Beautiful Bath tops poll of best city in the UK for visitors

The top UK cities and towns for a staycation have been ranked by consumer watchdog Which? with Bath being named the best medium-sized city alongside Liverpool being the number one big city and Wells first in the small city category.

The results came from Which?'s latest survey of almost 4,000 members who were asked about their experiences visiting UK cities and towns in the past two years. Each location is rated out of five stars based on accommodation, food and drink, cultural sights and tourist attractions, ease of getting around, lack of crowds, and value for money and then tallied into an average customer percentage score.

Bath received an impressive 82 per cent rating with one person describing it as "one of the top sites in the UK, indeed Europe," for its architecture and historical sites, according to Which? It’s best known for its beautifully preserved Roman baths, the Georgian houses of the Royal Crescent and its literary connections, notably the city's Jane Austen Centre.

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The area also has a combined total of 29 National Trust sites to see including Prior Park, an 18th-century landscaped garden designed by Alexander Pope and Capability Brown. Bath got five stars for cultural sights and tourist attractions, four for food and drink and accommodation.

Bath has 10 5-star hotels with Which? naming The Yard, an 18th-century coaching inn, as one of the best hotel stays in the UK for under £200. Bath also has an impressive 19 luxury spa and wellness centres.

However, Somerset's South West neighbours did not rank anywhere near as highly. Exeter, in Devon, ranked 11th, receiving a 71 per cent rating with Cheltenham ranked 12th at 61 per cent. In the larger city category, Bristol ranked 9th with 73 per cent and Plymouth placed 16th receiving 66 per cent. The full list is listed below:

The best UK cities and towns for a staycation in 2024, according to Which?

Large cities and towns

1. Liverpool - 84 per cent

2. Edinburgh - 83 per cent

3. York - 83 per cent

4. Belfast - 77 per cent

5. Glasgow - 76 per cent

6. London - 76 per cent

7. Newcastle-upon-Tyne - 75 per cent

8. Portsmouth - 74 per cent

9. Bristol - 73 per cent

10. Cardiff - 72 per cent

11. Manchester - 71 per cent

12. Brighton & Hove - 67 per cent

13. Leeds - 67 per cent

14. Hull - 66 per cent

15. Nottingham - 66 per cent

16. Plymouth - 66 per cent

17. Birmingham - 64 per cent

18. Coventry - 63 per cent

19. Sheffield - 63 per cent

20. Milton Keynes - 61 per cent

21. Aberdeen - 60 per cent

22. Southampton - 60 per cent

23. Leicester - 58 per cent

24. Swansea - 58 per cent

25. Derby - 56 per cent

Medium cities and towns

1. Bath - 82 per cent

2. Chester - 80 per cent

3. Lincoln - 78 per cent

4. Worcester - 77 per cent

5. Canterbury - 76 per cent

6. Shrewsbury - 75 per cent

7. Harrogate - 74 per cent

8. Oxford - 74 per cent

9. Norwich - 73 per cent

10. Cambridge - 72 per cent

11. Exeter - 71 per cent

12. Cheltenham - 67 per cent

13. Dundee - 62 per cent

14. Eastbourne - 62 per cent

15. Hastings - 62 per cent

16. Gloucester - 61 per cent

17. Ipswich - 59 per cent

18. Bournemouth - 58 per cent

Small cities and towns

1. Wells - 86 per cent

2. Durham - 78 per cent

3. St Andrews - 78 per cent

4. Winchester - 77 per cent

5. Stratford Upon Avon - 76 per cent

6. Salisbury - 75 per cent

7. Stirling - 75 per cent

8. St David's - 74 per cent

9. St Ives - 74 per cent

10. Ely - 73 per cent

11. Windsor - 73 per cent

12. Chichester - 69 per cent

13. Inverness - 69 per cent

14. Oban - 69 per cent

15. Lancaster - 67 per cent

16. Perth - 65 per cent

17. Truro - 61 per cent

18. Fort William - 58 per cent

19. Torquay - 58 per cent