The Roman Baths has been crowned one of the country’s best Large Visitor Attractions in the prestigious VisitEngland Awards for Excellence 2013.
Members of the Roman Baths team were officially presented with a Silver Award at the glittering awards ceremony held in Manchester last night (20th May).
The Roman Baths was the only attraction in the South West to make it into the national final of the awards category for Large Visitor Attraction of the Year. It competed against the National Motor Museum at Beaulieu in Hampshire (Gold), The Cutty Sark (Bronze) and Blenheim Palace (Highly Commended).
Commenting on the finalists James Berresford, VisitEngland’s Chief Executive, said: “I would like to congratulate all those finalists in this year’s VisitEngland Awards for Excellence. We received 320 applications and the quality of submissions was higher than ever. It is therefore no small achievement for the Roman Baths to be a finalist and it can justifiably take credit and pride in earning a coveted place in the top four in its category in England.”
Councillor Ben Stevens (Lib-Dem, Widcombe), Cabinet Member for Sustainable Development, said: “We’re delighted that the Roman Baths has been recognised with a Silver Award at the prestigious VisitEngland Awards for Excellence 2013.
“This achievement builds on the Roman Baths winning Gold in the South West Tourism Excellence Awards earlier this year and reflects the success of the team’s incredibly hard work. It shows Bath & North East Somerset Council’s continuing commitment to making this nationally important visitor attraction accessible and exciting for everyone to enjoy. I congratulate our Roman Baths team for all their dedication and devotion in going the extra mile to ensure visitors have a really enjoyable time.”
The Roman Baths made it into the national finals by achieving the highest scores in the South West awards for its “commitment to excellence in customer experience”, “sustainability” and “commitment to excellence in improvements”. The official report – based on the recommendations of the category judges and mystery shoppers – highlighted a number of positive aspects of the Roman Baths visitor experience, including:
- It is an iconic building in a memorable setting.
- Following several years of major investment, the museum and baths are very well presented and interpreted. Audio guides with a range of commentaries for different age groups, interests and languages are easy to use and informative.
- Video presentations bring the various areas to life as they would have been in Roman times, with great effect.
- There are regular free guided tours with knowledgeable staff; and costumed characters entertain around the main bath.
- The new Roman Baths Kitchen café, opened in May 2012, offers a good range of food throughout the day, with good service, quality furniture and a changing menu.
