Would teenagers enjoy the Cotswolds

I would say it depends on your teenagers. And I know that when I was that age I was taken many places by my parents; while I might not have appreciated them at the time, I look back on those trips fondly. My husband and I enjoyed Bath which is in that area; the Roman Baths had one of the best audio guide interpretations we have seen. If the Cotswolds works into your itinerary, then go!

Agree with the reply above. Depends on the interests of your teenagers. I think I would have been bored with the Cotswolds as a teenager and wouldn't have been at all interested in Bath either. York a good stop, I was there recently (for the first time) and really enjoyed it, especially the National Railway Museum.

Also depending on where you start when renting the car could determine whether or not the Cotswolds was a good side trip.
Katy

It depends on your children, but on the whole, I would say that most teenagers would hate a day in the Cotswolds. You don't say what their interests (and yours are) or how long you have for your trip. North Wales is a significant detour.

If you hire a car in Cambridge, then the Cotswolds are out of your way. Depending on your interests, I would suggest that from Cambridge, you either stop off at Rutland Water, just off the A1 and hire bikes to cycle round the reservoir or take a boat trip on the Water (assuming it's not a winter trip). Alternatively, visit Stamford and Burghley House if you like historic towns and houses. Lincoln would be another option, but slightly further off route. Cambridge to York is over a 3 hour drive.

From Oxford, the most direct route to York would be on the M1, a rather dull motorway. Driving direct will be c 4 hours non-stop. You could visit Bletchley Park, although this is a full days visit usually.

Without knowing your interests, it's difficult to make sensible suggestions.

If you rent the car in Oxford, it wouldn't be far out of your way to swing through some of the northeastern Cotswold villages. From the north end of Oxford, you could take the A40 west to Burford, the A424 northwest to Stow-on-the Wold, the A429 (parts originally a Roman road) north to Moreton-in Marsh and on up to Warwick, maybe visit Warwick Castle, and thence to Yorlk. Via Michelin is good for planning road trips, it lets you enter intermediate destinations and gives you alternatives. It tends to underestimate travel times though. If your boys find the Cotswolds boring (and remembering my teens I'd say a limited diet would be best) you can speed things up and head on north.

From Cambridge I wouldn't drive all the way to the Cotswolds unless you're really sure you want to go there. Much easier to head north to York. If I were doing it I'd stop in Ely and Lincoln to see the cathedrals, but I don't know that part of England well.

You didn't ask, but on the way to Edinburgh I'd recommend Durham's Norman cathedral and at least a stop or two along Hadrian's Wall (like Housesteads and/or Vindolanda), pretty much the northern limit of Roman occupation. If they like Hadrian's wall, they might like what's left of the Antonine Wall, west of Edinburgh, which the Romans built later but didn't use very long.

I'm going to come down on the other side of this. If the parents want to spend a day in the Cotswolds then that's exactly what they should do. Any teenagers lucky enough to have parents that can, and do, take them to Europe should be willing to spend one day of their trip doing something that makes those parents happy, even if it's not particularly of interest to them. I'm sure they can find something of interest to them in that area. Don't get me wrong, I don't think teenagers should just be dragged along on a trip that does not interest them. They should be involved in the planning of the trip so that their interests are taken into account in order to make the trip something special to everyone. But if we're talking about one day, then please spare me.

As others have said, it all depends on the teenagers.

Do they like history? Museums? Are they active or couch/electronic device potatoes? Do they like to eat? Try new foods?

They are very lucky to be able to go, but I agree that they will like it better if they get to choose something for the family to see or do on the trip.

I was in the UK for 6 weeks last May-June. Below are some things I did in the general area that might be of interest. I didn't rent a car. It was all done by train, small tour or by foot.

Originally, I didn't plan to go to the Cotswolds. I can take only so many charming cottages (or castles for that matter). However, I stumbled on this Secret Cottage tour, and decided it was the one for me. I spent 2 nights in Moreton-in-Marsh at the Bell Inn, the supposed inspiration for Tolkien’s Prancing Pony. I took the tour the day in between. It's often done as a day trip from London or Oxford. They pick you up in a van at the train station in the morning and return you there in the afternoon.

Relative to what others have said about Hadrian's Wall, and to the questions I asked about the boys, I did a private tour with Peter Carney. He worked with me to design something just for my interests. I'm sure he could do the same for your family.

Finally, I absolutely loved York. I stayed in a B&B very close to the old part of the city. I thoroughly enjoyed walking around, visiting and attending Evensong at York Minster, the Yorkshire Museum (especially seeing the Viking silver hoards) and of course, going to Bettys for a fat rascal.

If I had traveled with my husband, we would've probably rented a car. I would've navigated and he would've driven. We still would've taken those 2 tours, though. The knowledge of the guides was priceless.

