after cruise suggestions on getting to cotswolds then gatwick Airport

Are you saying that it is your desire to go to The Cotswolds for just 1 night, then back to London for 1 night before flight home from Gatwick? If that is the case, then it is just not worth it as you would be travelling in the wrong direction (NW) from Southampton to The Cotswolds only to then have to travel all the way back to SE England.

I would consider going from Southampton to see SE England - though I am not a fan of the coast which is rather built up. You could consider going NW for a short train journey to stay in Winchester or Salisbury - both places with medieval Cathedrals. (Salisbury also has a shuttle bus up to Stonehenge). www.nationalrail.co.uk
https://www.visitwiltshire.co.uk/salisbury
http://www.thestonehengetour.info/timetable
http://www.visitwinchester.co.uk

Just east of Southampton is Portsmouth Harbour - consider a visit by train?http://www.historicdockyard.co.uk

What does your airline say about check-in time for your flight out of Gatwick? It's often 3 hours in advance, which would mean you'd need to be at the airport at 6:50 AM, in which case I'd want to spend the last night at the airport.

I assume you want to see some of the Cotswolds, not merely sleep there. There are one-day van tours of the Cotswolds priced around £100 per person. I think you can build your visit around one of those tours for much less than $450 per person if your debarkation time at Southampton isn't too late in the day.

Some of the Cotswold tours depart from Moreton-in-Marsh, which is a short train ride from Oxford. I used Go Cotswolds! this year and was very pleased. If you Google "Cotswolds Tours Oxford", you may also find tours from Oxford itself, which would mean a bit less train travel for you. It is very easy to get from Southampton to Oxford by train.

It would take some coordinating, but I don't see any great difficulties, because the trains (or potentially buses) you would use before and after the tour run quite frequently. You'll be able to build in some slack so you don't need to worry about missing a train and having to buy a new ticket. The first step, of course, will be confirming that there's going to be a tour running on the day you need.

You'll take a taxi from the port to the Southampton train station (I know nothing about that part of the trip), then the train to Oxford. At this point there are three possibilities:

• Tour departs from Oxford: You spend the night in Oxford.
• Tour departs from Moreton-in-Marsh: You take the train on to M-i-M and spend the night there, making it quick to meet the tour van then next morning. More train travel on Friday, less on Saturday morning.
• Tour departs from Moreton-in-Marsh: You spend the night in Oxford and get an early train to M-i-M the next morning to meet the tour. Less train travel on Friday, more on Saturday morning.
  

Wherever you stay, you'll need to arrange to leave your luggage at your hotel and pick it up at the end of the tour unless the tour company has room to stow it in the van during the tour.

At the end of the tour, you'll be dropped off at either the Moreton-in-Marsh train station or somewhere in Oxford. If the tour ends in M-i-M, you'll hop on the train to Oxford. Once you're back in Oxford, you can get either a train or a bus to Gatwick Airport and stay at a nearby hotel.

Use the National Rail website to check train schedules from Southampton to Oxford or Moreton-in-Marsh and from the ending point of your tour to Gatwick Airport. I don't think the schedule extends to April yet, so use a Friday and Saturday in February to see the schedules.

The bus schedule from Oxford to the airport is available here.

The trip durations for trains and buses are fairly similar, but the train requires at least one connection.

The total cost of this trek will be significantly affected by when you buy your train tickets. They'll be much cheaper if bought soon after your dates go on sale. The hotel cost needn't be exorbitant. Take a look at a website like booking.com to see what is available for the night you need. You'd want something near the train station in Oxford if that where you stay. Moreton-in-Marsh is pretty small.

I know I've made this sound daunting, but I don't think it would be, since there is plenty of transportation to get you where you need to go. If I really wanted to see the Cotswolds and had just one day to do it, I'd be willing to do this. I would certainly not be willing to pay $450 per person for a tour from Southampton. Incidentally, keep in mind that the "walking tour" being promised might be compromised by April weather.

Are we by any chance talking about Easter weekend?

I can't help with the advice on a Cotswolds tour however staying in Lonon the night before a 9:50 am flight from Gatwick is not a good idea. For a flight that early I would stay overnight at one of the airport hotels. Gatwick isn't actually that close to London.

You ought to stay at Gatwick not London on the Saturday night for such an early departure. Less hassle.

April could be school Easter holidays, so many places will be busy.

Southampton to the Cotswolds for just one night to Gatwick is a lot of travelling for little reward. Have you considered the New Forest instead? Geographically much more sensible and is much underrated on this forum. Pretty coastal villages such Lymington, a great stately home (Beaulieu promounced bewlee) and plenty antique and tea shops in the inland villages.

thank you all for the wonderful tips!! It was very helpful!! we are definitely going to stay at a hotel near gatwick on Saturday night to avoid any delays!

