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10 -
No fire or stove -
No dogs -
Good mobile signal -
2 Single, 2 Twin, 2 Double
Overview
Property details
Elton House is in the very centre of Bath, close to the Abbey. It is a handsome and spacious Georgian building, one that you can imagine characters from Jane Austen novels emerging from.
Accommodation for affluent Georgians
Elton House overlooks Abbey Green near the remains of the medieval priory, right in the centre of Bath. The earliest part of it dates from just before 1700, but it was subsequently enlarged and re-fronted by Elizabeth and Jacob Elton, when they purchased the lease from the Duke of Kingston. It was enlarged to provide lodgings for visitors wishing to take the waters. By 1750, it had become a handsome robust building on several floors, with a fine staircase and excellent joinery, arranged as sets of lodgings to accommodate the affluent Georgians who flocked to Bath year-round to see and be seen, and to take the waters. Thereafter the fashionable world moved up the hill, away from Abbey Green; part of the ground floor became a shop and the rest of the house stayed as it was.
Miss Philippa Savery
It was given to us in 1982, with lots of lovely furniture, by Miss Philippa Savery, a gallant campaigner for the city’s preservation. Peter Bird, our architect, described his work there as rather like 'conserving a cobweb.' In 1946 Miss Savery, looking for somewhere to sell antiques from, came upon it in neglected but unaltered condition; home to twelve different tenants and with a cobbler’s shop on the ground floor. Miss Savery patiently bought up the leases until she was mistress of the whole house, now functioning again as one. The garden she created at the back of the house is a particular source of pleasure, as is the view of green fields above Bath, still to be enjoyed from the windows at its front.
What this property offers
Floor plan
Things to do nearby
Elton House, right in the city centre close to the beautiful Abbey, is in a perfect location for exploring the wonderful World Heritage city of Bath, with its wealth of historic buildings, parks and gardens, restaurants, cafes and elegant shops - plenty of entertainment to suit all tastes.
The ancient Roman Baths are certainly not to be missed. In the summer months, the Baths are open until the evening, a truly magical experience in this remarkable building. Experience the natural thermal waters for yourself by taking a dip at the Thermae Bath Spa, whilst enjoying spectacular rooftop views of the city at the same time.
Take a stroll along The Royal Crescent and The Circus to absorb the historic atmosphere of two of Bath's famous landmarks, built between 1767 and 1775 and designed by John Wood, the Younger.
Lunch or afternoon tea at the Pump Room is a real treat. Look out for special offers alongside spa treatments at the baths for a truly indulgent experience.
To find some of the best places to eat, take a look at the Best restaurants in Bath. We have teamed up with The Good Food Guide to offer Landmarkers 6 months membership for £1, providing exclusive benefits and rewards at many of the restaurants listed. Ts&Cs apply.
For more information and ideas of things to do during your stay at Elton House, please see our Pinterest Map
Please Note: The Landmark Trust does not take any responsibility and makes no warranties, representations or undertakings about the content of any website accessed by hypertext link. Links should not be taken as an endorsement of any kind. The Landmark Trust has no control over the availability of the linked pages.
Nearby attractions
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Clear directionsPlease note, these directions should be used as a guide only. Full directions will be sent with your booking confirmation letter.
Essential information
What you need to know about this building
Does the property allow dogs?
No.
How is the property accessed?
Directly from the street (three steps up from street level). Parking is some distance and unloading the car is possible in York Street, where you can park your car by the bollards to unload between the hours of 6pm to 10am only. This is approximately 50 yards from Elton House. Please note that there are parking restrictions and very few spaces so you will need to move your car into a public car park once you have unloaded.
What is the nearest railway station and how far away is it?
Bath Spa – 0.3 miles.
Is there car parking specifically for Landmark guests?
No, there is variable street parking (at cost). In summer you may have to park some distance from the property. Parking is some distance and unloading the car is possible in York Street, where you can park your car by the bollards to unload between the hours of 6pm to 10am only. This is approximately 50 yards from Elton House. Please note that there are parking restrictions and very few spaces so you will need to move your car into a public car park once you have unloaded.
What type of heating does the property have?
There is gas central heating.
What is the mobile signal like?
To check up-to-date mobile network coverage in the area, visit signalchecker.co.uk. Due to the location and structure of many of our buildings, signal strength may differ to those indicated.
What are the kitchen facilities?
The kitchen is fully equipped with all plates, cutlery, fridge etc. There is also an electric cooker, dishwasher, washing machine and microwave.
What are the bathroom facilities?
There are four bathrooms: one with a bath and three with showers.
