The historic Roman Baths & Pump Room scooped four Bristol, Bath and Somerset Tourism Awards in a ceremony last week at the Somerset County Cricket Club in Taunton.
The awards were: International Visitor Experience (Gold), Venue and Business Tourism (Gold), Access and Inclusivity (Gold) and Large Attraction of the Year (Bronze).
Councillor Paul Myers (Conservative Midsomer Norton Redfield), Cabinet Member for Economic and Community Regeneration, said: “We are delighted that the Roman Baths has been recognised as one of the area’s best international visitor experiences and event venues.
“These awards are testament to the constant improvements made by staff at the Roman Baths to create an award-winning welcome for all our visitors – from innovative new displays, to access improvements and high levels of staff training.”
The East Baths area, adjacent to the famous Great Bath, has been updated this year with new projections, soundscapes and CGI reconstructions showing the Roman Baths at the height of their popularity as a working, living and leisure space.
Visitors can immerse themselves in the Roman Baths as they would have looked in the first to fourth centuries.
Thanks to a recent major redevelopment, 90% of the Roman Baths can now be accessed by wheelchair users. Visitors with hearing or visual impairments can explore the site using British Sign Language guides and tactile displays.
The site has also been made more accessible to visitors on the autism spectrum, with detailed guidance about what to expect provided on the website.
Last year, the Roman Baths introduced audioguides in four new languages – Dutch, Korean, Polish and Portuguese – bringing the total number of audioguide languages to 12. Audioguides are available free of charge for visitors. Printed information leaflets are also provided in more than 30 additional languages.
The Roman Baths and Pump Room plays host to an increasing number of out-of-hours conferences, weddings and private parties.
The Council’s Heritage Services department works closely with contracted caterer Searcys to deliver events for a wide range of customers, with a strong focus on local sourcing and sustainability.
Bristol, Bath and Somerset Tourism Award winners will automatically be considered for matching categories in the South West Tourism Excellence Awards, which will be announced in February 2018.
They will also have a chance to go onto the national VisitEngland Awards, which will be held at the Assembly Rooms in Bath on 23rd April 2018.
