London Roman Baths

Directions to find this London Oddity

The nearest Tube station is Temple, but you can also walk from Charing Cross station (Trafalgar Square) or Holborn.

This photo shows the top of Surrey Street and the King's College London shop on the corner of The Strand.

Nearby Attractions:
• Courtauld Gallery
• Somerset House Free Guided Tours
• Trafalgar Square
• The Old Curiosity Shop
• Dr. Johnson's House
• Prince Henry's Room and Samuel Pepys Exhibition
• Hunterian Museum
• Sir. John Soane's Museum

Also try A Walk Around Charles Dickens' London.

At the top of Surrey Street, on The Strand, is a bus stop for the two Heritage bus routes (numbers 9 and 15) which use the old iconic Routemaster buses. Find out more...

Just so you know you're on the right street, as there are no signs for the Roman Baths at this point, this is a view looking down Surrey Street from The Strand.

On Surrey Street, on your right, you'll pass the closed Piccadilly Line Aldwych Station. (You can see another closed entrance on The Strand.) The station opened in 1907 but was never as popular as predicted. During the Second World War it was closed and used as underground storage for the British Museum to protect precious treasures.

The station closed for business in 1994 and is now used for testing trains as well as being a popular film location. If you'd like to see inside, check the listings for Open House London when I've been inside for a guided tour.

You'll pass this rather grand looking building on your right, with 'Norfolk Hotel' above the door. This building is used by King's College London and there is no public access.

Just after the 'Norfolk Hotel', set back from the road, you'll see the entrance to this tunnel and the first sign for the Roman Baths. The small black sign on the wall says:
"National Trust
Roman Baths
Down steps turn right."

It looks like a private area but this tunnel has full public access so head on through. The tunnel is called Surrey Steps.

The tunnel is not long and you can see two bollards at the end. This is because there are steps at the end and we don't want you falling straight down in your excitement to find the Roman Baths.

There's only ten steps but they are steep so consider using the handrail if it's been raining.

At the bottom of the steps you are on Strand Lane.

On Strand Lane look right and you'll see the road continues under a white building. You'll see an ornate balcony on an upper floor but, more importantly, in front of the white building, you'll see the black railings on the right which identify the Roman Baths.

There's a button on the wall which, when pressed, illuminates the inside of the basement of no.5 Strand Lane and the Roman Bath.

There's no guarantee that this small bath is actually Roman as there is little or no evidence of Roman inhabitants on this street in London.

David Copperfield, a fictional character by Charles Dickens, was said to regularly use this plunge bath.

Whatever is true we can't be sure but it is an interesting find and worth a visit.