Simply curious to receive feedback and opinions for villages below, such as "must see" or relative ranking. If one or two needed to be dropped, which would you recommend?
• Burford
• Bibury/Arlington Row
• Bourton-on-the-Water
• The Slaughters
• Stow-on-the-Wold
• Moreton-in-Marsh
• Broadway Tower
• Broadway
• Chipping Camden
Thank you!
3, 8, 9, 1, 4, 5, 2, 7, 6
based on much of my life there or thereabouts YMMV
Thank you Nigel
to confirm, this is the ranking starting at the top:
1 The Slaughters
2 Broadway Tower
3 Burford
4 Stow-on-the-Wold
5 Moreton-in-Marsh
6 Chipping Camden
7 Broadway
8 Bibury/Arlington Row
9 Bourton-on-the-Water
It’s not just about ranking but also about connectivity - distance apart. Burford and Bibury are more outliers from the main cluster. Both Burford and MIM have quite a bit of traffic going through the towns.
Bourton-on-the Water and Lower Slaughter are relatively close and well worth seeing. Stow-on-the-Wold is also not far away but part of the small town has main ‘A’ Roads and I don’t like all the parked cars in the middle. Broadway is a little bit further to the N and worth seeing along with Chipping Campden.
my numbers are based on the list in you OP, not the list in your reply
I was thinking the one's Nigel listed were the one's he thought should be dropped lol.
I have only been to one of 'em Burford. Pleasant but very busy town back then in 2016. We were in the neighbourhood but I wouldn't recommend going out of your way to visit.
I don’t know which specific villages are in Nigel’s rankings. Please type out the names.
OP, you listed villages with bullets but no numbers.
Please list the villages with numbers, indicating which is better in your opinion for charm.
Thanks!
so based on the original posted list was
Burford -1
Bibury/Arlington Row -2
Bourton-on-the-Water -3
The Slaughters -4
Stow-on-the-Wold -5
Moreton-in-Marsh -6
Broadway Tower -7
(missing)
Broadway -8
Chipping Camden -9
and the OP asked for a relative ranking so that's what I did based on my intimate knowledge of the area,
3, 8, 9, 1, 4, 5, 2, 7, 6 using all the numbers other than the missing line between 7 and 8.
As I said, personal preference as requested.
I don't want to type it all out, thinking folks can make the connections, but
Bourton-on-the-Water, Broadway, Chipping Cam(p)den, Burford, The Slaughters, Stow-on-the-Wold, Bibury/Arlington Row, Broadway Tower, Moreton-in-Marsh
I hope that helps.
Just a note - these are fine margins. A number of very pleasant places have been left out, and personal preferences are in. Mind the spelling of Chipping Campden.
Thank you James.
Yes, of course, distance & connectivity drive the logistics and practicality of an itinerary or plan. What I wanted was opinions/consensus as to the villages most worth seeing among my list. I would start with an unconstrained list and go from there.
Thank you Nigel, I especially appreciate receiving the insight of a local. And thank you for helping ensure I respect the area and correctly spell names (I feel badly when I get those wrong).
Initially I was confused, so I appreciate your most recent post. BTW, the blank line was not an omitted village; it was simply an unintended formatting of my list. I assume Bourton-on-the-Water is top of the list and Moreton-in-Marsh at the bottom -- which is great to see in that I have researched enough to have Bourton-on-the-Water as my top want-to-see and figured Moreton-in-Marsh was only cited as the there is the direct train from Oxford to there making for a nice entry to the area. Also many tours begin in Moreton-in-Marsh.
Bourton-on-the-Water, Broadway, Chipping Cam(p)den, Burford, The Slaughters, Stow-on-the-Wold, Bibury/Arlington Row, Broadway Tower, Moreton-in-Marsh
And I completely agree with you in that I only list a few of the many great villages in the area.
Best regards
Thank you Eatsrootsandleaves
Thank you Judy B
Bourton-on-the-Water, any village that can put its lit up Christmas Tree in the middle of the river throughout Advent and to 12th Night gets my vote. Yes, overwhelmed by tourists, but there is a reason. The river Windrush is spectacular. And they have the car museum, and a Model Village and bird shows. And my father was in the cottage hospital there and got excellent care. Nice walks in the nearby countryside, either following the Windrush or up the steep hill to Stow on the Wold, or over to the Slaughters. Parking is tough but with patience possible, and very photogenic
Broadway, love Fish Hill, a longish village with good stone and some pleasant shops. Just around the corner from Snowshill. Too many tourists but when they have left, it is a lovely place. My aunt was born just over the hill.
Chipping Campden, the ancient stone market. Next door to Hidcote Manor Gardens and Kiftsgate. I like Sheep Street - where I used to get my MOTs before it became more new houses. Beautiful and well situated. Go in the church.
Burford, one main street on a steep hill with a river crossed by an ancient bridge near the water meadows and the wool church at the other end of town, with good food and drink and a decent cup of tea in between. Convenient for a stopover driving between Cheltenham and Witney (my grandmother's sister sold blankets in Witney) or Oxford.
The Slaughters, a country walk between them and Bourton on the Water or Stow on the Wold is beautiful. Simply beautiful. If driving and tempted to use the ford, do NOT do that unless you know how to read the depth gauge and how to read the river, and know how much water your car is capable of navigating without croaking.
Stow-on-the-Wold, "where the Wind Blows Cold" as the ancient saying goes, a town with a beautiful and special (JRR Tolkien) church, a nice market square, buses, cars and some decent nosh. Rick Steves folks often stay there. My parents lived just up the hill, and a relative was the landlord at a pub. The bells of St Michaels are lovely. Avoid during Horse Fair. Biggish supermarket (Tesco) and a hub for the area.
Bibury/Arlington Row, too touristy for me now. 30 years ago used to go to watch the ducks and have a meal. Not now. Don't know if the resident disgruntled with the hordes of coach parties has moved his yellow Reliant Robin from the instagram view.
Broadway Tower, a folly, in the truest sense of the word. Never went up it, too old to now.
Moreton-in-Marsh, has a train station and buses stop in the town. Market town with an active regular market.
Said it was personal
Other views welcome
Thank you Nigel -- This is EXCELLENT!
Here's what I am beginning to think -- the likes of Broadway Tower, Bibury (just Arlington Road), Burford and Moreton-in-Marsh can be skipped as destinations. However, if the resulting itinerary drives through any of these, looking from the car as we are driving through (and maybe stopping for just a moment to take in Arlington Road) is fine -- just don't go out of one's way, and don't spend time there.
Best regards
Thanks. Enjoyable and informative post and replies.
I’m going on a tour of the Cotswolds next April with Seymour Travels, a small group tour company. Now I can’t wait as I will be visiting these wonderful places.
Thank for clarifying the rankings!
