Cotswolds

The Cotswolds is the England of the imagination — honey-coloured stone villages, rolling green hills, dry stone walls, and ancient churches set among meadows and woodland. This is the largest Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty in England and Wales, stretching across six counties from the edge of Stratford-upon-Avon in the north to the outskirts of Bath in the south. For motorhome travellers from our Pontefract depot, the Cotswolds is around three and a half hours south via the M1 and M40, making it an ideal destination for a long weekend or a week's touring.

The distinctive character of the Cotswolds comes from its geology. The underlying oolitic limestone — a warm, golden stone that weathers to a shade somewhere between honey and amber — has been used for building since the Middle Ages. Every village, church, barn, and wall in the region is constructed from this same stone, giving the Cotswolds a visual harmony that is unique in England. The stone glows in the afternoon sunlight, and on a warm summer's evening, a Cotswold village can feel like a scene from a different century.

Bourton-on-the-Water is one of the most visited villages, and it is easy to see why. The River Windrush flows through the centre of the village, crossed by a series of elegant low stone bridges that give it the nickname "Venice of the Cotswolds." The Model Village, a one-ninth scale replica of Bourton built from Cotswold stone, has been delighting visitors since 1937. Birdland Park and Gardens, home to flamingos, penguins, and over 500 birds, sits on the banks of the river. The village can be busy in summer, but an early morning walk along the Windrush before the crowds arrive is a genuine pleasure.

Stow-on-the-Wold, set on the highest point of the Cotswold ridge at over 800 feet, is a handsome market town built around a large square where sheep fairs have been held since the twelfth century. The antique shops around the square are among the best in the region. Moreton-in-Marsh, a few miles east, has one of the best weekly markets in the Cotswolds, held every Tuesday on its broad high street. Chipping Norton, further north, is a working wool town with a theatre housed in a former Salvation Army hall that punches well above its weight in terms of programming.

The Slaughter villages — Upper Slaughter and Lower Slaughter — are picture-postcard perfect. The name derives from the Old English "slohtre" meaning muddy place, but there is nothing muddy about these immaculate stone settlements. Lower Slaughter's Old Mill, with its chimney and waterwheel reflected in the River Eye, has been photographed millions of times and remains irresistible. The walk between the two villages along the river takes about twenty minutes and is one of the loveliest short strolls in the Cotswolds.

Bibury, described by William Morris as "the most beautiful village in England," centres on Arlington Row — a terrace of medieval weavers' cottages that appear on the inside of British passports. The trout farm in the village has been operating since the 1900s and offers a chance to catch your own rainbow trout. The nearby village of Coln St Aldwyns and the town of Cirencester — the "Capital of the Cotswolds" with its excellent Corinium Museum of Romano-British life — are both worth exploring.

The northern Cotswolds, around Broadway and Chipping Campden, have a slightly different character — grander, more theatrical, with wider views across the Vale of Evesham toward the Malvern Hills. Broadway Tower, a folly standing on the second-highest point in the Cotswolds, offers views across thirteen counties on a clear day. Chipping Campden's high street, with its Jacobean Market Hall and wool merchants' houses, is one of the finest in the country. The Cotswold Way, a 102-mile national trail running from Chipping Campden to Bath, follows the escarpment edge with magnificent views westward.

The southern Cotswolds around Tetbury, Malmesbury, and Castle Combe offer a quieter alternative. Castle Combe is frequently claimed as the prettiest village in England, its medieval stone cottages clustered around a market cross in a wooded valley. Tetbury, with its royal connections — Highgrove, the country home of King Charles, is nearby — has excellent antique shops and a fine Gothic market hall raised on stone pillars. Malmesbury, England's oldest borough, has a magnificent abbey and the charm of a town that has barely changed in centuries.

For motorhome travellers, the Cotswolds offers a network of quiet lanes that are perfect for touring, though some are narrow and require careful driving in a larger vehicle. Campsites in the region include Moreton-in-Marsh Caravan Club Site, which offers easy access to the northern villages, and Burford Caravan Club Site near the pretty wool town of Burford. Tudor Caravan Park near Slimbridge combines Cotswold touring with visits to the nearby Wetland Centre.

The Cotswolds food and drink scene draws on the rich agricultural land that surrounds the villages. Daylesford, near Kingham, is the country's most celebrated organic farm shop, with a cookery school, spa, and restaurant alongside its beautifully displayed produce. The pub culture is strong throughout the region, with gastropubs like The Kingham Plough and The Wild Rabbit in Kingham serving food that draws visitors from London and beyond. Local ales from Hook Norton Brewery and Donnington Brewery complete the picture.