The Gainsborough Bath Spa sit behind a pair of Grade II listed Georgian and Victorian façades, a hundred yards from the Roman Baths and twenty yards off Stall Street, in the heart of Bath's UNESCO World Heritage site. The hotel is named for the painter Thomas Gainsborough, but the real draw sits beneath a glass atrium: Spa Village taps the same thermal spring the Romans built a temple around, and it remains the only spa in the UK with access to naturally heated, mineral-rich water. Residents get in free between 7am and 9am and again from 8pm to 10pm; outside those windows a treatment buys the door, and under-sixteens aren't admitted at all, which makes this a better fit for a couple built around the water than a family relying on the connecting rooms downstairs. Champalimaud Design furnished the rooms with period detail against contemporary lines, and blackout coverings, generous wardrobes and cordless phones come as standard rather than upsold extras. Downstairs there's an indoor pool, an outdoor pool, a sauna, a steam room, a gym, and a restaurant running gluten-free and diet-menu options alongside the regular bar and breakfast. As a Small Luxury Hotels of the World property it takes a 100 GBP per-stay deposit and charges separately for parking and valet. Pets aren't allowed, wheelchair access extends to the restaurant, and staff between them cover six languages beyond English. None of that is what settles it, though. What no other hotel in Bath, or the country, can put next to its name is that spring. The Gainsborough sits inside Bath's UNESCO quarter, a hundred yards from the Roman Baths, built around Spa Village, the only UK spa with access to naturally heated thermal water. Residents get free access at set hours; under-sixteens aren't admitted, so this suits couples chasing the water more than families.