The Roman Baths

Two thousand years of hot water and Roman engineering sit beneath Bath's Georgian streets, and it's genuinely arresting to walk down into the Great Bath and realise you're looking at the same stonework that wealthy Romans soaked in. The museum shows you the full picture - the engineering, the finds, the sheer ambition of piping thermal water into a functioning spa town in the middle of Britain.

You'll spend a good two to three hours here if you're taking it properly. History enthusiasts will lose themselves in the artefacts and the audio guide is solid, though kids sometimes flag after the first hour unless they're really into archaeology. The Great Bath itself is the draw - a vast rectangular pool of grey-green water surrounded by reconstructed columns. It's impressive, but the reality is you can't swim in it and you're mostly viewing it from a distance, which can feel a bit anticlimatic if you've built it up.

Admission costs - worth checking current prices before you go, as it's not a free afternoon. Bath itself is touristy and heaving in summer, but there's genuine substance here. If you're staying at Bath Mill Lodge Retreat or Campwell Farm, both within easy reach, you can combine this with a walk along the canal or exploration of Bath's wider Georgian architecture. Campwell Farm especially offers a good base for exploring the town without the chaos of central accommodation. Go mid-week if you can stomach it. Weekends turn this into a scrum.