In December 2010, as freezing conditions gripped the UK, images of bikini-clad women relaxing in a naturally heated rooftop pool, juxtaposed against the snowy city of Bath, circulated throughout the world’s media.
The subject of the news item was Britain’s only thermal spring, worshipped and tamed by the Romans and the site of the Roman Baths and Temple complex at Aquae Sulis.
A Unesco World Heritage Site, Bath is one of Britain’s major tourist destinations, with the Roman Baths listed by the Association of Leading Visitor Attractions in the top 20 UK visitor attractions.
An economic impact survey conducted by Peter Dawson of the University of Bath estimated that the Roman Baths, managed by Bath & North East Somerset Council, leverages £92m a year into the local economy.
Last year saw the culmination of a £5.5m redevelopment of the Roman Baths that has taken five years. The aim was to transform access to the visitor attraction and to maintain its position within the competitive local tourist industry.
The focus was on conservation, access and interpretation through the creation of a family friendly, interactive experience that highlights the aesthetic appeal of the site as well as emphasising its human dimension.
The refurbishment of the Roman Baths was part of the council’s broader strategy to refresh the city’s tourist attractions and facilities and make them appealing to new audiences.
A Destination Management Plan of 2007 stated: “Bath is a theatre which needs to stage new plays, a gallery which needs to rehang its collection from time to time.”
The document emphasised the need to respond to changing consumer tastes by bringing experiences centre stage through innovation in interpretation, presentation and technology.
In The Experience Economy, authors Joseph Pine and James Gilmore argue that by capitalising on the consumer demand for experiences, businesses can increase profitability and build the foundation for future economic growth. At the Roman Baths, the staging and consumption of experiences is central to its updated design and interpretation.
The council’s Heritage Services Team worked with Event Communications and Scena Productions to bring history to life through the stories of the people who visited the baths and temple in Roman times.
“Character stations”, comprising computer animations and film projections of Roman individuals, such as Sulinus, a stonemason, supported by the objects of his trade, punctuate the sequence of displays.
Deep Bath
Visitors are encouraged to “Experience the Great Bath – walk where the Romans once walked” while costumed characters engage in activities and demonstrations and provide tourist photo opportunities.
Costumed interpretation also takes place within the new amphitheatre-style space that houses the temple pediment. A combination of high and low-tech interpretation, such as digital reconstructions and 3D models, are also used.
Other changes include a reversal of visitor flow in order to make the complex space hidden beneath the centre of Bath more comprehensible. Lifts to transport visitors with mobility difficulties from street to Roman level have been incorporated along with new walkways, ramps and lighting.
Stonework has been cleaned and stabilised and key features of the site, such as the Great Bath, decluttered. Walkways have been made less obtrusive so that more of the Roman remains can be viewed by the public and the insertion of glass panels into the floor at strategic points enables Roman engineering to be inspected in close detail.
The two on-site shops have also been updated and redesigned by London-based retail consultancy M Worldwide. The selling area has been expanded by 15%.
The location of the main store at the end of the route through the baths and with a second exit onto the High Street is significant in that it provides the culmination of the visitor experience at the same time as competing with local stores to attract passing shoppers.
The interior scheme combines the same textures, materials, colours and lighting used throughout the attraction so that the shop provides a seamless part of the overall experience.
To date, the Roman Baths Development Plan appears to have achieved its objectives of increasing visitor numbers and boosting revenue. The improved decoration and interpretation has been imaginatively executed and the impact of key moments in the visit maximised, as in the case of the impressive new space showcasing the temple pediment.
Passive participation
However, at the heart of this experiential redesign lies a paradox. For all the exciting opportunities to connect with audiences though interactive displays and costumed interpretation, audiences are failing to connect with each other. During my visit to the baths, which was on a busy bank holiday, it was quiet and there was a sense of physical isolation and passive participation.
This could be attributed to the widespread use of audio-guides, which continue to offer the main source of information about the Roman Baths to visitors.
Updated into eight different languages and integrated with other media used in the displays, the guides provide visitors with useful information and increase dwell time, but appear to inhibit discussion and shared experience.
The lack of social interaction is at odds with the noisy and lively way in which the baths would have been experienced in Roman times. As Seneca the Younger commented in 60AD: “Picture me with a babble of noise going on all about me at a public bath-house.”
Nicky Ryan is the programme director at the London College of Communication, University of the Arts, London
Cost £5.5m
Main funders Bath & North East Somerset Council, DCMS/Wolfson Fund, MLA Designation Challenge Fund
Exhibition design Event Communications
Project management in house
Construction Scena Productions
Shop design M Worldwide Design
Shopfitting Datum Contracts, IDEss Retail
Conservation Cliveden Conservation, Minerva Conservation, National Conservation Centre, Liverpool
Structural design Mann Williams
BSL tour Acoustiguide
The subject of the news item was Britain’s only thermal spring, worshipped and tamed by the Romans and the site of the Roman Baths and Temple complex at Aquae Sulis.
