My family would like to visit the Cotswolds for one - two nights during our week in London. We will not have a car. I was hoping to book a private tour of the villages one day and do some hiking/eating/hanging the next day before heading back to London. I'm trying to figure out the best way to tour the towns, where to hike and hang out ( do I need a tour for this) and which is the best town to settle for the night.
Thanks, Lee
There are one-day small-group (van) tours of the Cotswolds departing from Bath (MadMax) and Moreton-in-March, the only Cotswold town with train service. The two companies operating out of Moreton that I'm aware of are GoCotswolds and Secret Cottage. Moreton is a short train trip from Oxford, which is where I stayed. If you didn't have time for Oxford itself, you could look into staying in Moreton.
I liked my GoCotswolds tour; it got me to several small villages in one day, which would have been impossible via public transportation. I know other posters have made positive comments about MadMax and Secret Cottage.
Moreton-in-Marsh seems to be the bus hub for the Cotswolds. If you just want to do one day of hiking, I guess either Moreton or your planned starting point would be a practical base. The advantage of Moreton is that if you hit really dreadful weather and are staying in Moreton, you can hop on a train to Oxford, which has indoor attractions.
You obviously won't be able hike a long distance in one day, so even if you end up in a place off the bus lines, it shouldn't be exorbitant to get a taxi back to your lodgings. You just need to be sure you start out with at least two cabbies' telephone numbers.
Rick has some hiking suggestions in his book.
No, you don’t need a tour to go hiking in the Cotswolds, why spend £££ when you can do it on you own. You could hike from Chipping Campden to Broadway (6 miles) on the beautiful Cotswolds Way National Trail., or Broadway to Chipping Campden. There are buses that run between the two villages. From Moreton-in-Marsh which is where you would arrive at by train from London, you can get buses to several beautiful villages. From Bourton-on-th-Water you could walk to Upper Slaughter and Lower Slaughter. Since you will only be there for one or two nights you could get a long with buses and/or cabs. Only longer there I would highly suggest having a car.
Consider also a bike tour. It's a great way to cover a lot of ground without a car...and one of my Cotswold visit highlights.
Try Cycle Cotswolds in Chipping Campden or Hartwells in Bourton-on-the-Water.
Check out National Trust UK online. They have properties, parks, natural locations, and walking paths listed. One idea for a two day trip would be to train to Oxford, visit the Ashmolean Museum (see a real Dodo and some amazing Roman stuff), etc. Take a 45 minute bus trip to Woodstock (you could spend the night in B&B here) and go to Blenheim Palace and/or take bus to a Village in the Cotswolds. You can take train back to London from Moreton in Marsh station or retrace back to Oxford.
