mrsi

My husband and I are planning a self drive tour of England and Scotland beginning in late August for 5 weeks. Our trip commences in Manchester where we will drive to the Lakes District, up into Scotland as far north as Inverness and then down to Edinburgh and York. Our next destination will be the Cotswolds but my dilemma is do we stopover on the way from York or drive to a central location to base ourselves for four days in the Cotswolds?
Whilst there we will visit Oxford and on the way to Cornwall, visit Bath.
Suggestions would be really appreciated and also regarding accommodation options.
Thank you travellers and I look forward to your assistance.

janisj

Whether to stop over between York and the Cotswolds mainly depends on what you want to see in between. It can easily be driven on one day including visits to say Chatsworth and Hardwick Hall. The straight drive is only about 4-ish hours. So taking a full day give you a lot of time for diversions.

But if you wanted to explore more of the Peak District - then maybe spend one night in/near Bakewell.

To give any sort of recommendation for places to stay we'd need your budget.

mrsi

Thank you janisj. Our budget would be approx £100 per night per double. Suggestions for 'must see' between York and the Cotswolds greatly appreciated.

janisj

>>Suggestions for 'must see' between York and the Cotswolds greatly appreciated.<<

As I mentioned >>Chatsworth and Hardwick Hall<< would be my 'must see's'. Other sites like Kenilworth and Warwick can easily be visited from wherever you are staying in the cotswolds rather than enroute.

Your budget is pretty generous - except for Edinburgh which can be pricey - though still doable.. It sounds like you won't get to Edinburgh until well into September so after the Tattoo/Festivals are over, which will help.

For the Cotswolds - first pick where you want to base - A couple of good options would be Chipping Campden or Burford.

One other thing - don't stay IN Inverness. Some place w/i maybe 10 miles of the city would be great, but the city itself is quite congested and doen't have much 'character'.

jamikins

We stayed in Burford last year at this hotel

http://www.cotswold-inns-hotels.co.u..._inn/index.htm

It was lovely and in your price range for a double. They have other inns as well that look nice.

mrsi

Thank you jamikins, the Lamb Inn looks lovely but at £140-£185 for a doube room is a little above the budget unfortunately.

mrsi

Thanks again janisj. Good to know about Inverness. My niece lives at Beauly, hence the reason for the visit so I might ask her for some suitable accommodation options in the area.

Your info on the Cotswolds will be very useful. Thank you.

jamikins

Oh that's high...the website says the rates are a bit lower!

ira

Hi mrsi

You might find my trip report useful.

http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...and-france.cfm

Enjoy your visit.

mrsi

Hi Ira,
loved reading of your adventures. Will remember the fact that aGPS has a mind of its own and the security at Highgrove can be pleasant!