This part of England will steal your heart. It’s known for it’s rolling hills, sleepy limestone villages and historic marketplaces. It’s quiet, it’s quaint and it’s called the Cotswolds.

I’ve lived in London and I’ve been to England multiple times but I had never visited the Cotswolds. When I finally made it there, I immediately feel in love with it. The Cotswolds might be the most charming place in all of England. Many movies have used the Cotswolds for filming locations, and for good reason. You can’t find a more picturesque English village. Bridgett Jones’s Diary, Die Another Day and Harry Potter are just a few of the movies that have featured the Cotswolds. Even current and extremely popular TV series such as Downton Abby and The Crown have filmed in the Cotswolds.

The Cotswolds runs through five counties in England and it’s broken up into Northern, Southern and Central Cotswolds. We spent our time exploring the Northern Cotswolds. We rented a car in London and originally planned on driving to the Lake District. When I realized how far away the Lake District was from London and I saw the forecast called for rain, I had to figure out plan B. I quickly did some research on places to visit outside of London and that’s when I saw pictures of the Cotswolds. It took only 2 hours to get to Northern Cotswolds from London so off we went.

After looking at pictures of the Cotswolds on Instagram, I made a long list of all the villages I wanted to visit. However, I questioned this list because I thought it would get a bit boring going from village to village. Once you’ve seen one Cotswolds village, you’ve seen them all, right? Wrong! Each village is unique and every place we visited was as charming, if not more charming, than the previous village.

One of the many picturesque streets in Castle Comb

We found driving around the Cotswolds to be easy and necessary. There wasn’t much traffic in the countryside nor was there much public transportation. Having a car is definitely convenient in a place like this. You could hire a driver if you’re apprehensive about driving on the left side of the road. I had a friend hire a driver for three days in the Cotswolds and they had a wonderful experience. Another popular option is exploring the Cotswolds by foot. There is a 102-mile Cotswold Way walking trail that goes from Bath in the south to Chipping Campden in the north. Even if you’re not up for the whole 102 miles, it’s common to do sections of this hike (I’ve heard it’s more like a walk than a hike). The endless rolling hills and wildlife would make walking a very scenic way to get around.

The Cotswolds seems like a charming place no matter the season. We were there in the fall and had a mixture of sun, rain and clouds. The temperature was in the upper 50s. I’m sure summer would be a bit more temperate, but you never know in England. Christmas would be another magical time to visit the Cotswolds. All the Christmas lights and decorations would make these villages even more perfect.

Beautiful flowers throughout the Cotswolds villages

Sights

The Cotswolds has many gardens and historic houses to visit. However, we spent our time just walking around the villages and taking photos. We popped into some pubs along the way and we visited a few cafes for scones. In the bigger towns we did some window shopping or visited a church but that was the extent of our “sightseeing”.

Here is a list of the towns we visited during our time in the Cotswolds

Castle Comb

Our first stop was Castle Comb. Sitting on the bridge is a very popular Instagram photo and you don’t have to walk far to get there. We also enjoyed wandering through the small town. It was very sleepy with hardly anyone out but we did come across a home that was selling baked goods. The confectionaries were left on a table in front of the house and you paid for your purchase by putting your money in a cup. There was no one to sell you the baked goods nor collect the money. It was all on the honor system.

I love this window

Beautiful garden and beautiful homes

Snowshill

My favorite picture from the Cotswolds is from Snowshill. This is an extremely small village, with about 200 people living there. It has the Snowshill Manor which is administered by the National Trust. You can visit this manor and enjoy a cup of tea while you’re there. Or you can get a pint of beer at the Snowshill Arms Pub.

The pop of color adds to the charm

There aren't many old phone booths around so this was special

Broadway Tower

Broadway Tower & Park is a family-owned Cotswold destination. With the purchase of a ticket you can visit the Tower Museum with roof platform, visit the Deer Park or simply walk the grounds. The Broadway Tower is the second tallest point in the Cotswolds.

