Bath at Christmas
London Victoria → Bath → London Victoria
Step aboard the British Pullman, A Belmond Train, and let the most festive of England's great cities arrive in style. The Bath at Christmas day excursion sweeps you from London Victoria through the rolling English countryside and delivers you — brunch in hand, Bellini raised — to the Georgian splendour of Bath just as its legendary Christmas Market is in full swing. This is a single glorious day, yet it packs the luxury of a grand rail journey into every hour.
The arc of the journey is perfectly balanced: a lavish three-course brunch with a sparkling Bellini on the outbound leg, nearly three hours of free exploration in one of England's most beautiful UNESCO World Heritage cities, and then a champagne reception followed by a sumptuous four-course dinner on the return glide back to Victoria. The Art Deco carriages — their marquetry panels gleaming, white linen crisp, liveried stewards attentive — provide an experience that rivals the finest restaurants in the land, all while the winter countryside scrolls past the windows.
Whether you come to browse more than 170 festive wooden chalets in the Abbey Churchyard, admire the Roman Baths and Royal Crescent, or simply savour the rare pleasure of a gourmet feast aboard a moving masterpiece of railway heritage, Bath at Christmas on the British Pullman is one of the most distinctive seasonal day trips in Europe.
- ✦Three-course Bellini brunch in vintage 1920s Art Deco Pullman carriages
- ✦Bath Christmas Market — over 170 festive chalets in the Abbey Churchyard
- ✦Complimentary guided coach tour of Bath's Georgian landmarks on arrival
- ✦Champagne reception and four-course seasonal dinner on the return journey
- ✦Roman Baths, Royal Crescent, and Pulteney Bridge within easy reach
- ✦All meals, drinks, and return rail travel from London Victoria included
- ✦A UNESCO World Heritage city at its most magical in December
Day-by-Day Itinerary
Day 1 — London Victoria to Bath and Return
Morning departure (~09:30–09:40, London Victoria). Guests are welcomed aboard by liveried stewards at London Victoria Station. The British Pullman's lovingly restored 1920s Pullman carriages — each named and with its own storied past — provide an immediate sense of occasion. As the train eases out of Victoria and the London suburbs give way to Wiltshire countryside, morning tea and coffee are poured and the outbound dining experience begins.
Outbound brunch service (en route, arriving Bath ~13:05–13:15). A three-course brunch is served at your table with full silver service. A signature sparkling Bellini accompanies the meal. Expect refined British produce — dishes have included items such as a Battersea Brunch Bowl, roasted ham with poached egg and hollandaise, and a selection of pastries and seasonal accompaniments. The sommelier is on hand throughout, and the pace is leisurely enough to fully savour both the food and the passing landscape.
Afternoon in Bath (~13:05–15:45–16:00). On arrival, guests are offered a complimentary coach tour of the city, a guided overview of Bath's Georgian streets, crescents, and principal landmarks. After the tour, time is completely free to explore at your own pace. The Bath Christmas Market, set within the atmospheric Abbey Churchyard and surrounding streets, features over 170 wooden chalets selling handcrafted gifts, artisan food and drink, jewellery, and seasonal decorations, all against the backdrop of Bath Abbey's soaring Gothic facade. Independent exploration might take in the Roman Baths — the finest Roman remains in Britain, built around naturally heated thermal springs first used by the Romans in the 1st century AD — the Regency Pump Room for a restorative cup of spa water or afternoon tea, the perfectly preserved Royal Crescent and The Circus (masterpieces of 18th-century Georgian urban design by John Wood the Elder and Younger), the shop-lined Pulteney Bridge (one of only a handful of bridges in the world with shops on both sides), and the narrow cobbled lanes of Milsom Street and the Shambles. The city is compact and walkable, making it easy to cover its highlights in an afternoon. Guests should note they will be outdoors for a significant portion of their Bath time and should dress accordingly beneath smart attire.
Return journey — champagne reception and four-course dinner (departing Bath ~15:45–16:00, arriving London Victoria ~19:45). As guests reboard the British Pullman, a champagne reception sets a celebratory tone for the return leg. The kitchen then presents a four-course dinner from a British seasonal table d'hôte menu — dishes have featured starters such as goat's cheese mousse, main courses of chalk stream trout or roasted meats, indulgent desserts such as chocolate Cambridge cream, and a British cheese board to finish. Half a bottle of wine per person is included, with upgrades available. Tea, coffee, and petits fours close the evening as the train glides back into Victoria.
Destinations & Highlights
Bath, Somerset
Bath is one of the most complete and beautiful Georgian cities in the world, and the only city in England designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in its entirety. It owes its existence to the only naturally occurring hot springs in Britain, which emerge at a constant 46°C and were first exploited on a grand scale by the Romans, who built an elaborate bathing complex — the Roman Baths — that remains extraordinarily well preserved. Above the Roman remains, the elegant Georgian city designed largely by architects John Wood the Elder and John Wood the Younger in the 18th century rises in warm honey-coloured Bath stone: the sweeping Royal Crescent, the perfectly circular The Circus, the graceful Pulteney Bridge, and crescents and terraces that speak of the city's fashionable heyday as a Regency spa resort.
Bath Abbey, with its fan-vaulted ceiling and spectacular stained-glass windows, dominates the city centre and provides the backdrop for the Christmas Market. The Regency Pump Room, once the social heart of Georgian Bath where Jane Austen set scenes in her novels, still serves spa water alongside morning coffee and afternoon tea. Bath is intimately associated with Austen, who lived here from 1801 to 1806 and immortalised it in Northanger Abbey and Persuasion; the Jane Austen Centre on Gay Street celebrates her legacy year-round.
Bath Christmas Market transforms the area around Bath Abbey each November and December into one of the most atmospheric festive markets in the United Kingdom. More than 170 wooden chalet-style stalls are arranged through the Abbey Churchyard and adjoining streets, offering handcrafted gifts, artisan foods, mulled wine, and seasonal decorations, all set against the medieval stonework of the Abbey and the warm glow of Christmas lights. The market routinely ranks among the best in Europe and draws visitors from across the world.
Beyond the Christmas Market, Bath rewards leisurely exploration: the covered Bath Market and Milsom Street offer independent shopping; the Holburne Museum at the end of the Great Pulteney Street vista houses an outstanding collection of decorative arts; and the thermal Thermae Bath Spa — the only place in Britain where you can bathe in geothermally heated waters — sits adjacent to the Roman Baths. A winter afternoon in Bath, with its stone buildings glowing amber under the low December sun and the city dressed for Christmas, is a genuinely memorable experience.