Planning on English countryside this summer and am interested in the Cotswolds. It seems like a vast region with lots of little towns that seem so quaint but the choice seems overwhelming to me.
Thank you for any advice you can give.
2 to 3 days can give u a nice experience. Bourton on the water is a gd base and transit pt. Yes a town rather than village. If u have a car u can visit 2-3 villages a day easy and walkabout and have a meal. It is all about village atmosphere, relaxing and enjoying the uniqueness of these areas locked in time by their architecture and history. Activities could include mock fox hunt, walking the footpaths between villages, pub activities in eve as darts, photography of course and
Cycling. Try to stay at a B&B book soon as it is a very popular destination espec in summer. Stow on the wold, Burford, the slaughters, Bibury are very nice indeed.
Rick's Great Britain guide book has some coverage of the Cotswolds, including a bit of information about walking town-to-town.
The best villages are found in the centre of this map:> https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@51.8761445,-1.7883879,11z/data=!5m1!1e1
They are > Bourton-on-the-Water, Lower Slaughter, Snowshill, Broadway, Stanton, & Chipping Campden - which can be combined with nearby Hidcote Manor.
From a base in this area, you can also visit Stratford-upon-Avon, Oxford - combined with Blenheim Palace.
Now look at the map again. It is also possible to travel further afield. Look for the M50 going off to the west. This route becomes the A40 expressway. When it reaches Monmouth - turn left and drive down the Wye Valley to visit the ruins of Tintern Abbey. Then on down to Chepstow to see the Castle. You can return to the Cotswolds by crossing the Severn Bridge.
If you're interested in the 'English Countryside' there are better places than the Cotswolds. You can drive through all the main towns/villages within an hour, two if you stop for lunch. The countryside around is predominantly farmland bordered by hedgerow which doesn't afford much of a view when driving around. You can do some walking to get a better feel but there are far better places in England for walking and with far superior views.
If you want "quaint" then you can find it all over the UK, it's not limited to the Cotswolds.
There are plenty of bookstores and libraries here in LA where you or your wife could review the invaluable RS England guidebook. His books are a easy to read and full of useful information to help travelers define itineraries.
You can also type Cotswolds in th search box on this forum. Numerous discussions about the Cotswolds.
Besides wanting to see “quaint” towns and the English countryside what are your interests?
History? Architecture? Photography? Are you a foodie? Art? Music? Hiking ?
Summer is peak travel time for tourism. Cotswolds will be jammed pack. If you are comfortable with towns that will have Disneyland like crowds then Bourton on the Water is where to start.
The time spent in any of the towns can vary from and hour to a few hours. Few are worth a half day, unless you spend a night in one. I agree that Bourton on the Water gets very crowded in the summer, but is worth a stop.
Some of the most popular villages are Chipping Campden, Stow-On-The-Wold and Bourton-On-The-Water.
One of my favorite books I have on the Cotswolds is by Insight Guides; Great Breaks, The Cotswolds.
A small lightweight book that can easily be taken with you on your trip.$9.99.
Barnes and Noble has it, or you could order online.
https://www.insightguides.com/shop/product/insight-guides-great-breaks-cotswolds/9781780052236
It details many of the villages and mentions lots of things to do.
We did not rent a car last time we toured the Cotswolds.
We went with this company; Go Cotswolds:
https://www.gocotswolds.co.uk/
Guided day tours of the Cotswolds from Stratford-upon-Avon and Moreton-in-Marsh on Wednesdays, Thursdays, Fridays and Sundays. Excellent reviews on Trip Advisor:
https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g186399-d6696369-Reviews-Go_Cotswolds-Stratford_upon_Avon_Warwickshire_England.html
There is train service from London to Stratford-Upon-Avon and to Moreton-in-Marsh, both are pick up points for the tour. The tour is in a Mercedes-type minivan and there were only a dozen people on our tour total. A small group.
We stayed in Stratford-Upon-Avon, but that was just our personal choice and I'm not pushing that on anyone else.
You asked:
"How much time do you all recommend I spend?"
It's hard to make a recommendation because I don't know what else you're trying to do on your trip.
It depends upon how much time you want to spend there; totally up to you.
Do you want to cover the Cotswolds thoroughly, going to dozens of villages? You'll need a car and 3 to 5 days.
Or do you want to take a one-day tour to get a sample of the Cotswolds, and will not have a car? Then a tour such as Go Cotswolds might be for you.
As Claudia said, the very popular Bourton-On-The-Water is very crowded in the summer.
Stow-On-The-Wold and Bourton-On-The-Water are located pretty much in the center of the map that James posted above, meaning either would be a good central location in which to base yourself if you will be driving a car around for 3 to 5 days to see other villages.
Like Rebecca, I was happy with my GoCotswolds! tour. Mine departed from Moreton-in-Marsh, which is a short train ride from Oxford. I chose to stay in Oxford, which is worth more than a full day for its own sights (including two very good museums and all the colleges). There are also tours from Bath (including MadMax, which Rick also recommends), but hotels are generally more expensive in Bath, and I think I've read that the prettiest part of the Cotswolds is closer to Oxford. I also found Oxford much more architecturally interesting than Bath, but that is of course a matter of taste.
Without a car, one could spend 2 or 3 nights in Moreton-in-Marsh, taking a tour one day and using the buses that fan out from Moreton to visit other towns--or do a town-to-town walk--on the second day. Moreton is the only Cotswold town/village with rail service.
Acraven, you had a great idea to stay in Oxford on your trip. There's a lot to do in Oxford, as you know. Easy access by train to Moreton-In-Marsh to catch the tour. Glad to hear you enjoyed your GoCotswolds! tour.
If you want to see some of the quaint villages you will need a car, there isn’t bus service to most of the smaller villages. The villages of Ebrington and Painswick are well worth a visit, along with many others.
My wife and I stayed in Chipping Campden at the Cornerways B&B in 2013 and it was great. Burton-on-the-Water was also an appealing town. We had two nights in the Cotswolds but I recommend three if you can manage it. You can go from hikes from Chipping Campden, I think. We did a hike just within the immediate area of the town that went into sheep pastures.
I loved Stratford Upon Avon- it is a lovely little town with charming shops, and nice cafes- also a beautiful Christmas Shop where you can buy personalized ornaments, ect. I stayed in a lovely bed and breakfast called Shakespeares View that I highly recommend- beautiful views from your bedroom, full English breakfast, nicely decorated, and your greeted with a hot pot of tea and some homemade cake!
http://www.shakespearesview.co.uk/
It is a prime area for hiking and rightfully so. A month would do me right now. Gardens, if that is your cup of tea. Cups of tea also. There are too many villages to list but Chipping Campden is up there on my list, and the not as frequently visited Painswick and Bradford on Avon.
Some of my favorite memories are of the week we spent in the Cotswolds. We had a car and rented a cottage in Lower Slaughter. Some days we would walk footpaths. Other days we'd visit 2-3 of the surrounding towns and villages. We also went to both Warwick castle and Blenheim Palace, Hidcote (such a wonderful garden), and Stratford upon Avon. And of course enjoyed many a pub meal and cream tea. It took weeks to edit all the photos we took.
I and my travellng companion - retired military - stayed at the RAF base in Fairford. One day we drove to Lechlade-on-Thames and then got lost. What we ended doing was going to Bibury ( excellent ) and Northleach. Lots of fun. I heartily recommend getting lost and wandering around.
I neglected to thank everybody for the wonderful advice. Thank you all for the feedback and recommendations!
