A day in Bath and Stonehenge

I was attempting to do the exact same thing when we were there earlier this summer. It would have worked. Here was the plan.... 7am - catch the early train form london to Bath 8:30am - arrive and get in line for the Baths that open at 9am 10:30am - take the free walking tour of Bath 1 or 2pm - take the train to Salsbury 3-ish - take the Stonehenge bus from the Salsbury train station
6-ish - take the train back to London from Salsbury We went to a musical the night before (Wicked) that had us out late so we made a last minute decision to skip the Bath portion and just to the Stonehenge portion. It was a smart decision. We really enjoyed Stonehenge and the transportation connections from the Salsbury train station were real easy to manage. The bus was right there waiting for us when the train arrived and we just hopped on and bought a ticket. I think if we had tried to do both in one day we would have been wiped out. We will see Bath on a return trip some day.

I would spend some time in Salisbury too. It is a wonderful town for walking around the be sure to visit the cathedral....amazing. I did the train from London to Salisbury, went to Stonehenge for a visit, it took about 2 hours total.....then back to walk all over Salisbury.
I'm sure you will enjoy it.

If that's the case, then I can't blame you for wanting to see Stonehenge as a side day trip. I,too, went (on my fourth UK trip) "because it's there." I'm intrigued by the idea of a tour that can do Bath, Stonehenge, and Salisbury (but I've never been to the last place.) If you do decide to go your own route, as I said before I do recommend Mad Max Tours. The driver was personable and informative and got us where we needed to be. We loved the stop at the pub after our visit to the village of Laycock. And everyone on the tour basically slept on the return trip to Bath after a long day of touring. Have a great trip!

the mad max tour is really good, you should take that to see Stonehenge and it also includes several nice villages along the way. I recall it leaves pretty early in the morning, so you may have to overnight in bath. I haven't been to salisburry but yes Windsor. the castle is pretty amazing and you can have a nice view of the change of guards much less crowded compare to London. and if you're lucky you may see some royals shopping in the mall across street from the castle.

So, both of you are saying Salisbury is "better" than Bath?

Tom, My first question to you is whether this is your first trip to London? Because in my opinion staying a third day in that great city offers many more options than any day trip. But if you are set on making a trip, then my second question is how committed to seeing Stonehenge are you? I'm among those who found it very disappointing. While I'm glad I can say that I saw it, if I had had to give up something else in order to get there I would have been upset. You could take an early train to Bath and try to be at the Roman baths when it opens. Definitely start there: it is most impressive. I don't recall how long I spent there, maybe two hours. We hit every stop on two different audio tours. We enjoyed it that much. After that, you might have time for one more site that interests you before you'd have to rush to get to the tour pick up. We did Mad Max tours (recommended) taking us to Stonehenge and then one village in the Cotswolds for a walk around and a quick drink at a pub. But depending on your interests you could also skip Stonehenge and have a very nice full day in Bath. I recommend the Museum of Bath at Work as well as just walking around, enjoying the scenery. Do whatever else interests you (Jane Austen stuff, 1 Royal Crescent, etc.). I will say that I found both the Bath Assembly Rooms and the "Fashion Museum" were let downs. It's just one person's opinion, but I say you can skip them without missing much. Enjoy! Matt
EDIT: See my later comment below. Some of this info is out of date.

We were in London for a few days in 2009 so we saw many of the tourist sites. I'd like to see Stonehenge "because it's there" more than anything else. So when we see pictures of it we can say, "hey, we were there." So it's not a biggie. I guess we have to weigh the time involved in getting there vs. what we would see. A bus tour from Bath is 3 hours long. Maybe we'll do Bath and Salisbury if the transportation lines up. Thanks!

I have also going to London in mid-September and plan to take a small group tour to Bath and Stonehenge. The tour company is the English Bus tour and it only takes up to 16 people. It has received great review on other travel sites. It seems flexible and hassle free.

I was not suggesting Salsbury was better than Bath. It pained me to not go to Bath and I can not wait to go back and see it. However, I knew if we got up early to see it after staying out late the night before we would be wiped out. Salsbury was the better option to get to Stonehenge. We did like Stonehenge and found it lived up to the hype. It is all about choices. We made our choice and now you will have to make yours. Good luck!!

Hmm, David's response made me go back and check the Mad Max website. Although there was a half-day afternoon departure tour of Stonehenge and one Cotswold village when I was there, it appears they only offer Stonehenge as part of a full day tour now. Better check all the tour options yourself before making final plans. (And my apologies for posting out of date info.)
Matt

Sounds good. I have been to all five options mentioned: Windsor, Cotswolds, Salisbury, Bath, and Stonehenge. All are very worthwhile seeing. I think that the Cotswolds and Windsor are too far afield and time consuming for a one day tour (unless this is to turn into Gilligan's Island). Bath is very interesting. I, too, enjoyed the baths, but I would rank in priority: 1) free walking tour, 2) cathedral, 2a) Roman baths. The tour is at least an hour as are the baths. The cathedral can take less time. Salisbury is very interesting. The cathedral is wonderful as is a stroll around the close. The town itself is okay for a stroll, but not worthy of setting aside time. Also remember that there is an original copy of the Magna Carta in the chapter room at the cathedral.

Just there. I agree on last comment regarding Bath priorities. We did the Mad Max Stnehenge-Avebury-Laycock-Castle Combe tour. In our party of 4 everyone had a different #1 favorite. IMHO I wouldn't go back to Stonehenge, Avebury was nuch more fun. If you do Stonehenge if at all possible get there early it gets VERY crowded with tour buses. As for Bath you need the time to have a relaxed stroll around town. It is especially pretty at sundown and in the early morning.

Re Mad Max not doing a half day tour to Stonehenge. Check with Lion Tours who also work along with Mad Max tours. I think they had a half day tour to Stonehenge when I checked not too long ago.

Scarper tours has a 3 hour tour to Stonehenge twice a day. http://www.scarpertours.com/stonehenge-tour.php

I took a bus tour last summer and did Windsor, Bath, and Stonehenge and I thought it was great. We went through Evans Evans tours and I thought taking the bus made it a little easier allowing someone else to drive then having to worry about taking trains, etc. We were able to take a tour through Windsor Castle, tour the Roman Baths, and then finished at Stonehenge. Obviously you don't have any extra time to do any exploring on your own but I still thought it was well worth it to be able to see all three places in one day. I thought Stonehenge was awesome for what it is worth. Obviously you are not expecting any bells and whistles out of it but I thought it was pretty magnificent to see! Have so much fun!

Lion tours would be fine. Our Mad Max driver said Maddie and her ex-husband tried to run the business together but in the end split it up. I hear they do just as good--same buses and some of the old Mad Max drivers.