Does this Landmark have steep, narrow or spiral stairs?
The stairs are highly polished so care is needed.
Is there a garden or outside space?
There is a small enclosed garden.
Is there higher than expected background noise?
The property is in a city centre location, next door to a public house.
Booking and payment
What happens if I can’t get to the Landmark due to bad weather?
If the weather is bad, please contact our booking office who will be able to tell you whether the Landmark is accessible. If the housekeeper can safely get to the building to prepare it then we consider that it is open and available for guests. However if we cannot undertake a changeover then we will do our utmost to transfer your stay to another Landmark, depending on what we have available. It may not be of a similar size or in the same part of the country as your original booking. If the building is accessible but the customer cannot travel due to poor weather in his/her local area then please be aware that Landmark will not provide a refund. However the customer may be able to claim on his/her own travel insurance. We recommend that all guests take out travel insurance when they first secure a booking.
How can I pay?
We accept Maestro (if issued in the UK), Visa, MasterCard, direct transfer and sterling cheques drawn on a UK bank. Cheques should be made payable to the Landmark Trust except for Lundy stays and boat/helicopter tickets which should be payable to The Lundy Company Ltd. All payments must be in sterling.
How do I pick up the key?
The key arrangements will be included in the Further Infomation document which will be sent to you prior to your stay.
Can I pay a deposit?
If your stay starts more than two months from the date you make the booking, you are required to pay a deposit of one third of the cost of your stay (or £100 per booking, if greater) at the time of booking. Camping on Lundy and The Bunk House at Llwyn Celyn must be paid for in full at the time of booking.
How can I cancel or change my booking?
If you wish to cancel or change your booking, please contact our Booking Office on 01628 825925
Do you accept payment in other currencies?
At the moment we only accept payment in sterling.
What if I arrive late?
Our housekeeper will leave the key in a suitable place, the details of which will be sent to you prior to your stay.
How far in advance do I need to book?
It depends. Some of our most popular Landmarks are booked up a long time in advance, but many can be booked at short notice. We will always have Landmarks free for the coming weekend so it’s always worth checking our availability list.
Do you have to be a member to book a Landmark?
No, Landmarks are available to be booked for anyone.
Do I need a Handbook to be able to book?
No, all the information you need can be found on our website, although we’d like you to buy one anyway as it will be a pleasure to own!
Staying at a Landmark
Are Landmarks accessible for people with disabilities or limited mobility?
Some of our Landmarks are suitable for people with disabilities or limited mobility. However, many Landmarks have steep or narrow staircases, uneven floors and thresholds, changes of level, low ceilings or beams, as well as indistinct colours on steps and in corridors. We recommend that you call Booking Enquiries on 01628 825925 if you would like to find out the suitability of a particular Landmark for anyone with a specific disability. Further information on access when visiting Lundy can also be found here.
Are Landmarks only available as self-catering accommodation?
Yes, Landmarks are only available as self-catering accommodation. We do not offer bed and breakfast
Do you provide catering?
Landmark does not provide catering, but we can recommend Greycoat Lumleys who can arrange for expert and well-trained staff to cater for one evening or for your entire holiday. Their cooks and chefs are able to work with you to meet your specific requirements
Do you allow dogs?
You may bring up to two dogs to properties where dogs are allowed (please see specific property details for exemptions however dogs are not permitted on Lundy except assistance dogs). They must be kept off the furniture and under proper control. A charge of £20 per stay is made for each dog. Please contact booking enquiries if a registered assistance dog is supporting one of the guests, for which there is no charge.
Can I bring a pet?
Apart from two dogs (see above) no other pets are permitted.
What time can I arrive and what time do I have to depart from the Landmark?
Arrival is from 4pm and departure is by 10am.
Am I insured if I break something?
We do not carry insurance for breakages. However we appreciate that accidents do sometimes happen. If you have a breakage during your stay, please let the housekeeper know and if appropriate we reserve the right to invoice you accordingly.
Are Landmarks suitable for children?
Yes, most of our Landmarks are perfect for children, with gardens to play in and secret places to discover. Our furniture is surprisingly robust and we positively encourage families to stay. However, some of our buildings may not be suitable for small children; for example, some of them have steep or uneven spiral staircases. We recommend that you call the Booking Enquiries team if you would like to find out the suitability of any of our Landmarks for young children.
Can I get married in a Landmark?
Unfortunately, most of our Landmarks are not licensed for weddings. However, you may get married on Lundy.
Can I hold a big party in a Landmark?