A Unesco World Heritage Site, Bath is one of Britain’s major tourist destinations, with the Roman Baths listed by the Association of Leading Visitor Attractions in the top 20 UK visitor attractions.
An economic impact survey conducted by Peter Dawson of the University of Bath estimated that the Roman Baths, managed by Bath & North East Somerset Council, leverages £92m a year into the local economy.
Last year saw the culmination of a £5.5m redevelopment of the Roman Baths that has taken five years. The aim was to transform access to the visitor attraction and to maintain its position within the competitive local tourist industry.
The focus was on conservation, access and interpretation through the creation of a family friendly, interactive experience that highlights the aesthetic appeal of the site as well as emphasising its human dimension.
The refurbishment of the Roman Baths was part of the council’s broader strategy to refresh the city’s tourist attractions and facilities and make them appealing to new audiences.
A Destination Management Plan of 2007 stated: “Bath is a theatre which needs to stage new plays, a gallery which needs to rehang its collection from time to time.”
The document emphasised the need to respond to changing consumer tastes by bringing experiences centre stage through innovation in interpretation, presentation and technology.
In The Experience Economy, authors Joseph Pine and James Gilmore argue that by capitalising on the consumer demand for experiences, businesses can increase profitability and build the foundation for future economic growth. At the Roman Baths, the staging and consumption of experiences is central to its updated design and interpretation.
The council’s Heritage Services Team worked with Event Communications and Scena Productions to bring history to life through the stories of the people who visited the baths and temple in Roman times.
“Character stations”, comprising computer animations and film projections of Roman individuals, such as Sulinus, a stonemason, supported by the objects of his trade, punctuate the sequence of displays.
Deep Bath
Visitors are encouraged to “Experience the Great Bath – walk where the Romans once walked” while costumed characters engage in activities and demonstrations and provide tourist photo opportunities.
Costumed interpretation also takes place within the new amphitheatre-style space that houses the temple pediment. A combination of high and low-tech interpretation, such as digital reconstructions and 3D models, are also used.
Other changes include a reversal of visitor flow in order to make the complex space hidden beneath the centre of Bath more comprehensible. Lifts to transport visitors with mobility difficulties from street to Roman level have been incorporated along with new walkways, ramps and lighting.
Stonework has been cleaned and stabilised and key features of the site, such as the Great Bath, decluttered. Walkways have been made less obtrusive so that more of the Roman remains can be viewed by the public and the insertion of glass panels into the floor at strategic points enables Roman engineering to be inspected in close detail.
The two on-site shops have also been updated and redesigned by London-based retail consultancy M Worldwide. The selling area has been expanded by 15%.
The location of the main store at the end of the route through the baths and with a second exit onto the High Street is significant in that it provides the culmination of the visitor experience at the same time as competing with local stores to attract passing shoppers.
The interior scheme combines the same textures, materials, colours and lighting used throughout the attraction so that the shop provides a seamless part of the overall experience.
To date, the Roman Baths Development Plan appears to have achieved its objectives of increasing visitor numbers and boosting revenue. The improved decoration and interpretation has been imaginatively executed and the impact of key moments in the visit maximised, as in the case of the impressive new space showcasing the temple pediment.
Passive participation
However, at the heart of this experiential redesign lies a paradox. For all the exciting opportunities to connect with audiences though interactive displays and costumed interpretation, audiences are failing to connect with each other. During my visit to the baths, which was on a busy bank holiday, it was quiet and there was a sense of physical isolation and passive participation.
This could be attributed to the widespread use of audio-guides, which continue to offer the main source of information about the Roman Baths to visitors.
Updated into eight different languages and integrated with other media used in the displays, the guides provide visitors with useful information and increase dwell time, but appear to inhibit discussion and shared experience.
The lack of social interaction is at odds with the noisy and lively way in which the baths would have been experienced in Roman times. As Seneca the Younger commented in 60AD: “Picture me with a babble of noise going on all about me at a public bath-house.”
Nicky Ryan is the programme director at the London College of Communication, University of the Arts, London
Project data
Cost £5.5m
Main funders Bath & North East Somerset Council, DCMS/Wolfson Fund, MLA Designation Challenge Fund
Exhibition design Event Communications
Project management in house
Construction Scena Productions
Shop design M Worldwide Design
Shopfitting Datum Contracts, IDEss Retail
Conservation Cliveden Conservation, Minerva Conservation, National Conservation Centre, Liverpool
Structural design Mann Williams
BSL tour Acoustiguide
