Royal Crescent

What you are looking at

The Crescent is a single, unbroken sweep of grand houses facing open parkland, built for wealthy visitors who came to Bath for the season. Its scale is best taken in from the lawn below or from the edge of Royal Victoria Park, where the whole curve fits into view. Most houses remain private homes and flats, so the street itself is somewhere to walk past slowly rather than go into.

Inside No. 1 Royal Crescent

No. 1 was the first house to be completed and originally offered luxury lodgings for aristocratic visitors. Today it is furnished to show life between 1776 and 1796, from the dining room, withdrawing room and a gentleman's retreat to the bedrooms upstairs. Below stairs you see the kitchen, scullery, housekeeper's room and servants' hall, so you get both sides of a Georgian household. Guides are stationed in the rooms to answer questions, and a short introductory film sets the scene.

Planning your visit

Allow an hour or so for the museum and add time for a stroll along the Crescent and into the park. The Circus, another John Wood set piece, is a few minutes' walk east along Brock Street, which makes the two an easy pairing. Book tickets ahead on the museum's website, especially at weekends and in school holidays, and look out for occasional late openings.

Highlights

• Georgian crescent designed by John Wood the Younger, built 1767–1774
• No. 1 was the first house built in the Crescent
• Museum furnished to the period 1776–1796
• Upstairs and below-stairs rooms, including kitchen and servants' hall
• Short walk from The Circus and Royal Victoria Park

Good to know

• Tickets for No. 1 Royal Crescent can be booked online in advance
• Groups of 10 or more are accepted by arrangement
• Guide dogs are welcome; an access statement is available from the museum
• The museum is closed on Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Year's Day

Frequently asked questions