Grays Boutique B&B

About Grays Boutique B&B

Grays occupies a large Victorian villa in Upper Oldfield Park, on the hillside south-west of the centre. The house dates from the 1880s and stands on a quiet residential road, with views north across the rooftops towards the Royal Crescent and the hills beyond. It is owned and run by the Gray family, who also keep a sister property in Cornwall, and the whole place is set up around a small number of guests rather than volume.

There are twelve bedrooms, each decorated individually with a mix of antique and contemporary furniture, patterned fabrics and modern bathrooms - several with roll-top or freestanding baths. The larger rooms on the upper floors have the best outlook; a couple at garden level open onto the terrace. Beds are good, rooms are properly quiet at night, and there is no through traffic.

Breakfast is served in a light dining room and uses local suppliers, with cooked options prepared to order alongside pastries, fruit and yoghurt. There is a guest sitting room, off-street parking, and the owners keep a well-informed list of restaurants, walks and places to visit in the surrounding countryside. Children over a certain age are accepted; the house is not set up for very young children.

The walk into the centre takes about fifteen minutes and is downhill going in, uphill coming back, which is worth bearing in mind. Bath Spa station is roughly ten minutes on foot. Grays suits couples wanting somewhere calm and residential rather than a city-centre hotel, guests arriving by car who need somewhere to leave it, and anyone using Bath as a base for exploring Wiltshire, the Mendips and the Cotswolds.