EDI to Cotswolds (2-3 days) back North to tour Scotland. Departing Edinburgh on day 14.

My first thought is that renting a car and driving 350+/- miles on a jet lagged arrival day is a really horrible, and possibly dangerous idea. The Cotswolds are a looooong way from Edinburgh. And you will eat up almost a whole day just driving there, and another day driving back.

Since you want to see Liverpool anyway, why not take the train there on your arrival day and spend a night. Rent a car there to see the Cotswolds for however many nights and return the car in Birmingham before taking the train back to Edinburgh. When ready to leave Edinburgh to explore the rest if Scotland, rent another car there.

I got confused on how much time you are planning or your visit. Don't shortchange Scotland. Look at www.visitscotland.org for some great ideas. The Cotswolds are nearly always crowded and tend to be more expensive. In truth, you can find charming villages with B&Bs and manor houses throughout the UK. All the things you are looking for can be found in Scotland. Try doing an immersive trip by spending it in Scotland if that is your main destination.

Kathleen makes a good point. We had 2 full weeks in Scotland last September and felt we'd barely scratched the surface of that fascinating country. But if you really want something in England, perhaps consider the Lake District or the Yorkshire dales, which are much closer to Scotland.

You say it's your first trip to Scotland, but you're planning to go to the Cotswolds, which is in England. I really don't understand the logic when there are so many beautiful places to see in Scotland. It's like me visiting the US but spending most of my time in Canada.

Why not just focus on Scotland? Edinburgh itself deserves more than a few days.

Personally I like the Cairngorms, but there are so many lovely places to see in Scotland.

For manor houses, check out the Landmark Trust (booking will be longer than a couple of days though):

https://www.landmarktrust.org.uk/search-and-book/location/scotland/#Search

You can even stay in a cottage on the royal estate at Balmoral:

https://balmoralcastle.com/stay

Compared to Scotland, the Cotswolds are nothing special. The reason they’re so popular with tourists is their proximity to London - so they really don’t tie into your itinerary at all.

Either concentrate on Scotland or - if Liverpool is inportant to you - look at the beautiful national parks in the North of England - the Lake District or the Yorkshire Dales.

The Cotswolds are pretty enough but they’re not worth a drive from Edinburgh when there are so many more beautiful areas further north.

I agree with others here that personally I would just focus on Scotland. Getting from Edinburgh to the Cotswolds is not straightforward and you will lose the better part of a day either side travelling. You can find charming villages etc in Scotland too and this would give you more time to enjoy them.

You could look at staying in one of the Scottish National Trust properties: https://www.nts.org.uk/holiday-accommodation

Of course, if you love golf you can visit the old course at St Andrews (tho I think you need to book in advance if you actually want to play it- I've never tried). In Edinburgh there's also Bruntsfield Links which is one of the oldest public golf courses in the world (if I am remembering correctly). Unfortunately I don't know anything about fly fishing! Good luck with the planning.

Firstly, whatever you do, do not plan on a long drive on your arrival day. As you note there will be jet lag and you will be setting off on what for you is the "wrong" side of the road in that state. Either stay somewhere close to Edinburgh or take a train south.

Is there a special reason for wanting to go to the Cotswolds? If it's just that you have heard they are pretty then forget about them. They are pretty villages there but overall there is better countryside elsewhere in the UK. The reason that the Cotswolds are well known is that they are fairly close to London where most visitors go, although even then there are lots of other options.

Given that you are flying into Edinburgh I would just stay in Scotland for your trip. Two weeks can fly by just touring there. You can sate all your various interests there without coming down into England. Of course, when you come a long way, it's tempting to try and see as much as you can. But the UK is full of places to see, beautiful countryside, charming villages and small towns, vibrant cities etc etc. I always say that you could throw a dart at a map of the UK and wherever it lands would provide an interesting and varied holiday.

It is therefore certainly possible to plan a route with 2 night stays - ideally I would be aiming for some 3 nights stays.

I'd agree. I love the Cotswolds - I grew up there - but that is way far to go to see some beautiful scenery. You would pass the Lake District, Yorkshire Dales, Derbyshire (the whole place), Cheshire (the whole place) and loads more before you ever reach the Cotswolds.

You'll drive right by.

And right after landing? Please tell me when so I can stay off the roads.

Plenty of fly fishing in Scotland, to say nothing of golf - real Scottish golf.

How much time do you have? September is often a good time.

Leaving aside the fact that a drive of that length on the day of your arrival from a long haul flight is an appalling idea you have 13 days in the UK.
Day 1 is all day travelling to the Cotswolds
Day 2 and 3 in the Cotswolds
Part of Day 4- Travelling Cotswolds to Liverpool
Day 5- Liverpool (presumably for the Beatles)
part of Day 6- travelling from Liverpool to Edinburgh
That leaves just 7 days for Scotland - to tour the beauty and sights of the country, which is woefully short.

The time going to the Cotswolds could be way better spent by visiting the Scottish Borders or Dumfries and Galloway (the less well known parts of Scotland- on this forum). Especially in the Borders you will explore a lot of the history of the Country. The River Tweed (the main river in the Borders) is a great fishing river- fly and other methods.
And is very much an area where you will find the type of accommodation you want.
Similarly you could look at north Northumberland- Berwick upon Tweed (where the River Tweed enters the North Sea) would be a good choice. As a Border Town it has bucket loads of history to explore.
Travelling by train and the way that Brits travel (as opposed to North Americans, it seems) Liverpool is a perfectly doable day trip by train from Edinburgh or Glasgow (direct trains from Glasgow, one same platform change from Edinburgh) although an overnight would be far better. Overnight would also give you a chance to cross the Mersey on the train to the Wirral. Especially on the west side of the Wirral there is some lovely countryside and charming villages- little known by tourists but there for the visiting.
Back in Scotland the River Spey in the Highlands is a superb fly fishing river- lots of opportunities, but probably around the Grantown on Spey area would be a good area to look.
Also on the Spey out towards what I would call Ardverikie (Dalwhinnie/Newtonmore/Kingussie way) is also supposed to be fishing heaven.
In summary ditch the Cotswolds, use that time for other areas of Scotland, and a Liverpool side trip is dead easy to achieve.
Apart from anything else Edinburgh to the Cotswolds is a shorter and far easier journey by train, than it is by car.
Golf you'll find anywhere in Scotland- the mecca on here seems to be St Andrews but Ayrshire and up the coast between Dundee and Aberdeen would also be good areas (whether or not you like his politics Trump has some good ideas on that score when it comes to golf).
And, allegedly, in the Outer Hebrides there are some amazing courses. People may not normally go to Shetland for Golf but I am aware that it has some very good courses.

Where to stop with possible jet lag between EDI and Cotswolds?

EDI, get the car the next day. Any other plan is somewhere on the scale of Unwise - Fatal.

The Cotsawolds is on every body's tick list.... To be honest, there are many other equally as nice places to visit. As everyone else has pointed out, your itinerary just doesn't make since. It is going to take a full day to drive there and another fuill day back again. don't underestimate driving times in the UK. It will take a lot longer to cover distances than you might expect. Also don't even think of a drive like this while still jet lagged.

If you desperately need to see the Cotswolds, fly into Heathrow and spend 2-3 days in and around the Cotswolds. Then either fly to Edinburgh or take the train.

Seriously, think about spending the whole time in Scotland - there are lots of lovely areas eg Borders, Dumfries and Galloway, Fife and the Angus Glens, The trossachs. All are a lot closae and you won't 'waste' valuable time getting there.

Save the Cotswolds for another visit and see England...