Cotswolds - loved Chipping Campden, MAYBE go to Bourton-on-the-Water off season

Why not give the Cotswolds a miss. There are hundreds of similar towns and villages dotted around the UK that are just as nice and scenic and more importantly, without the hordes of tourists. I can drive ten minutes from my house today and be in a village that would rival many in the Cotswolds and I can be certain that I'd be one of a very few that weren't locals and certainly no tour buses in sight.

Also agree with JC. Dont get the obsession with the Cotswolds here. Hundreds of stunning villages in Britain.

Agree. The Cotswolds just have exceptionally good marketing.

Rutland/parts of Northamptonshire/Stamford is an area with similar stone towns & villages.

Or Shropshire, with its stunning landscape and gorgeous towns like Ludlow (perhaps the most beautiful town I’ve been to in England - great castle, too.)

Or for something completely different, lovely Suffolk with its unusual pink plasterwork houses and beautiful coastline.

But it seems most tourists have been sold the Cotswolds as the most beautiful spot of rural England - whereas what it really should be described as is an overtouristed beautiful part of rural England that just happens to be close-ish to Bath and Stonehenge.

Check the National Trust UK web site for an insight on many other quaint and colorful villages and charming homes through out England and Wales. I recommend independent travel in the UK as it is mostly user friendly. We drove on two trips and enjoyed the serendipity of going to various recommended sites and being able to stop anytime we wanted. We travel shoulder seasons in popular countries and usually found accommodations on the fly. We always book London ahead. With a car you can stay in those villages or farmhouses off the tourist trail. Also prices tend to be lower. I did take the train when I was traveling solo and booked hotels from the train station (I'm not sure this is offered everywhere). We did enjoy several stops in the Cotswolds but we were able to keep on driving. Our "hiking" was touring Homes and Gardens.

Many thanks for all of the suggestions. First, we did have a nice time being based in Chipping Campden for a few days - enough infrastructure in town for restaurants, galleries, interesting side trips (Blenheim, and actually visiting Churchill's grave in the little town nearby. Not too touristed at this time of year, but we were mostly out and around during the day. We'd been to Bath a few times before.

We have visited Great Britain a number of times over the years, and wanted to explore more of the southwestern part, the main targets being Devon and Cornwall. Yes, we have very much enjoyed trips in England, Wales, and Scotland in both small towns and larger cities. We had been to Bath twice before. (I will be back in London in January. We are thinking about a small boat cruise in the Hebrides, Orkneys, etc. in coming years. While we are able to drive, we tend to take advantage of this flexibility to feed the DBH's photo interests in out-of-the-way places.)

I'll try to provide more details at a later time, but our trip this year included a driving tour. We tend to stay in one place for at least 4-5 days, but sometimes only 2 nights, depending on our past travels and driving distance needs. The DBH (Dear Beloved husband) has taken up a major hobby in photography, and he/we wanted the ability to let our interests dictate the days. As such, we like attractive places to stay that are not to difficult to get in and out of with a car. We did book our hotels -- even in shoulder season in areas that can have tourists, we prefer this tan spending vacation time finding a place for the night (thank you internet and research, Rick's excellent advice, and a travel agent friend we work with.) We started with two nights in Salisbury to get over jet lag and see the cathedral; a number of nights in Dartmoor at an inn/resort near Mortonhampstead; a number of nights in Marazion; a couple of nights in Bristol; 4 (5?) nights in Chipping Campden; and the Marriott Heathrow the day before we left.

(To note: we spent a day-trip in St. Ives. Very touristy, but had a nice lunch overlooking the beach on the other side of the peninsula, near the Tate. We took a little train into town to avoid the parking nightmare. Nice galleries, etc., but we'd only stay in town if traveling by train (or tour) and not having a car. Even the hotels in walking distance just outside seem up and down a big hill (read: just to do anything in town, it's a hike. A day's hike on the coastal path in Cornwall is one thing - hiking to dinner, etc. is less fun. Parking in town looks like a nightmare. )

'Must admit that we crossed paths with one of Rick's Travel tours in Chagford in Dartmoor. They were based in a very nice, atmospheric inn where we had lunch. 'Looked like a very nice group and well (but not oppressively) organized, probably on the "Small Villages/Towns of Southern England" tour. I have to admit that we may join one of Rick's tours in coming years, but right now we want the flexibility of not being on a schedule if we can manage the general arrangements ourselves.

In the meantime, I just wanted to contribute to Rick's website and mention my impression of Moreton-on-the-Water at this time of year, partly as a thank-you for providing so much great advice in the guidebooks, website, etc. (Yes, we download some of the individual bits for tours of cathedrals, museums, etc.)

My husband and I stayed in Bourton-on-the-Water, arriving after the tour buses had left. It was lovely and peaceful, and my favorite Cotswold village--much preferred to Stow-on-the-Wold where we had stayed on an earlier trip.

'Very much understand this strategy, i.e. stay at the touristed spots, but enjoy them when the day-trippers have left. This strategy served us well when we stayed at Carcassone and Chambord in France.

ALSO: for those doubting the attractions of the Cotswolds: we also very much enjoyed the National Trust historic gardens, and some walks. While we have some very good botanical gardens in the US, the number of beautiful gardens in these public-private hands is a treasure. On this and other trips, we would enjoy Bath, Blenheim, etc.

But again, it is useful to know which of the towns seem over-touristed in favor of other attractions, or even walks through the lovely countryside. I'm fine with tourism when it is done well, but not when it overwhelms the town. 'Love Venice off-season - hate in when the cruise boats dock.

Forgot to mention: when dining out in Chipping Campden, we met an American couple who have have visited the area for a number of years and now rent a cottage for a month or so. They are champions of just enjoying a lovely area, with its tourist attractions and just life there.

Chipping Campden is a neat town. I love the Cotswolds, and also agree that there are many villages outside this area in England with incredible beauty and charm. I love renting a car and driving England, but am not brave enough, as some have suggested, to find accommodation w/o booking ahead. Glad you had a super trip!

We loved staying Bourton-on-the Water in June. We stayed at Chester House right in town and it was so delightfully quiet. They have a lovely walled garden off the restaurant. We enjoyed sitting by the river (stream) and just watching people of a morning and evening.

Before the buses get there and after about 4 when they leave, you have the place to yourself. Plus, it was an easy little town to get into and out of when we went on other excursions. Lots of walking paths there too that you can enjoy.