All our larger Landmarks are perfect for gatherings of family or friends. You may invite an additional two guests to visit you during your stay, however they must not stay overnight. This is very important because our fire regulations specifically note the maximum number of people in any one building. In addition our properties are prepared, furnished and equipped for the number of people specified and greater numbers cause damage and excessive wear and tear to vulnerable buildings. Should this condition be ignored we shall make a retrospective charge per person per day (whether or not they stay overnight) for each guest over the permitted limit, the charge being pro-rated on the total cost of your booking.
Are there televisions in the buildings?
We deliberately do not provide televisions and find that most people appreciate this.
Why are your access tracks sometimes difficult?
One of the challenges of restoring unloved buildings is gaining access to them. We frequently have to negotiate rights with our neighbours and share tracks with them. In many cases tracks do not belong to us and we have no right to maintain them. Wherever possible we work with our neighbours to provide you with a good quality surface, but where this is a problem then you will be warned at the time of booking.
Will there be sockets for my electrical appliances?
Yes, we have standard electricity sockets for UK appliances. If you are coming from outside the UK, you will need to bring your own adaptor plug(s). If you are visiting one of our European properties we have standard European electricity sockets. If you are visiting from the UK, you will need to bring your own adapter plug (s).
Can I charge my electric vehicle at the Landmark?
Landmark’s electrical systems have not been designed to provide continuous power from one socket over several hours. If an ordinary socket is used to charge an electric vehicle, there is significant risk of an electrical fire and consequent danger to life. Therefore, we are unable to allow electric vehicle charging from most of our Landmarks at present.
We are working to provide Type 2 Electric Vehicle charge points at our properties where there is private parking. Where this is available, please request this facility when booking the property to ensure the outlet is enabled on your arrival. There is a small charge to cover the cost of electricity provided. Please book this facility in advance.
Do you allow smoking in a Landmark?
No, we do not allow smoking in any Landmark.
Facilities
Are the kitchens and bathrooms restored to a modern standard?
Sometimes our kitchens and bathrooms have to be imaginatively fitted into the available space in buildings where before there were none, but they are all planned and equipped to a high and modern standard.
Is linen provided?
Yes, Landmarks are fully equipped with sheets and towels. All the beds are fully made up for your arrival. Except for the Llwyn Celyn Bunkhouse.
Are the kitchens fully equipped?
Yes, our kitchens are well equipped with cookers and fridges. There are freezers and dishwashers (in larger buildings) and, where space allows, microwaves as well as a wide and standard range of utensils. A full equipment list is available at time of booking.
Will there be a mobile signal in the Landmark I book?
Mobile coverage varies. Some Landmarks have an excellent signal, but others have none at all. If you are concerned, you can check with the housekeeper before your arrival.
Is there Wi-Fi in your buildings?
Following customer feedback, we’ve begun installing WiFi in some of our buildings and will continue rolling it out to more over time. Due to the locations and historical nature of our buildings, this will happen as and when new facilities are installed. You can see which properties currently have WiFi here, or browse our list of Landmarks with good mobile coverage.
What should I bring with me? Are there toilet rolls, soap, shampoo, milk, teabags, coffee, hairdryer?
A welcome tray with tea and sugar awaits your arrival and you will find a pint of milk in the fridge. We also provide two toilet rolls per toilet and a small bar of soap per basin, but no other toiletries. Hairdryers are provided.
Do you have other questions?
Our Booking Enquiries team can help with information about each building.
History & restoration
The first to stand here
In 1699 John Hall of Bradford-on-Avon granted to Edward Marchant of the City of Bath, and a Mason and builder, a lease of the plot of land on Abbey Green now occupied by Elton House. At this time the larger properties that had occupied the site of the Abbey Precinct since the Dissolution were being subdivided and built over as their owners sought to extract a profit from them. The area to the north of Abbey Green had been a garden, belonging to Charles Swallow, so the house built by Edward Marchant must have been the first to stand here.
This earliest house seems to have been of three floors, with a substantial basement but only one room deep; the rear wall of the north-east basement room has a window in it, showing the room behind to be a secondary addition. In the basement was a kitchen and a second room in which there is a stone niche, or Buffet, with a fine shell head. This, with other fine masonry detail in the central lobby, led to the theory that this might at one time have been a main floor, but it now appears more likely that all have been moved from elsewhere.
At the back of the first house there was a central wing, probably for a stair. There is good reason to believe that it in fact contained the existing very fine staircase, which was later moved to its present position. It still relates to earlier floor levels.
Between about 1710 and 1720 this first house was enlarged by the addition of wings on either side of the stair but extending west beyond it on all floors. This could have been part of the original plan, since only at basement level do there seem to have been windows in the back wall.
