I'm leaving for London this weekend for a first-time visit. We plan to rent a car and go to Bath and the the Cotswolds for 3 to 4 days. Does anyone have a driving route to recommend? A good village to base ourselves? I appreciate any advice, as I've been lazy about planning this trip.

You really need to pick your village/town before anyone can suggest a driving route.

But getting from Bath to anywhere in the Cotswolds is pretty straight forward. Basically - the M4 to the M5 and then the A40 or A46 will get you just about anyplace. There are lots of other routes avoiding the M's (motorways) that go more cross country and are scenic. After you choose a base, we can give you directions.

I'd suggest you look for a centrally located town w/ a few pubs/restaurants/shops. Burford, Stow-on-the-Wold, or Chipping Campden are all good options. Burford would be my choice.

what is your budget?

I'd personally d 1.5 days/1 night in Bath and the rest of the time in the Cotswolds.

After you get to your base village, then drive on the smallest roads available. have a good map, then get lost. You will enjoy it.

To clarify just a bit - my directions were just for your travel day from Bath to your Cotswold base village/town.

As BigTyke says - you really don't need a "driving route" after that.

There's no one big thing to see. so follow the others' advice and just get lost. Browse through the www.cotswoldsaonb.com site for maps etc.

One important warning - or rather anti-warning. It's been raining a lot for weeks. This has created many "Flood ahead" warning signs on back roads. These signs were put up to warn about very, very localised and usually very minor things the safety maafia call hazards: typically a two-yard stretch where a road dips and a stream formed that got, say, two feet deep so there was a slight risk of stalling for some low-slung cars.

In an area as up and down as here, with lots of small rivers, these microfloods have all drained away in a few hours. No point taking the temporary warning signs away, since the "hazard" (what a load of wimps the nannies are turning us into) might come back.

So you'll come across these signs often. Don't take them too seriously, and don't let them put you off. Just slow down a bit till you pass the corresponding warning to oncoming traffic on the other side. Remember: all those towns and villages ending in 'ford' were built around the fact that for centuries people drove through streams.

We stayed in Chipping Campden in July this year for 6 days and toured the Cotswolds, including Bath. We loved the drive from the A44 into the village of Chipping Campden with its lovely thatched roofs. Also thought Broadway was one of the nicest villages. If you have time Snowshill Manor, just south of Broadway, is a fascinating National Trust house. Full of so many interesting things collected by one man. The gardens are just lovely.

We bought the Cotswolds & Chilterns AZ Visitors Map which was a great help.

Enjoy your trip.

I have been there just recently. Here my personal evaluation of towns:

- Chipping Campden was our base and I would choose it again after visiting several other towns. Why? It is very picturesque, with architecture of seven centuries, one of the finest woolchurches (with a romantic graveyard), a good choice of restaurants and pubs, a small but well-stocked village market and, most important, a life of its own. It is also a good base for exploring the Cotswolds AND Stratford/Avon and Warwick. We stayed at the Lyon Arms and found it very agreeable.
www.lygonarms.co.uk

- Broadway would be my second choice, for similar reasons. But Chipping Campden wins a length ahead.

- Lower Slaughter is a tiny village, also very picturesque with two luxury hotels. This would be the place if you look for a very quiet location. However, there is nothing else - no pubs, no other restaurants, no shops.

- Bourton-on-the-Water is the most commercialized Cotswold town, with many attractions for kids. Very touristy.

- Stow-on-the-Wold is one of the larger towns, with a huge market square which serves mainly as a parking lot for tour buses.

- Moreton-in-Marsh has these heavy roads right in town.

You might be interested in our trip report. Our trip included both Bath and the Cotswolds.

http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=35148574

Don't usually recommend hotels. Loathe them: all of them

But the Lords of the Manor hotel in Upper Slaughter has an extraordinary promotion on right now offering free accommodation if you buy a bottle of Dom Perignon.

http://www.lordsofthemanor.com/speci...rs/vintage.htm

Thanks for all the helpful Cotswolds advice. We ended up basing in Stow-on-the-Wold for the weekend because it had one of the few available hotel rooms at the last minute.

You're right--you really don't need a set driving route as the towns are so close together and half the fun is getting lost on the small roads.