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Bath to Cotswold Villages

I’m participating in the Best of South England next May. The tour ends in Bath and I’d like to stay a few extra days to visit the Cotswolds. What kind of transportation options are there for my trip?
Thank you.

Posted by
585 posts

Bus or rental car. Some train service to a centre like Cheltenham and then bus to surrounding villages. But rental car is best. Be aware many narrow, twisty roads.

Posted by
6384 posts

Ditto the rental car suggestion. The Cotswolds covers a large area with many villages. If you’re into walking find a village you like and take walks from it, but I don’t think that’s what you’re thinking. Public transportation options are limited.

Posted by
665 posts

We took the train to Moreton-in-Marsh and the bus to Stow-on-the-Wold. Very easy.

Posted by
70 posts

Take train to Morten on Marsh and walk to a village or two. Google maps has waliking trails.

Posted by
195 posts

Thank you for the replies. It gives me something to think about. I hadn’t planned on renting a car so I’ll look into the bus option.

Posted by
1189 posts

Hi from Wisconsin,
I have to clarify a response. "Beware narrow twisty roads." There are some straight roads where you can make fairly good time. But the beauty of the Cotswolds is in part the twisty roads. It is no big deal from a safety point of view. But don't expect to travel along at 50 MPH. Or 40. Slow down. It is the Cotswolds. A chance to travel back in time when the world was much slower.

wayne iNWI

Posted by
7595 posts

Unless you have a car, your trip to the Cotswolds would be frustrating. You would not be able to explore that thoroughly. Also, waiting for a bus would waste a lot of time.

Posted by
14803 posts

You could look into day tours into the Cotswolds.

I've taken a couple of tours with Mad Max Tours. They use 16 passenger vehicles so the groups are small.

Posted by
195 posts

Frank II,
Thank you for the link. This sounds like the perfect solution.
I appreciate it.
Vanessa

Posted by
105 posts

The Cotswold Way is a national trail that runs from Bath in the south to Chipping Campden in the north. The footway goes through the entire Cotswold region and is well-signed. A day's journey from Bath and you'll be in Cold Ashton where there is accommodation. You can go as far as you'd like and in my humble opinion it beats driving the narrow roads or being enclosed in a bus.
You pass the field where the Battle of Lansdown in the English civil war took place, as well as fields of sheep and cows and other bits of history. And the other folk on the path are very kind and there for the same reasons.
I really believe this to be the best way to see the Cotswolds. I've walked from Bath to CA and if you only want a day of it you can get the bus back to Bath from there.
And you get some of the best views from the footpath which for a while follows a ridge line just past Bath. Be ready for very steep hills and valleys of mud and some slippery terrain. If you're not prepared for that it can be unpleasant.
You may not see the highlights like Upper and Lower Slaughter but you'll get all you need from the Cotswold Way.
The best bit is that it's an adventure and an incredibly rewarding one at that. You never know what to expect.