Easy Walking Through Rolling Hills and Picturesque Villages
Stone Built Houses and Dry-Stone Walls
Walking in the Heart of England
This holiday is for those who want an easy introduction to walking in the English countryside. The Cotswolds are a range of gentle hills extending northeast of the city of Bath, through Cheltenham to Stratford-on-Avon, the ‘Heart of England’. An Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, the Cotswold landscape is an entrancing mixture of parkland, cultivated fields with dry-stone walls and patches of unspoilt woodland. Early prosperity based on the medieval woollen industry and the availability of easily worked honey-coloured limestone resulted in the building of a unique cluster of beautiful towns and villages.
Our walk takes in the best of the Cotswold countryside. Starting in Stratford, Shakespeare’s birthplace, we loosely follow the line of the Cotswold Way. On the second day our route passes close to the wonderful National Trust Gardens at Hidcote Manor, near Mickleton (open to the public on most days). There are wide views over the vales of Severn and Avon toward the Malvern Hills and Wales. We spend a night at the picturesque village of Broadway, where the main street is lined with magnificent stone-built houses as well as some tempting antique shops. We visit the medieval wool towns of Chipping Campden and Bourton-on-the-Water where the River Windrush flows down the main street. Guiting Power, a perfect Cotswold village, leads us on to the atmospheric ruins of Hailes Abbey, destroyed under Henry VIII, and the still inhabited Sudeley Castle, where Henry VIII’s last wife Katherine Parr lived. The tour ends at the delightful town of Winchcombe nestling in a deep valley near the Regency town of Cheltenham.
7 nights/8 days - Our first nights accommodation in
Stratford upon Avon is at a very welcoming guesthouse, located close to the town centre and train station. We then stay in
Mickleton, in a charming house built in the Georgian period. All 4 rooms are ensuite. Our next hotel is built in a traditional style from Cotswold’s stone and timber and is situated in the beautiful village of
Broadway, where the buildings date from 1575. On night 4 we stay in
Blockley in a small B&B where your hosts will offer a warm welcome. Night 5 is spent in the very pretty village of
Bourton-on-the-Water where we use a friendly guesthouse which is a five minute walk from the centre. In the picture postcard village of
Guiting Power we stay in an attractive guesthouse that was formerly an inn. Our last night
in Winchcombe we use a variety of guesthouses here but
all offer ensuite facilities. As we pass through the small towns and villages of the Cotswolds almost all the buildings are built of the famous local honey-coloured stone. Our accommodation has been praised for the warmth of its welcomes and ensuite facilities are standard throughout the tour.
Sherpa Notes
Waymarks
Most of the route is well signposted and easy to follow. However,
there are many paths crossing fields and meadows where close attention to the map and our route notes are needed for route finding.
Accommodation and Meals
On a bed and breakfast basis in comfortable country inns, hotels and guesthouses. All provide ensuite facilities.
Start
and End of Tour
The tour starts in Stratford-on-Avon. The most convenient major city and international airport is London. By train from London
Paddington.
After breakfast at Winchcombe on day 8. Bus (not Sunday) or taxi to Cheltenham or Evesham, and train to London.
This holiday is for those who want an easy introduction to walking in the English countryside. The Cotswolds are a range of gentle hills extending northeast of the city of Bath, through Cheltenham to Stratford-on-Avon, the ‘Heart of England’. An Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, the Cotswold landscape is an entrancing mixture of parkland, cultivated fields with dry-stone walls and patches of unspoilt woodland. Early prosperity based on the medieval woollen industry and the availability of easily worked honey-coloured limestone resulted in the building of a unique cluster of beautiful towns and villages.