Stow-on-the-Wold

What a fun name for a town! Stow-on-the-Wold is a market town with a population of about 2000 people. For the Cotswolds, it’s a bustling place. We walked around the town center and stopped at Lucy’s Tearoom for a delicious scone. We were lucky enough to sit in the bay window so we could have a view of the town.

After our scone, we made our way to St. Edwards church. The tree-framed door is the entrance to this medieval church but it looks like a portal to a fairytale world. And of course, it's a popular picture spot.

You can see just how small the entrance is

It's always a good time for a scone

Bibury

Bibury is considered “the most beautiful village in England” and who am I to argue that? Most people visit Bibury to see the cottages of Arlington Row. They are probably the most photographed cottages in all of England. While we were there taking photos of the houses, one of the owners was walking her dog and stopped to talk with me. She was lovely and wanted to know where I had purchased my outfit. We had a nice chat.

Bourton on the Water

This town is called the Venice of the Cotswolds because of the bridges that cross the River Windrush, which runs through the centre of the village. Bourton On The Water is known for its low bridges and stone houses but it has more to offer than some of the other towns in the Cotswolds. Here you can visit The Cotswold Motoring Museum which features vintage cars and a toy collection. Birdland is home to species including parrots, owls and king penguins, plus life-size model dinosaurs. There is also the Model Village which is a 1930s scale replica of the village. With all of these museums plus a large selections of restaurants, pubs, tea houses and shopping, you could easily spend a day enjoying this town.

Although we were not there for this, I did read that on the Monday afternoon of the August Bank Holiday, the local rugby team plays a game of football in the river. If anyone witnesses this, please please please share photos or videos of this epic event!

One of the many low bridges that makes Bourton on the Water popular

The motoring museum

Getting photos on the bridge

Steam Train

The Gloucestershire Warwickshire Railway is a volunteer-operated heritage railway in Gloucestershire and Worcestershire offering a round trip of 28 miles. It now operates steam and heritage diesel trains that go through some of the most spectacular scenery in the Cotswolds. If you take the train you’re guaranteed to have wonderful views of the picturesque villages and the endless rolling hills.

Although we did not actually ride the train we did download the schedule so we knew when the steam train would be rolling into one of the stations. It was so fun to watch the train coming in and all the steam being released. You can get all the information about the stream train and its schedule at www.gwsr.com

How often do you get to see a steam train coming into the station? Definitely a fun experience!

Where to Stay

We stayed at The Wood Norton which is not far from Stratford Upon Avon and is a great location to start your exploration of the Cotswolds. The hotel was built by exiled French Royalty in 1897 and they lived there until 1912. The hotel has 50 rooms, a dining area and conference room. Our favorite part of the hotel was the grounds and the breakfast. The hotel looks out onto the hills of the Cotswolds and has beautiful rose gardens surrounding the hotel. The breakfast was included in our nightly price and it had an extensive buffet consisting of local produce, honey and pastries. At no additional fee, you can also order a hot breakfast from the menu. Our room was not as charming as the grounds, but it was extremely spacious.

Whatever you do, wherever you stay, it’s impossible not to fall in love with the Cotswolds. I can’t wait for you to explore this very special part of England.

Fitness

Staying fit in the Cotswolds is easy. With miles and miles of land and not many cars, you can run in almost any direction and have beautiful views. Besides running, the hotel gym at The Wood Norton had a few treadmills, a boxing area, free weights plus a spin bike which I enjoyed using.

Quick Facts

Area of the Cotswolds: it covers 800 square miles and runs through 5 counties in England. It’s located in the Southern Central part of England

Currency: British Pound £

Driving: Left side of the road

Visa: No visa needed for England for travelers coming from USA, Canada and many European countries. All other passport holders should check to see if they need a visa

Electric Voltage: 230V and a three prong plug, Adapter type G

Time Zone: GMT (NYC +5)

Charming Cotswolds