National Trust properties Bath Assembly Rooms and Prior Park Landscape Garden have teamed together to put on a special set of Jane Austen inspired events from 15 – 21 September 2025 to tie in with the Jane Austen Festival.
Jane Austen lived in Bath for four years and often visited the city before moving here in 1801. One of her favourite places in the city was Bath Assembly Rooms, as she wrote to her sister Cassandra about her love of dancing. Her novels have many scenes set in Bath, both in the ballrooms and in gardens, mentioning wildernesses and many a picnic.
Working together, Bath Assembly Rooms and Prior Park Landscape Garden are offering visitors additional events inspired by the scenes described in her novel, set to the backdrop of the sweeping landscape at Prior Park Landscape Garden. With the Assembly Rooms closed for major renovations ahead of opening a new Georgian visitor experience in 2027, this is a unique opportunity for the properties to mark Jane’s 250th year together.
Susie Meader, Visitor Experience and Operations Manager in Bath said “We’re excited to be working with Bath Assembly Rooms on this new offer at Prior Park Landscape Garden. Whilst many people visit the garden in Regency dress, it’s wonderful to build a programme that provides something new to people in Bath during the Jane Austen Festival. Now with the lower entrance open, it’s a shorter walk to Prior Park from the city centre.”
Image - Looking over the Palladian bridge at Prior Park Landscape Garden in Regency dress, National Trust, Ruth Newell
For anyone with a love of Jane Austen that isn’t in Bath for the festival this year, Back When, a history podcast from the National Trust, is also releasing a brand-new episode all about Jane Austen. Coming out on Thursday 10 September, the podcast has been put together with Jane Austen expert and Bath Assembly Rooms curator, Dr Tim Moore. This brand-new episode explores the Georgian dating scene of Jane Austen and what it was like in Bath.
Any festival goer that arrives at Prior Park Landscape Garden between 15 – 21 September in Regency dress will be able to ‘Take a turn around’ the sweeping Georgian garden with a 15% discount on the normal admission price. Admission is free for National Trust members, no need to book.
Visitors can act out a favourite Jane Austen scene from her books and their adaptations around the garden at Prior Park. There will be scripts available to borrow with a map suggesting the perfect location in the garden to have a go at starring in their own Austen scene.
For those wanting a little more detail about the connection of gardens and Austen’s novels, sign up to the free Guided Garden walks on Thursday 18 September at 11am or Saturday 20 September at 2pm – normal admission applies, booking essential. The garden guide will explore areas of the garden such as the wilderness and link it to texts that Jane wrote about.
On Saturday 20 September, Prior Park Landscape Garden is offering a Cream Tea Picnic. Pre-book a cream tea to end your walk around the garden and celebrate the end of the Jane Austen Festival. Cream teas are £10 per person and include a scone with jam and cream, plus a hot drink. Normal admission to the garden applies, booking essential.
Visit: https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/visit/bath-bristol/prior-park-landscape-garden/events for more details of Jane Austen events happening at Prior Park Landscape Garden.
Tuesday 16 September, Bath Assembly Rooms curator, Dr Tim Moore will be speaking at BRLSI, Queen Square, Bath. The talk will cover Jane Austen’s Bath – a city of spectacle, sociability, and surprising diversity. Tickets £13. Bookable via the Jane Austen website: Jane Austen Festival_2025 - Talks & Lectures - Jane Austen Centre Bath.
Alana Wright, Experience and Visitor Programming Manager at Bath Assembly Rooms said “as this is such a special year for Jane Austen celebrations, we wanted to be able to mark the occasion even though the Assembly Rooms is closed. We’re delighted we’ve been able to work with partners in Bath to help bring together this programme of events and use some of the research from our curators to inform the activity. We look forward to welcoming Jane Austen Festival goers back into Bath Assembly Rooms on brand-new floors when we reopen in 2027.”
To find out more about the restoration of Bath Assembly Rooms and the creation of a new Georgian visitor experience, visit the website: https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/visit/bath-bristol/bath-assembly-rooms.
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