2 nights in Cotswalds
Jan 31st, 2008, 05:44 PM
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2 nights in Cotswalds
OK, I have to take a break from my London Hotel search. NOt going until May 12th anyway, and I'm getting wiggy....
I would like to focus instead, on the 2 nights planned for the Cotswalds. Never been, can't wait. Should we base ourselves in 1 place and explore ...and what are some of the favorites. I like country quaint, hikes, hills , rivers?, bikes are good too.....one friend loved Stanton. It all looks sooo beautiful.
Thanks for any imput. Please don't mention London....
Liz
I would like to focus instead, on the 2 nights planned for the Cotswalds. Never been, can't wait. Should we base ourselves in 1 place and explore ...and what are some of the favorites. I like country quaint, hikes, hills , rivers?, bikes are good too.....one friend loved Stanton. It all looks sooo beautiful.
Thanks for any imput. Please don't mention London....
Liz
Jan 31st, 2008, 05:53 PM
#2
Every singly village and town has B&Bs/hotels so you can stay where ever you want. Stanton is nice because of the really good Mount pub and the amazing views from this hillside village.
BTW: It is the Cotswolds (note the spelling)
BTW: It is the Cotswolds (note the spelling)
Jan 31st, 2008, 06:32 PM
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Hi Lizzy --
I think 2 nights in one town is a good idea. There is plenty to explore within easy distances of most of them. We recently spent 2 nights in Chipping Campden (pronounced Cam-den) and 2 nights in Stow-on-the-Wold. Stow was exceptionally quiet at night and felt a bit more secluded than CC. Both offered great walks and wonderful views. Hiking into Broadway from Snowshill (during our stay in CC) was probably one of the most rewarding.
There are a lot of specific details in the trip report I wrote in September (linked from my name).
I hope that helps...
Good luck!
I think 2 nights in one town is a good idea. There is plenty to explore within easy distances of most of them. We recently spent 2 nights in Chipping Campden (pronounced Cam-den) and 2 nights in Stow-on-the-Wold. Stow was exceptionally quiet at night and felt a bit more secluded than CC. Both offered great walks and wonderful views. Hiking into Broadway from Snowshill (during our stay in CC) was probably one of the most rewarding.
There are a lot of specific details in the trip report I wrote in September (linked from my name).
I hope that helps...
Good luck!
Jan 31st, 2008, 11:06 PM
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Old Flanner's Advice to people contemplating a stay in the Cotswolds.
1. Wipe the word 'quaint' from your brain cells. Its use slightly pisses us off (towns whose design has stood the test of time aren't 'quaint': they're how all settlements ought to be designed), and marks you as quite beyond the pale.
2. Forget bikes.Footpaths are the best way to see the area: get from one to another by bus, train or car.
3. There's close to nothing to explore. One set of thatched cottages really isn't that different from another, and one massive medieval church differs from the one five miles' walk away only if you're a church addict (the most benign of addictions, but rare). Just meander - preferably on foot as much as possible - and hang round a few pubs: there's just no point in trying to cram much in, because you're wasting valuable walking and drinking time.
4. The reason I always yammer on about walking is that - absolutely invariably - the best views of the countryside are from footpaths. Towns and villages rarely offer good views: views from roads are obscured by hedges and the roads are dangerous to stop in anyway. At the very least, there's always the risk Mrs F will come haring round a bend, trying to get a cheque to the bank before the day's cutoff time. And only on footpaths do you get the close connection to cattle, sheep (and the occasional llama) that makes England special. There's actually one footpath that takes you with a few feet of giraffes and camels.
5. www.cotswoldsaonb.com is now (after years of waffly misuse of my excessive taxes)close to a model of how an area ought to put all its resources together on the web. It's particularly good on public transport - but train timetables change (not substantially, but just enough to make it essential to check) on May 17. The regional website might not update on time, so double-check buses with the operators and trains at www.nationalrail.co.uk
1. Wipe the word 'quaint' from your brain cells. Its use slightly pisses us off (towns whose design has stood the test of time aren't 'quaint': they're how all settlements ought to be designed), and marks you as quite beyond the pale.
2. Forget bikes.Footpaths are the best way to see the area: get from one to another by bus, train or car.
3. There's close to nothing to explore. One set of thatched cottages really isn't that different from another, and one massive medieval church differs from the one five miles' walk away only if you're a church addict (the most benign of addictions, but rare). Just meander - preferably on foot as much as possible - and hang round a few pubs: there's just no point in trying to cram much in, because you're wasting valuable walking and drinking time.
