Lexma90

I am planning a 9-day (or so) solo trip in England at the back end of three weeks with family in continental Europe in late Spring, 2025. My real focus is a self-guided walking tour in the Cotwolds, with time in London. I would appreciate any helpful comments and suggestions with those who know more about either location. I have been to London a number of times, and to the Cotwolds only once, as a young teen with my parents and brother.
I am considering a couple of nights in London, leaving some gear at my hotel, then traveling by public transport to the Cotwolds. I've narrowed it down to three companies that offer tours of the length I want - three days walking. They are not surprisingly all in the Broadway/Chipping Camden/Winchcombe area. I like walking (do a LOT of hiking in my "regular" life) and history (not into gardens). In addition to the towns I'll be staying in, Hailes Abbey, Broadway Tower, Sudeley House have caught my eye so far. I would love to go to Chedworth Roman Villa, but that's a ways from where I'll be, I think I would have to take a long taxi ride to get to it. I would love to hear ideas of other places to visit or consider.
I know that breaking up a stay usually isn't the best idea, but I really like the idea of leaving a small bag in London (I generally travel pretty light, but will need extra gear for the walking portion, and some hiking I'll be doing elsewhere.), then returning to London for several days before heading back home from LHR. In the past, we've stayed in Bloomsbury, and also in Belgravia. I'm drawn to stay in Belgravia again; it feels more like "real people" London (please let me know how correct I am on that), though one hotel I'm considering is in Pimlico, on the other side of Victoria Station. Fun fact, my brother found my mom's trip notes from our 1977 trip, and found that we had stayed at a B&B on the same street that I have stayed on more recent. Some of that was not coincidental; I choose the more recent location based on my vague memories of the street where our 1977 B&B was - it was not quite as nice an area back then! Any other suggestions on locations?
Anything that I'm not thinking about, that I should?

janisj

Belgravia has real people -- but so do Bloomsbury, Pimlico, . . . South Kens, Fitzrovia, you name it

Re Pimlico -- I've stayed there a lot but the exact hotel does make a (big) difference. I do like parts of Belgravia and edging up to Sloane Square quite a lot. On/near Ebury Street and a bit SW from there.

For your Cotswolds stay -- Maybe think along the lines of a few days based with one of the walking tour companies and a few days on your own in another well located town or village. If the company is based in say Winchcombe which is over towards the west -- then another stay in someplace like Burford or Stow-on-the-Wold on your own. Every single town/village will have multiple public footpaths radiating out in all directions. And you can take buses if you want to explore villages a bit farther afield.

Chedworth is mostly a car-dependent destination. There are no real towns nearby but Northleach is about a 5 mile walk and there are buses that run from Burford through Northleach.

bilboburgler

Lots of public footpaths through the area and taxis will move your bags for you...

AnselmAdorne

Lexma90, my wife and I walked the Cotswold Way in May. Unfortunately, this may be way more than you what you are looking for, but the company we used does offer some shorter options than the full length of the Way.

The full trail runs from Chipping Campden to Bath, about 163 kilometres, or 102 miles. I would describe most of the route as being easy to moderate walking, but bear in mind that while most of the trail is on the upper edge of a very long escarpment, most of the towns are at the foot, so you will climb and descend at least once a day, and sometimes twice a day.

Looking back, the predominant memory is the variety of scenery: the picture-prefect Cotswold villages, with their honey-coloured stone buildings and their beautiful gardens; long stretches of walking through forest, with majestic beech trees overhead and wild garlic bordering the path; farmers’ fields, splendid with swaying wheat, or radiant with yellow rapeseed; cows, sheep, and horses; barnyards, wet and pungent; countless kissing gates and stiles; ancient burial mounds, quarries, forts, and even a civil war battlefield; spectacular vistas overlooking Cheltenham, Bristol, and Bath, and, off in the distance, the Forest of Dean, the mountains of southern Wales, and the silver ribbon of the Severn. It really is magnificent.

Be prepared, though, for some muddy and occasionally rocky stretches, and a bit of road walking, You will also encounter more people than you would meet on, say, the Cumbria Way. (We walked that in 2023 and had days where we encountered scarcely anyone.)

We walked it in 9 days, with stages anywhere between 14 and 22 km. You could easily walk only parts of the route, trying to arrange stages that match your fitness and stamina.

