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Winter at the University of Bath

If you're a student staying in Bath over the winter break, take part in our festive activities and make new friends.

Festive activities

We have a series of activities taking place for students staying in Bath over the Christmas break. All students are welcome, whether you are living on or off campus, but make sure you book onto each of your chosen activities as places are limited.


As well as the events listed below, many normal activities will continue until the end of teaching. Facilities such as the STV will remain open for most of December.

Join our Winter at Bath WhatsApp channel to get reminders and up-to-date information. If your friends are all going away over the vacation and you would like to meet new friends, then why not sign up to our Winter at Bath buddying scheme.

Date Event Time and Location Details
Monday 18 December Sustainable traditional Christmas decorations 10.30 - 11.30 am or 12-1pm, Esther Parkin Booking now closed
Monday 18 December Bauble decorating workshop 1pm, The Arts Studio, The Edge Booking now closed
Tuesday 19 December Board Games 1pm, The Edge Social Space Booking now closed
Tuesday 19 December Christmas trail Anytime between 10am and 6pm, starting at The Edge Social Space or the Virgil Building Booking now closed
Tuesday 19 December Sleeping Beauty Pantomime 6pm meet at Green Park Residences, 7pm at Theatre Royal Bath for this very uniquely British tradition Booking closed
Wednesday 20 December Gaming session 4pm-6pm, Esther Parkin Book here
Thursday 21 December Origami Fairy Lights 12pm Art Studio, The Edge Book here
Thursday 21 December Christmas film 2pm, The Edge Social Space No need to book just come along
Thursday 21 December Decorating Christmas pots 2.30pm - 3.30 pm or 4pm - 5pm, Esther Parkin Book here
Thursday 22 December Christmas film 3pm, The Edge Social Space No need to book just come along
Saturday 23 December Roman Baths Trip 1.30pm - 4pm, The Roman Baths, Abbey Church Yard, Bath Book here
Tuesday 26 December Walk around Prior Park Gardens 2pm- 4pm, meet at Entrance on Ralph Allen Drive Book here
Wednesday 27 December Board Game afternoon 2pm- 4pm, Esther Parkin Book here
Friday 29 December Trip to Longleat (Stately Home, Animal Park and Festival of Lights) 10.30am- 6pm, cost £26 Bookings now closed.
Monday 1 January Self-guided New Year's Day walk Various routes around campus and the city Find out more

Other suggested activities

As well as the individual events, here are some other ideas.


Meals with mates

If you are staying in Bath throughout the Christmas vacation, why not join our Meals with Mates? In groups of six, you'll meet each week between 18th December and 5th January and in pairs take it in turn to host a meal. Don't worry if you can't cook, we'll pair you with someone who can. Register your interest here.

Sports Pass

The Team Bath Sports Pass can be used during the winter break; if you haven’t already activated your free sports pass then please do so by visiting STV reception. You can book courts to play sport with friends or Swim in the SwimFit lanes. The Sports Training Village has reduced holiday opening hours over the winter break.

Library Resources

All library resources are available to you over the break. This includes a large film collection for loan, newspapers and popular magazines from around the world through Press Reader, and through a 1 year trial with Kanopy , access to 24,000 films, documentaries, tv series and instructional videos from over 700 international suppliers. Kanopy is a particularly good source of films in Mandarin, French, German, Spanish, Italian and Russian. Box of Broadcasts also provides access to 2 million off-air tv and radio recordings from more than 75 free-to-air channels while you're in the UK.

For festive reading ideas, try the Library's new festive reading list , see the display in the Library on Level 2, or the Library's Reading for Pleasure guide.


Events in the City

In addition to the above, there are a number of other events going on in the city in which you may be interested.


There are also a number of other events taking place in and around the Bath and Bristol area. Take a look at Visit Bath's What's On Guide and Visit Bristol's What's On Guide to see what's happening this winter. Some local highlights include:

  • Bath Christmas Market 23 November - 10 December. Over 170 chalets will be offering festive goods and foods throughout the city centre.
  • Bath on Ice Why not give ice-skating a go? Open from now until 3 January. Booking advised. When finished warm up with hot drinks and food at the festive Alpine Bar.
  • Glow Golf Next to the ice-rink is the Adventure Golf Course. Lit up by fairy lights, this magical experience is great fun and no previous experience necessary. Open from now until 3 January. Booking advised.
  • Park Runs The Bath Skyline Park Run takes place every Saturday (including the 23 and 30 December). It starts just outside the University grounds. Run, jog or walk the 5km course. More runs may be added. Free to enter but you need to register first.
  • 12 tales of a Georgian Christmas No 1 Royal Crescent. See this beautiful house decorated as it would have been in Georgian times. Student discovery card holders get discounted entry.
  • Services at Bath Abbey

Useful Information

Over Christmas and New Year, many shops and offices have reduced opening hours. Trains and buses run limited services. Find out about transport to and from campus, opening times for shops on campus and in the city, and staff offices.


Wellbeing

Student Support will be available throughout the vacation period from 9am-5pm (25th, 26th December and 1st January 9am-1pm) via studentsupport@bath.ac.uk. If you need advice outside these hours our Be Well - Talk now service provides free confidential advice and support to you wherever you are in the world, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. You can also access urgent support. If you have an emergency, ring 999 or University Security if you are on campus or in University accommodation.

Transport

All students living in the City will have access to the campus via First Buses, who are running a reduced service, in order to take part in our activities. (Please note that the No. 22 bus is not running between Christmas and the New Year and the U2 service is not running between 17 December- 6 January). E-scooters will still be available - don't forget Tier offers a 35% discount for University students. Further information on bus and train travel, and taxis, is on our winter transport page.

Supermarkets in Bath

Find out more about which supermarkets will be open in Bath over the Christmas period, on our Supermarkets page.

Food outlets opening times

Check the opening times for all the food and drink outlets and shops on campus; this page is updated each week.

University offices

Most University staff will be on holiday from the end of Thursday 21 December, returning on Tuesday 2 January, so offices on campus and in University buildings will be closed. Our Security Team will operate 24 hours a day, 7 days a week throughout the period as normal.

The Library

The Library building will be open 24/7 over the Christmas break, although there will be no library staff available from Saturday 23rd December. Library staff will return on Tuesday 2nd January 2024. For all service details see: Library Opening Times and Staffed Services.

Contact us

If you have any questions about what's on, contact us