5 nights in Cotswolds

Posted by mszapiro on 03/14/23 07:29 PM

Hi, I'll be in Cotswolds this summer for 5 nights and trying to do triage on places to cover. I'd like to do inn to inn (probably with Cotswold Walks) but would prefer to keep per day walking down to about 7 miles most days to make it less pressured. Suggestions as to where to start and what not to miss? It all just seems like a lot of moving and I'm a slow travel fan.
One possibility is to focus on Moreton-in-Marsh, Stow-on-the-Wold, Bourton-on-the-Water, Guiting Power, Winchcombe, Broadway, Chipping Campden. (this would involve some taxis I realize).
Another possibility is part of Cotswold Way, such as Chipping Campden, Stanton via Broadway, Winchcombe, Cleeve Hill, Dowdeswell, Cheltenham.

Thanks so much!

Posted by Lorraine

Seattle WA

03/14/23 07:47 PM

26 posts

We did the Cotswold Way in 2019 and loved it, but we walked about 15 miles a day (which turned out to be too much--ouch!). We started in Moreton-in-Marsh and walked all the way to Bath, with one short taxi ride in Cheltenham when our feet gave out. The best parts were the beginning and middle. Here is a list of particular highlights:
1. Best towns: Broadway, Wotton-under-Edge, Painswick. The lamb pie at the Royal Oak and St Anne's BnB in Painswick are not to be missed.
2: Best sights: The walk up to Broadway Tower is absolutely beautiful, and the walk up to and along from the Tyndale Monument is similarly lovely. We also walked over and had a picnic among the Roman ruins at Great Whitcomb Roman Villa. The Cheese-Rolling hill is fun, but a hike!
The worst parts for us were skirting Cheltenham, walking the long ridge above Stroud, and walking down into Bath through the suburbs on the last leg. If I did it again, I would skip those parts. But overall, it was an amazing journey, and I highly recommend it.

Posted by Leslie

Southern California

03/16/23 03:14 AM

435 posts

We are walking the Cotswold Way with friends this summer. This webpage: https://www.nationaltrail.co.uk/en_GB/trails/cotswold-way/route/ breaks the route into 15 sections, most of which are 7 miles or shorter. Since we're doing the whole 102 mile route in 8 days, we've hired luggage transport so we only have to carry light packs each day. If you're interested in doing this hike, I would advise booking your inns soon.

Posted by isn31c

Lake District, England

03/16/23 07:29 AM

7393 posts

If you're doing the Costwold Way in easy chunks like that I'd base myself in one centre and keep shuttling between the start and end points each day.

Posted by Robin Z

Troy, Oh, USA

03/16/23 04:11 PM

2799 posts

When we walked the Cotswolds Way we took a rest day, (we were 65 & 70) at the time. We spent two nights at St Anne’s in Painswick, she offered to a little bit of laundry for us, so we gave her four items the first day, our second night we hadn’t gotten them back yet, she gave them to us, but they were damp. There is a lovely B&B across the street from St Anne’s that I would recommend staying at.