In both cases, I sat up front in the passenger seat on the left side of the vehicle. That gave me the perspective to easily say I'm glad I didn't try to drive on my own. I would've missed so much while getting used to driving there. The clockwise roundabouts didn't seem all that weird to me, but turning right from the left lane across traffic freaked me out.

The very narrow roads with blind corners and high foliage on both sides weren't all that bad, but you will have to have a somewhat larger car for the 4 of you and your luggage, even if you pack light. Riding in the van gave me a good idea of the challenges you'll face as a result. We were often on one-lane roads with very small turnouts to pull into when coming upon other vehicles.

I took my teenage daughter and her friend to England last summer (age 19). We stayed with family ( I am originally from England but live in US) and took many day trips. There most favorite day trip was Cambridge. They just loved the punting down the river and learning about the college. Its a very young vibe in the town, From Cambridge, it would be an easy 3-4 hour drive up to York. There is lots to see in York that I think would interest your children. If they like trains, the railway museum is a must. It is free to get in (or give a donation) and is exceptional. From York you could venture into the Yorkshire Dales. This is a beautiful area and if you plan on getting a car (which would be a must for this area) you could book B&B. A stay at a Farm House in the country would be a wonderful experience. You could then head up to Scotland depending on the time you have.

I think you need to chose which side of the country you want to go to. Do you want to do Cambridge, York, Scotland, OR Oxford, Cotswolds and North Wales. You are trying to cover quite a bit of country here an there would be a fair amount of time spent in the car.

I love all the responses so far. The discussions here are similar to the ones we have had at home. Yes our children are lucky to go but they don't know we had this discussion about the Cotswolds. I do think they will like the hiking and the contrast to London. Just trying to narrow the trip down and looking at any excuse to do so.

I take it that this is not a day trip out of London?

Best bet in my opinion would be train from London(Euston) to Chester (about 2 hours). www.visitchester.com
See Chester & possibly hire a car and head for somewhere in the Conwy area - which is about a 1 hour drive - or take the train. Check into accommodation - make sure it has ease of parking. Then spend about 4 days in north west Wales.
They might like this:>https://www.zipworld.co.uk or this >https://surfsnowdonia.com
Then you have this :>http://www.snowdonrailway.co.uk
http://www.greatorme.org.uk
http://www.visitwales.com/explore/north-wales/snowdonia-mountains-coast/must-do-list
http://www.attractionsofsnowdonia.com/attractions/gardens-and-grounds/bodnant-garden

Trains > www.nationalrail.co.uk - cheapest fares if pre-book specific trains about 11 weeks ahead. Book EUS > Chester with www.virgintrains.co.uk

So, having done all that, you will be the coolest parents in Iowa! (125mph train that tilts on the bends; historic Chester; castles; zipwire; surfing; Mt Snowdon; beaches - best are on Lleyn peninsula & Anglesey; & fab garden).

There also seem to be locations around Wales where you can go 'hawking'. Like this one near Cardiff http://www.welsh-hawking.co.uk/ as an example that's not on your route, but I've seen others on websites. That might be a cool, memorable experience. My daughter loves animals and has always enjoyed any interaction with them on our trips. Wondering if your sons would also enjoy Iron Bridge Gorge if either of them enjoy engineering topics.

I like mpaulyn's suggestion about Cambridge. Take the boys on a tour of the "Backs" of the colleges in a punt. Although the professionally punted punt is a lot of fun (they tell you about the colleges and other stories about Cambridge) I would rent a punt-it-yourself punt and have the boys do the punting. Punting can be a challenge and I think that they will remember the experience their entire lives. No doubt will kid their brother about who was better. If they are total failures at punting you can always use the paddle to make your way back to the punt rental location. There are a couple of good pubs (the Mill and the Anchor) where you can have a drink, watch other newbie punters and re-live your punt trip.

You might want to bring a backpack with you on the punt, with a change of clothes, as the occasional punter has been known to fall into the river.

We took our sons to the Cotswolds when they were roughly your son's ages. It was a short visit -- just a morning with some walking in Chipping Camden and lunch in Stow-on-Wold. They enjoyed the lunch (they always do!) but that's about it. Cute little villages are not their cup of tea. There were no complaints, perhaps because it was such a short visit.

Our next stop was Warwick Castle and they loved that. We also stopped in Chester and Liverpool on our way to York. They loved Liverpool! (They are big Beatles fans.)

I second the advice to see Warwick Castle. I think you and the kids will love it.

As someone who has taken a number of Europe trips with our daughter who is now almost 21, I think it depends on how badly you want to see the Cotswolds yourselves. If it's very important to you, then go and let the boys be bored. However, if it's only a thought with you, you could use that day to visit one of the many places that all of you would enjoy.