Top Tips for the Best Holidays in the Cotswolds

Arguably England’s most famous rural region, the Cotswolds National Landscape is green, wooded and hilly, wonderful for walking or cycling, and dotted with picture-perfect villages such as Bourton-on-the-Water, Stow-on-the-Wold and Castle Coombe, with their cottages built from the soft, honey-hued limestone that has been quarried in the region for millennia. With so much to see and do on a Cotswolds holiday, here are some of the best ways to spend your time in the area – just be sure to make the most of the wondrous landscapes before you head back to everyday life.

Exploring parts of the Cotswolds on foot or under pedal power is a great way to get back to nature, feel the benefit of exercise and take in dramatic scenery with friends and family. There are lots of routes to choose from on a Cotswolds holiday; here are a couple to get you under way.

This wonderfully diverse national trail traverses Gloucestershire and heads into Somerset, following the stunning Cotswold Edge escarpment for much of its route. As well as breathtaking views over the Severn Vale and Malvern Hills, you'll come across pretty villages, abbey ruins, ancient battlegrounds and historic houses as you pass by. Of course, there’s no need to go the whole distance as the trail can be divided into bite-sized linear or circular segments perfect for families on short Cotswolds holidays.

• Start/end: Chipping Campden to Bath
• Length: 164 km

Discover a lesser-known part of the southern Cotswolds as you cycle along a former railway line in the Stroud Valley; it’s traffic-free for novice riders and accessible to all. Remnants of local industry along the way include abandoned water mills on the Stroudwater Canal, and there are a couple of satisfying uphill stretches to get your blood pumping nicely.

• Start/end: Stonehouse to Nailsworth
• Length: 8 km

In an area known for its Roman ruins, historic castles and magnificent palaces, be sure to add some heritage into your Cotswolds holiday mix. Learn a little about local history and enjoy some exquisite architecture at the same time.

Gloriously OTT, UNESCO-listed Blenheim Palace is a vast Baroque mega-mansion designed by John Vanbrugh in the 18th century, and warrants a whole day to do justice to its myriad charms. Don’t miss the opulent state apartments, priceless tapestries or the Churchill Exhibition, which encompasses the room where Sir Winston himself was born in 1874. The palace is set in rolling parkland landscaped by our old friend Capability Brown with formal gardens, lakes, avenues of trees and hilltop follies; a mini-train chuffs around the grounds. Looking for family-friendly accommodation in the area? Book a hotel in Oxford, just 20 minutes away – you'll also be able to gaze at the city’s famed colleges and museums, and perhaps even go punting.

• Woodstock, Oxfordshire OX20 1PS
• Opening times vary seasonally and from attraction to attraction, but roughly daily 10am–5pm
• Admission starts at £41 (€49)
  
• Free parking

Sitting in remote countryside, England’s oldest stately home survives at Chedworth Roman Villa; it seems that the Cotswolds were a firm favourite with ancient Roman aristocrats some 2,000 years before the area became the haunt of British celebrities. One of the richest Roman finds ever made in Britain, the site includes well-preserved mosaics portraying the four seasons in the dining room, bathhouses revealing early central-heating systems, and prayer shrines. A compact museum is packed with jewellery and coins unearthed at the site.

• Cheltenham, Gloucestershire GL54 3LJ
• Adult admission starts at £15.40 (€18.50)
• Open Mar–Dec. Times vary seasonally but roughly daily 10am–5pm
• Free parking
• Public transport to the villa is limited

Handsome Sudeley is a Tudor edifice of almost unimaginable extravagance. Peeking into this stately pile’s state rooms and private quarters – all adorned with great art by the likes of Van Dyck and Turner – gives a rare insight into the pampered lives of the British upper classes. The grounds around the house are planted with glorious wild and formal themed gardens, and you’ll find the elaborately carved stone tomb of Katherine Parr, surviving wife of King Henry VIII, in St Mary’s Church.

• Winchcombe, Cheltenham, Gloucestershire GL54 5LP
• Adult admission starts at £23 (€27.60)
• Open daily mid-Mar–early Dec 10am–5pm
• Free parking
• The Pulhams bus service 606 runs between Cheltenham and Winchcombe

When kids are part of your Cotswolds holiday, there are almost endless options for days of fun-filled adventure. It’s time to make lasting memories with rainy-day visits to a favourite museum or communing with nature in the fresh Gloucestershire air.

Part petting farm and part conservation park, this place is absolute heaven for families, giving them a chance to get up close to rare-breed curly-horned Hebridean sheep and Suffolk Punch heavy horses, or feed pygmy goats and Tamworth piglets. Loads of animal-themed activities kick off throughout the year, and there’s a cuteness overload when the newborn lambs arrive in spring. Toddlers can tumble about at the soft-play centre, while pizzas and cakes from local suppliers satisfy all appetites in the restaurant. Park owner Adam Henson is often around; he’s usually up for a chat and – if you recognise him from off the telly – a selfie!

• Guiting Power, Cheltenham, Gloucestershire GL54 5FL
• Open daily Mar–Oct; times change seasonally but roughly daily 9:30am–5pm
• Adult tickets £11 (€13), children £9 (€11). Pre-booking required
• Free parking
• There are no direct public-transport routes

If you’re looking to inspire your progeny with a love of history, this place might just succeed! Aided and abetted by entertaining interactive displays, the museum romps through the long backstory of Cirencester, once one of the largest Roman cities in Britain. Rather ghoulish reconstructions of an Anglo-Saxon family and a sixth-century royal grave are certainly attention-grabbers, and there are workshops and hands-on games to hold shorter concentration spans. Reward well-behaved kids with cake at the neighbouring café.

• Park Street, Cirencester, Gloucestershire GL7 2BX
• Opening times change seasonally but roughly Mon–Sat 10am-5pm, Sun 2pm-4pm
• Family ticket £22.25 (26.70)
• Paid parking at Old Station Car Park (GL7 1US)
• Sustrans cycle routes 45 and 48 pass through Cirencester

Overlooking the Severn Estuary on the western edge of the Cotswolds, Slimbridge’s marshy terrain is a magnet to birds. You can spot majestic swans and spritely kingfishers from the hides, watch conservation films in the al fresco theatre or join a year-round schedule of family-friendly activities such as bug hunting and bee walks. Visit in winter to see thousands of waterfowl wheeling above the waterways, or take a summer safari of the wetlands to photograph elusive otters and hares. Younger kids can get wet at Welly Boot Land splash park or let loose in the play area.

• Bowditch, Slimbridge, Gloucestershire GL2 7BT
• Opening times change seasonally but roughly daily 9:30am–5:30pm (last entry 4:30pm)
• Adult tickets £18.95 (€22.75). Kids under the age of 4 free
• Free car parking
• The centre has free bike racks and is on Sustrans Route 41

Finally, remember that the Cotswolds are edged by historic towns and cities too; it’s well-worth making a day trip to Bath to see the Roman baths, Cheltenham for its gorgeous Georgian legacy or Tewkesbury to tour the medieval abbey. All are within 25 minutes’ drive of the national landscape. Ready to book a Cotswolds holiday?