---
node: spot_bath_bath_abbey
type: spot
slug: bath_abbey
destination: dest_bath
title: "Bath Abbey"
lead: "Bath Abbey is the last great medieval church built in England, finished on the eve of the Reformation that made such buildings redundant. Its fan vault and the wall of glass at the east end are what to look at."
published: 2026-08-12
updated: 2026-08-12
image_file: spot_bath_bath_abbey.jpg
image_source: "https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Abad%C3%ADa_de_Bath,_Bath,_Inglaterra,_2014-08-12,_DD_46.JPG"
image_author: "Diego Delso"
image_license: "CC BY-SA 4.0"
---

## Overview

A bishop rebuilt it from 1499 after dreaming of angels climbing ladders to heaven, and he had the dream carved on the west front, where the angels are still climbing — one of them, memorably, head down. The Reformation stripped it within forty years of completion and it stood roofless for decades before being finished again in the Victorian period. The floor is paved with 891 memorial stones, which the recent underfloor heating project had to lift, record and relay one by one.

## Highlights

The tower tour climbs 212 steps and puts you above the Roman Baths and behind the clock face; it is the best half hour in Bath. Evensong is free. The abbey is a working parish church, so services close it to visitors at short notice.