Situated in the Mid- Cotswolds, we are ideally placed to cover the whole of the Region, extending from Bath in the South, to Chipping Campden in the North. Although specializing in this area, we conduct tours all over Britain, and France (except Paris) as well.
The Cotswolds takes
two or three days to explore properly. Whether your interests
include some or all of the interests listed below, we can include
them on the tours. Or through the summer, you might just want to
specialize in gardens.
Tours start in the morning at your convenience, generally between
9 and 10 a.m. They continue to about 6 to 6.30 p.m., with a break
for lunch.
The North Cotswold tour might include Winchcombe, Broadway, Chipping Campden and Stow. There will be other places to show you, which are off the regular 'tour bus route', plus small diversions following your personal preferences ( e.g. old churches, gardens).
The South Cotswold tour will almost certainly include Bath, Castle Combe and Lacock. Like the North tour above, it will be supplemented with 'hidden treasures' and tailored to your preferences.
Besides the picturesque towns and villages, other attractions
include:-
Stately Homes: Blenheim Palace, Longleat House (S of the region)
Manor Houses and Gardens, Westonbirt Arboretum
Castles: Sudeley, Berkeley, and Warwick (just N of the region)
Roman sites: Chedworth Villa, Cirencester, Bath
Saxon and Norman churches: some of the best in the country.
Gloucester Cathedral and Victorian Docks
Museums of all descriptions, Open Farms with rare breeds of farm animals.
Antiques shops, and other shopping
A surviving woolen mill
For further itinerary suggestions or even preparation, visit www.cotswolds.info
Forest of Dean, Chepstow, Wye Valley, Tintern Abbey, South Wales Castles.
Brecon Beacons, Hay-on-Wye (Book Shops), Black and White villages of Herefordshire.
Fine china museums and workshops of Worcester and Coalport.
Althorpe ( Princess Diana Memorial).
Oxford, Blenheim Palace.
Stratford on Avon, and Warwick
Avebury, Stonehenge and Old Sarum
Salisbury and the New Forest ( wild ponies and National Motor Museum ).
Winchester and Portsmouth's Historic Ships ( Victory, Warrior and Mary Rose ).
Cheddar Gorge, Wells, Glastonbury.
Longleat House and Stourhead Gardens.
Mid and North Wales, including Snowdonia.
Stoke on Trent Potteries, and Chester.
Lake District ( attention: involves driving on small, twisting, steep roads ).
Scotland.
York and Yorkshire Moors.
Cambridge and East Anglia.
FRANCE ( not Paris ):
Palaces of Versailles, Chantilly, Compiegne and Fontainebleau.
Wine tours of Bordeaux and Burgundy.
Normandy including D Day sites.
Brittany for seafood, coastline and neolithic stones.
Loire Valley chateaux and Leonardo de Vinci museum.
Other regions, such as the Auvergne, South of France etc.
Our nearest small town is Painswick, which has B&Bs and a choice of hotels. The larger town of Cheltenham is only 11 miles away. It offers the whole range of accommodation possibilities. There are also many other country hotels, B&Bs and holiday cottages situated in small villages or secluded valleys.
www.painswickhotel.com Comfortable
family-run hotel in small town/village
www.swanhotel-cotswolds.co.uk V. comfortable
hotel in picturesque Bibury
www.hotelonthepark.co.uk Deluxe town house
hotel in Cheltenham, overlooking park.
For those staying longer, we offer contrasting tours of South Wales, the black and white timber frame towns of Herefordshire, and the Worcester porcelain factory, shop and museum. Then there are the other popular attractions, such as Stonehenge and Stratford upon Avon, which can be combined with tours or transfers.