4. The reason I always yammer on about walking is that - absolutely invariably - the best views of the countryside are from footpaths. Towns and villages rarely offer good views: views from roads are obscured by hedges and the roads are dangerous to stop in anyway. At the very least, there's always the risk Mrs F will come haring round a bend, trying to get a cheque to the bank before the day's cutoff time. And only on footpaths do you get the close connection to cattle, sheep (and the occasional llama) that makes England special. There's actually one footpath that takes you with a few feet of giraffes and camels.
5. www.cotswoldsaonb.com is now (after years of waffly misuse of my excessive taxes)close to a model of how an area ought to put all its resources together on the web. It's particularly good on public transport - but train timetables change (not substantially, but just enough to make it essential to check) on May 17. The regional website might not update on time, so double-check buses with the operators and trains at www.nationalrail.co.uk
Feb 1st, 2008, 12:29 PM
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OMG! Thank you hlocke1 for those pictures! Took my breath away. I love the one with the sheep in the foreground and "turrets" in the distance. WHERE IS THAT?
I guess anywhere is ok. Didn't plan to rent a car.I wanted to spend a lot of time on foot. Will check out CC. Although May might be more crowded than September.There are many threads yet to read with valuable info. Thanks for the websites also, and the spelling.
I guess anywhere is ok. Didn't plan to rent a car.I wanted to spend a lot of time on foot. Will check out CC. Although May might be more crowded than September.There are many threads yet to read with valuable info. Thanks for the websites also, and the spelling.
Feb 1st, 2008, 02:06 PM
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Hi again, Lizzy --
That photo was taken on the particularly rewarding walk I mentioned--from Snowshill into Broadway. We started at the Broadway Tower, went to Snowshill, and came back down into Broadway on the other side of town (essentially doing a big loop). It was a long, but fun hike.
As far as not renting a car goes, we did that. I'd recommend you read my comments on it in my trip report, as well. It was a bit of a challenge, but with very careful planning (and helpful B&B hosts), you can make it work.
Good luck!
Heather.
That photo was taken on the particularly rewarding walk I mentioned--from Snowshill into Broadway. We started at the Broadway Tower, went to Snowshill, and came back down into Broadway on the other side of town (essentially doing a big loop). It was a long, but fun hike.
As far as not renting a car goes, we did that. I'd recommend you read my comments on it in my trip report, as well. It was a bit of a challenge, but with very careful planning (and helpful B&B hosts), you can make it work.
Good luck!
Heather.
Feb 1st, 2008, 03:08 PM
#7
"Although May might be more crowded than September."
Nope - as long as you miss the two Bank holiday the first and last weekends of May, it is definitely not crowded in May. Either May or Sept would be just fine, but my choice would slightly be May.
Nope - as long as you miss the two Bank holiday the first and last weekends of May, it is definitely not crowded in May. Either May or Sept would be just fine, but my choice would slightly be May.
Feb 2nd, 2008, 08:36 PM
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YES! The Red Lion in CC looked sweet. And they are available. I think I want to leave it somewhat open ended. Although there is the desire to see it all, I think I can handle just letting it unfold. We can hire a car, or not. I can live with that image of the sheep, and the turrets for quite a while...
Don't let certain people see "sweet" - as bad as "quaint" (the Red Lion is many things - but sweet isn't one of them)
Feb 4th, 2008, 07:02 PM
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Good luck, lizzy. Glad to hear your trip is coming together!
Janis, she might have meant sweet in the "cool" sense... not the quaint sense. I would say the Red Lion qualifies as cool in my books. =)
Janis, she might have meant sweet in the "cool" sense... not the quaint sense. I would say the Red Lion qualifies as cool in my books. =)
Feb 4th, 2008, 08:34 PM
#11
hlocke1: "she might have meant sweet in the "cool" sense... not the quaint sense." then she would have said "suweeet!" - or some such. 
(I suspect she did mean the "quaint" sweet since she used it in her OP.)
(I suspect she did mean the "quaint" sweet since she used it in her OP.)
Feb 4th, 2008, 11:09 PM
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Even adolescents in the Cotswolds grew out of the inane use of "cool" about thirty years ago.
Limit yourselves to speaking proper, unpatronising, English that doesn't make you sound like a 1950s teenager and you'll get along splendidly.
Limit yourselves to speaking proper, unpatronising, English that doesn't make you sound like a 1950s teenager and you'll get along splendidly.