Edward Marchant was a developer as well as a builder and profited from the early eighteenth-century building boom in Bath. His will, dated 1735, left the house and its furniture to his daughter, Elizabeth Brydges, although stipulated that another daughter, Ann, was allowed to stay on there after his death, in the room that had been her lodging. In 1738, Elizabeth, now a widow, married a second time, to Jacob Elton, Alderman of Bristol.
Jacob Elton was a son of the commercial and shipping magnate, Sir Abraham Elton, 1st Baronet. This large family had extensive interests in the slave trade on which Bristol relied in this period, shipping their metal goods to Africa to be exchanged for enslaved people, who were then transported to plantations in the Americas, the ships returning to Britain laden with cotton, tobacco and sugar. Elizabeth and Jacob Elton almost certainly lived in Bristol and not in Elton House. However they made several alterations and improvements to the house after 1749 when they purchased the lease from the Duke of Kingston. It is likely that these were intended to convert the house into sets of lodgings to accommodate the affluent visitors flocking to the city.
The house was re-faced in ashlar and given new windows; the ceilings of the rooms on the first and second floors were raised, and decorated with new cornices, fireplaces and panelling. The staircase was moved into a new stairwell set further back between the side wings.
Further additions have been made since; an attic storey, window bays to the rear wings, a block of closets at the southern corner, the cottage and most noticeably the shop front, probably all of around 1800. At the same time, through many changes of owner and countless different occupiers, Elton House has, in its essential character, survived as it was made by Edward Marchant and his daughter Elizabeth Elton. It tells of the more humdrum and provincial side of Bath, a side that existed alongside the formal grandeur of the Woods but has now largely disappeared.
Although it is the Eltons’ name that has stayed with the house, it was theirs for less than 30 years. In 1765, the year of her husband’s death, Elizabeth Elton’s trustees sold it to Joseph Terry, Haberdasher. His family owned the house, now called 2 Abbey Street, for 120 years, although they do not seem to have lived there after about 1830. In 1851 it was let to a grocer who later, having risen to the position of Superintendent of the Mineral Water Baths, bought the lease.
In the 19th century the area around Abbey Green was no longer fashionable or prosperous and most of the houses were divided into innumerable tiny dwellings. Elton House was no exception and it was in this neglected but unaltered condition that it was first seen by Miss Philippa Savery in 1946; home to twelve different tenants and with a cobbler’s shop on the ground floor.
Miss Savery was looking for somewhere to set up a business selling antiques and was soon the occupier of the front half of the shop and rent collector for the whole house on behalf of Miss Dingle, the owner. As Miss Savery worked hard on a Sunday to get ready for opening, one of the tenants sang hymns to make up for her irregular behaviour. But the antiques shop was soon well-known and loved, especially by the people of Bath who recognised it as a symbol of much that was disappearing around them and they would arrive with artefacts rescued from the debris of demolition.
As rooms fell empty, Miss Savery took on the tenancies and finally on Miss Dingle’s death in 1962 was able to buy the whole house. Miss Savery died on November 27th 1996. Until then she and Elton House had been full and equal partners. Much ingenuity and imagination had gone into their survival together and their skilful evasion of the heavy hand of modernisation. The garden she created at the back of the house is a particular source of pleasure, as is the view of green fields above Bath, still to be enjoyed from the windows at its front.
For a short history of Elton House please click here.
To read the full history album for Elton House please click here.
To download the children's Explorer pack for Elton House please click here.
Conserving a cobweb
In 1982 Miss Savery handed on the care of Elton House to the Landmark Trust. Peter Bird, our architect, described his work there as rather like ‘conserving a cobweb’. The roof was renewed, and we had to rebuild the tottering south gable and carry out some masonry repairs. We made two bathrooms on the top floor, and a kitchen where Miss Savery’s bathroom used to be. Miss Savery’s kitchen became the housekeeper’s linen store.
Since then, we have continued to maintain, decorate and mend the house as gently as possible, so far resisting the fashion for steam-cleaning stonework in Bath, so that the house continues as a proud example of the true effects of time and former coal fires. The antiques shop, sitting room and cottage are rented out, the letting income also contributing to Landmark’s charitable mission of rescuing historic buildings. Elton House now offers lodging to new generations of visitors to Bath, coming to admire the city’s beauty and enjoy its sociability, just as they did in the 18th century.
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Your Landmark is available from 4pm on the day of arrival until 10am on the day of departure, except Sunday departures that include a late departure time of 3pm and some non-Lundy Thursday departures.