We are traveling to England in July for a month and will stay at each location about a week using public transportation and hired drivers. Because of physical limitations, we prefer limited walking. Do you suggest Bath or Salisbury for a base exploring southern England? Easy access to trains and buses as well as quiet sleeping are important.
Posted by
Cornwall
332 posts
It depends on what you want see.
Posted by
Northamptonshire, England
33994 posts
Bath is quite hilly and some of the hills are quite steep.
Salisbury is on a nearly flat plain.
Might that help?
Then again if what you are interested in fits better with one than the other, that might help decide. For example, the Cotswolds and Shakespeare country, whilst not on Bath's doorstep are a long way from Salisbury. But the south coast and Stonehenge are much closer.
Posted by
Portsmouth
5553 posts
Bath is best for the southwest whilst Salisbury is best for the southeast so it all depends on what you want to see.
Posted by
3124 posts
From Salisbury there's a convenient, inexpensive shuttle bus that stops at Stonehenge (visitor centre), Old Sarum, and a park & ride lot along the way. It runs several times a day, to the best of my knowledge.
Posted by
Bristol, UK
1454 posts
I think Bath would offer you more options for day trips using public transport. Make sure you stay somewhere near to the train station (the bus station is at the same location) to minimise walking. Bath is not huge so quite easy to explore on foot as long as you’re able to do some walking.
Posted by
Bristol, UK
1454 posts
The centre of Bath is reasonably flat. You can walk from the station to the Royal Crescent with only a pretty gentle uphill gradient and that’s basically central Bath done. To get to Abbey it’s more or less flat and the same to cross Pulteney Bridge. The city is set in a bowl but the centre is at the bottom of the bowl if that makes sense.