International Conference London 2024

Stonehenge and Bath tour on July 15, 2025

The participants will be offered a unique complementary excursion tour to Stonehenge and city of Bath. The tour will start with a photo stop at Big Ben and London eye.

Stonehenge

Stonehenge, prehistoric stone circle monument, cemetery, and archaeological site located on Salisbury Plain , about 8 miles (13 km) north of Salisbury, Wiltshire, England. Stonehenge was built in six stages between 3000 and 1520 BCE, during the transition from the Neolithic Period (New Stone Age) to the Bronze Age. Though there is no definite evidence as to the intended purpose of Stonehenge, it was presumably a religious site and an expression of the power and wealth of the chieftains, aristocrats , and priests who had it built-many of whom were buried in the numerous barrows close by. It was aligned on the Sun and possibly used for observing the Sun and Moon and working out the farming calendar or perhaps the site was dedicated to the world of the ancestors, separated from the world of the living, or was a healing centre. Whether it was used by the Druids ( Celtic priests) is doubtful, but present-day Druids gather there every year to hail the midsummer sunrise. Looking toward the sunrise, the entrance in the northeast points over a big pillar, now leaning at an angle, called the Heel Stone. Looking the other way, it points to the midwinter sunset. The Stonehenge that is visible today is incomplete, many of its original sarsens and bluestones having been broken up and taken away, probably during Britain's Roman and medieval periods.

Bath

Built for pleasure and relaxation, beautiful Bath has been a wellbeing destination since Roman times. The waters are still a big draw, both at the ancient Roman Baths and the thoroughly modern Thermae Bath Spa, which houses the only natural thermal hot springs in Britain you can bathe. City of Bath has even been designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The outskirts of Bath are quite hilly so it may be worth initially taking a panoramic tour either by coach or private car. Some places to visit in the City of Bath Tour are

The Roman Baths - providing a fascinating insight into the life and times of the Romans in Britain. Pause in the elegant 18th century Pump Room, with its live piano trio, on the way out.

The elegant Georgian architecture - townhouses, squares, and civic buildings all hewn out of the locally quarried honey-coloured limestone.

Bath Abbey - known as the Lantern of the West, with its stained glass, Edgar window commemorating the Coronation there in 973 AD of the first King of all England.

Jane Austen Centre - Jane lived for a while in Bath and wrote about the hectic social life she observed there. Both Catherine Morland (Northanger Abbey) and Anne Elliot (Persuasion) walked the same streets.

Award-winning pubs, restaurants and tearooms. Look out for the Bath Bun, a local delicacy.

The Theatre Royal is one of the most well-known provincial theatres and often debuts plays before they reach the West End in London

The visitors may cherish lunch in City of Bath. Lunch/refreshment is not included in the complementary tour.