Accessibility

We welcome all visitors to the Roman Baths including those with additional access needs. The site is 90% accessible to wheelchair users and visitors with hearing or visual impairments can enjoy the site using the British Sign Language or fully descriptive audio tour and tactile models. We also provide information for visitors with autism and potential claustrophobia. You can read our helpful documents and watch our accessibility video below.

Your visit

• Because the Roman Baths are six metres below street level, there are unfortunately a number of steps throughout the site. To access the entire site, you will still need to climb some steps. If you are unable to climb stairs you will need to book a slot with our Bookings team where the use of our lifts will be available. 
• We give every visitor a hand-held audioguide to help you enjoy your visit. If arthritis or any other limb condition makes it difficult for you to hold, we can give you an ear-piece or headphones. Disabled visitors pay the normal price for admission, the accompanying carer goes free.
• If you have visited us recently and would like to leave us a review, please visit the Euan's Guide website.

Wheelchair access

• There is level access from the Abbey Church Yard entrance to most of the ground floor areas including the 18th century Pump Room, the Sun Lounge which overlooks the hot spring and the outside Terrace which overlooks the Great Bath. The front door opening width is 1320mm (52in). There is also level access to the main Roman Baths shop from Stall Street.
• Access to the teaching space, mezzanine displays, lower museum, Great Bath and East Baths is via four accessible lifts. For safety reasons a maximum of four wheelchair users can access the lower levels at any one time. There is a limit to the size of the wheelchair, see platform lift information below. There is one accessible toilet close to the Roman Baths entrance and one at the beginning of the Kings Bath corridor. Measurements are included in our Access Statement which you can download below.

Visitors with hearing impairments

• We have British Sign Language tours available on Opus Touch handsets available free of charge with your ticket. These are issued beside our audioguides. If you are a hearing aid user, we can provide you with an audioguide compatible with the "T" switch on hearing aids. We can also provide a printed copy of the audioguide text. 

Visitors with visual impairments

• We have some Braille information panels and tactile models as well as a more descriptive audioguide for people with visual impairments, which describes things in greater detail. Braille transcripts of the audioguide are available on request. We are happy to arrange object-handling sessions for groups with special needs. Contact the Bookings Office for further information.

Visitors with autism

• The Roman Baths is currently operating a reduced capacity to ensure we can provide a relaxed and enjoyable visit. If you are having difficulty coping with anything in the museum, please speak to a member of staff, who will be able to help you and your family find a quieter space in the museum. The staff are here to enable you to have as smooth a visit as possible. There is more information in the documents below to help you plan your visit and to show you what you will experience throughout the site, so that there are no unwelcome surprises.
• If you are having difficulty coping with the queues at the entrance, or anything in the museum please speak to a member of staff, who will be able to fast track you and your family to buy your ticket or find a quieter space in the museum. The staff are here to enable you to have as smooth a visit as possible. There is more information in the documents below to help you plan your visit and to show you what you will experience throughout the site, so that there are no unwelcome surprises.

Visitors with potential claustrophobia

• The Roman Baths is below street level and some of the complex is underground, including the Roman temple courtyard. The walkway through the courtyard is narrow in places and can become crowded, so there is a risk of claustrophobia. You can if you wish omit part of the visit, just ask a member of staff to show you an alternative route. Between mid-June and August the visit is less crowded in the evening, or before 10.00am. At other times weekdays are less busy than weekends and weekday mornings are the best time to visit.  

Visitors with dementia

• The Roman Baths is a member of the Bath and North East Somerset Dementia Action Alliance group and is working towards becoming a dementia friendly site. We provide Dementia Friends sessions to our front-of-house teams and the staff are here to help enable you to have as an enjoyable visit as possible. We offer free entry to Bath and North East Somerset residents who are Discovery Card holders. Free entry is also available for an accompanying carer.

Information for Stroke Survivors

• Our Visitor Experience team have had the opportunity to attend Stroke Awareness training sessions and we are working with the Stroke Association to become a Stroke Friendly museum.

To help plan your visit please click on the links and watch our accessibility video below:

• Accessibility Guide
• Information and maps for wheelchair users
• Information for visitors with Autism
• Visual Story
• Platform Lift information
• UK World Heritage Sites and their accessibility (web article) 

Winner of the Gold Award for Accessible and Inclusive Tourism at the 2019/2020 South West Tourism Excellence Awards

Winner of the Gold Award for Inclusive Tourism at the VisitEngland Awards for Excellence 2018

Winner of the Gold Award for Access and Inclusivity at the 2017/2018 South West Tourism Excellence Awards

 

Winner of the Gold Award for Access and Inclusivity at the 2017 Bristol, Bath and Somerset Tourism Awards

​Winner of the Gold Award for Access and Inclusivity at the 2015/16 South West Tourism Excellence Awards

Winner of the Silver Access for All Award at the VisitEngland Awards for Excellence 2016