Is there any benefit of staying overnight in Oxford over Morteton in Marsh?
Also, anymore feedback on visiting the New Forest that Jennifer mentioned? This is our first time visiting the U. K. So really any tips you give me is really appreciated 😉 and thank you so much for taking the time to respond 😀!!

Some ideas of what to do and see in the New Forest:
https://www.visit-hampshire.co.uk/explore/areas-to-visit/new-forest
https://www.thenewforest.co.uk

The New Forest is a good idea. A couple of years ago, before a cruise from Southampton, we booked a tour of the New Forest area with a local taxi company. Very pretty towns and countryside.

Consider visiting Winchester, just north of Southampton. The city was once the capitol of England. The cathedral is fantastic.

Portsmouth is an easy commute from Southampton. For anyone interested in England's history as a seafaring nation, the Royal Navy's dockyards and surrounding harbour can be fascinating, especially Lord Nelson's lavishly restored flagship Victory. Then a direct train or bus, with frequent departures, to Gatwick Airport to overnight before your (early) morning departure. Google Maps can show you the routes.

There's lots to see in Oxford--the colleges plus two really good museums, but you won't have much time, will you? What time do you expect to get off the ship? I didn't really see anything of Moreton-in-Marsh itself, but two people on my van tour were staying there, and they didn't say anything negative about the town, which I think they might well have done if they thought they'd made a mistake by choosing it as their base. If you wanted to spend all your time in Oxford (skipping the Cotswolds tour), that wouldn't be a crazy thing to do. It's certainly a worthwhile destination.

If you'd like to see cute English towns closer to your landing port, two possibilities not far from Southampton are Arundel (west of Brighton) and Lewes (east of Brighton). Both are good for wandering around and soaking up the atmosphere. I liked Brighton, too; the Royal Pavilion is neat. But for some reason I don't think it's where I'd head if I had just one day.

Looks like you could get from Southampton to Moreton-in-Marsh in two to three hours with one train change (at Reading), and from Moreton to Gatwick the next afternoon in about three hours with one or two train changes (at Reading and maybe also Redhill). Don't take a route that makes you change trains in London, that will force you to change stations via Underground or taxi, aggravation you definitely won't need. I agree with others that spending Saturday night at or near Gatwick is the best idea.

Booking.com identifies several hotels and inns in Moreton-in-Marsh, but I have no experience with them. Google identifies several "Cotswold tours" from Moreton, again I have no experience. (We did a full-day tour out of Oxford, your timing won't allow that.) Or local taxis to nearby villages might be a good option on Friday PM and again Saturday AM. I wouldn't recommend basing in Oxford to see the Cotswolds on your time frame, it's just too far from the scenery. There's lots to see and do in Oxford but you're looking for a rural experience, I assume.

That said, I agree with others that going from Southampton to the Cotswolds and back to Gatwick in your time frame will not be a good experience. While the trains are doable, you might prefer not to lug your bags on and off them several times. If you want a good rural experience, consider the ideas others have offered around the New Forest or southeast England. Much easier travel, lots of great scenery and sights.

This company might be able to put something together for you if your budget allows, either Friday or Saturday. We considered using them after a Southampton docking but our plans changed, so I can't offer direct experience. Or take a train to a convenient base town for Friday night and work with that. England has a lot of beautiful scenery and villages beyond the Cotswolds. I think you'll have a better time closer to your starting and end points.

Take a look at the map - The Cotswolds (Bourton-on-the-Water etc) are near the top. Gatwick Airport is near Crawley. Get familiar where places are. Try the satellite view. Consider zooming down on places of interest for a closer look - where you may also drag on the yellow man to get the street view. Explore the places that people have mentioned to try and figure out what is right for you.
https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@51.3188971,-1.2197069,9.09z/data=!5m1!1e1

One warning I give all visitors to the uk...one traffic accident and our motorways(freeways) grind to a halt. So travel by road is a risk if you have limited time. Travel from Southampton to the Cotswold's can be slow by road at the best of times, there not being a motorway north out of Southampton to the middle of England.

I would personally not go to the Cotswold's. The weather in April can be unpredictable and its not much fun driving around in the rain and or snow.

Winchester is a good call or Portsmouth and easy to get to Gatwick from either

thank you everyone! after all the feedback we've decided to just go straight to London and spend the night there! I will just have to return another time to see Cotswold! take care everyone!

That looks like a good decision to me