Jane Austen wrote six novels of which two are set in Bath—ironically, her first to be completed but last to be published, Northanger Abbey, and her final book Persuasion, both of which were published posthumously. The Jane Austen Centre focuses on her experiences in Bath and the effect it had on her and her novels.

The tour begins with a costumed guide introducing the Austen family, post that you can walk around the entire premises at leisure. There is a short film with Adrian Lukis talking about Jane Austen’s Bath which is shown exclusively here. Adrian Lukis is the actor who played Mr. Wickham in BBC’s version of Pride and Prejudice. There are exhibits which display clothing and accessories of those times, including pistols, vintage tea sets, furniture, writing equipment and dresses from casual to party wear. There is also a commissioned wax work of Jane Austen created using forensic evidence. The tour ends at the ‘dressing up’ area where you can choose to step back into the Austen times with a change of raiment. It is always fun to try and enact your own version of Elizabeth and Darcy’s story. To make the tour more engaging, the guides are dressed as characters from Jane Austen’s book, and visitors can also sample Georgian biscuits during the tour.

An easy way to find this centre is to look out for ‘Lizzie’ who stands at the door everyday, come rain or shine. This centre also has an online memorabilia shop, so you don’t need to cart your goodies through the holiday, simply buy it online and ship it home.