Visit Bath and Celebrate the Queen’s Birthday

The Queen will be ninety on the twelfth of June (although this is her official birthday, her actual birthday was on April 21^st (we wish we had two birthdays...)), and to celebrate, all across the country events are being held in her honour. Bath is no exception so we had a look at what venues in and around the city have planned.

In Bath’s Parade Gardens – the beautifully maintained gardens which are just next to the river and the iconic weir in the centre of the city, will be a charity picnic day. The gates will be open from 10:30 am until 5 pm and in that time there is a long list of local bands and artists set to be performing; there will be plenty of food on offer from local independent suppliers; face painting and a bouncy castle for the kids; and the Tipsy Botanists and independent brewers providing local beers, ciders and cocktails. Tickets are £10 and money from the ticket sales will go to three charities - the Royal United Hospital, St John’s, and Bath and North East Somerset Volunteers Centre. Tickets are available from visitbath.digitickets.co.uk.

Nearby, at The Bishop’s Palace in Wells, there will be another picnic - “The Grand Picnic”, as part of The English Country Garden Festival. The Bishop’s Palace has been home to the Bishops of Bath and Wells for over 800 years, and as well as being a beautiful medieval palace, the Bishop’s Palace also includes fourteen acres of gardens and the well pools from which the city of Wells take its name.

The palace is a great visit in its own right. But on June the 12^th included in the normal entry price which allows you to explore the palace and its grounds, will be The Grand Picnic event which will include stalls, family games, live entertainment, music and storytelling. Organisers encourage visitors to bring their own picnics and come to take part, or to pre-order one of their luxury picnics.

If you fancy going slightly further afield then at on on the 12^th at Longleat (which is just 40 minutes from Bath) will be music legend Elton John. Admittedly not as part of the Queen’s birthday celebrations, but as part of the celebrations for Longleat’s 50^th Anniversary. The concert will take place in the evening within a fully reserved seated outdoor arena on the doorsteps of Longleat’s iconic stately home and is set to be a night to remember. So we thought it was worth mentioning!  

Whatever you’re doing for the Queen’s birthday – attending a picnic, taking high tea, or maybe doing nothing at all, Bath is a great place to come and do it.