In your search for an arranging company, you may have encountered both Celtic Trails and Mickledore. We have used both companies, the former for Offa's Dyke Path in Wales and for the Cotswold Way, and the latter for the Cumbria Way in the Lake District. Both are responsive and reliable. They arranged for our accommodations (a mixture of inns and B&Bs), luggage transfers, and taxis transfers, where needed. They also provided a good walking pack with restaurant recommendations, advice on getting to and from the starting town and the ending town, and, of course, a detailed map and guidebook. If you decide to purchase your own guidebook, I would recommend Cicerone's Walking the Cotswold Way, by the late Kev Reynolds, or Trailblazer's Cotswold Way, by Tricia and Bob Hayne.

Navigation: the Cotswold Way has the best way-marking I ever seen, so good in fact, that I wrote the trail association afterwards to thank them for the clarity. You will still need maps, either the ones that come with the guidebooks I mentioned above, or the appropriate Ordnance Survey 1:25.000 series. (If you really want the most reassuring approach, buy a subscription to the Ordnance Survey Online maps, where you can download any part of the UK at 1:25,000 and use it off line on your smart phone.)

Here's a link to the Celtic Trails site: https://www.celtictrailswalkingholid...s/#itineraries As you can see, they offer several options, from walking the entire trail to something as short as a couple of days.

And Mickledore: https://www.celtictrailswalkingholid...s/#itineraries They do not appear to offer anything shorter than five days, but I think both Celtic Trails and Mickledore might be prepared to develop a customized itinerary for you.

Both of those companies also offer something called the Cotswold Round, which follows only part of the Cotswold Way. I am sure that it is equally beautiful, although I can't speak to trail marking or conditions.

A final thought: I found the northern half of the route (Chipping Campden to Painswick) to be slightly more beautiful than the southern half (Painswick to Bath).

Just to whet your appetite for the Cotswolds, here are a few images from our walk:



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bilboburgler

+1

kleeblatt

I am certainly not an expert but after my three-day visit in the Cotswolds, I truly fell in love with the area. We stayed in Bourton on the Water, where we immensely enjoyed the peaceful morning and evenings of the town but left during the day so we didn't deal much with the crowds. The public transport system works well and the area is simply lovely.

We just went on one walk (from Lower Slaughter to Stow on the Wold) but our impressions reflect AnselmAdorne's excellent post. We did get lost once or twice but Googlemaps and Komoot saved the day and led us back to the right direction. We walked through grassy fields with docile but curious cows. Farmers, we were told, are obliged to post warning signs if there is a bull in the field which gave us some courage to continue our march.

It had been raining continuously before our walk so we encountered large muddy puddles. I would bring two pairs of walking shoes, in case one pair needs a day's worth of drying out.

Enjoy!

ChgoGal

Excellent post, AnselmAdorne! I hope to return to the Cotswolds for more hiking this year, and I am going to look at your links for the itineraries offered. Thank you!

Lexma90 RE: Historical locations; In/near Moreton-in-Marsh, there's the Bell Inn, with ties to Tolkien. The beautiful Sezincote House, which offers limited tours of the house and garden, so check dates. Though if you've walked there, they will likely ask you to take off your hiking boots and carry them with you as you wander the house in socks. Also, you can circle past the Batsford Arboretum, with ties to the famous Mitford Sisters. M-i-M also has The Fosse Way, a Roman Road.

Snowshill is one of the prettiest villages I've ever seen, and Snowshill Manor is interesting. I'd walked from Stanton to Snowshill (via bus) years ago, though I believe bus scheduling has changed quite a bit, so may be harder to plan. But Stanton is a lovely village as well, with an equestrian center. I was able to watch some lovely horses and their riders going through their exercises. I believe they may also offer a private lesson/ride out, which sounds wonderful. Horse riding lessons, hacks, hirelings and private tuition in the Cotswolds

Checking the National Trust website is a good idea, as well. If you're American, you can become a member of The Royal Oak Foundation for free admission to their properties. Also, they sponsor lectures in the US, which are often very interesting. https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/vis...hire-cotswolds

Have fun planning!

ChgoGal

Also, quickly, I enjoy the landscapes of the northern areas of the Cotswolds more than the southern. Every walk was lovely, until I hit the Painswick to Stroud bit. As a solo walker, I don't like too much time in the woods.
And I second your choice of Sudeley Castle. An easy walk from the center of Winchcombe. Be sure to visit 15th Century St. Peter's and enjoy their gargoyles!

Lexma90

Thank you all for your informative responses! I think it's fated, ChgoGal (btw I'm a former Chicago girl myself), I came across Seizencote in my research, and had already added it to my list. Thanks for the info re Bell Inn, about Tolkien; I'm a long-time LOTR fan (the books).
In terms of shoes, one of the tour people has strongly suggested that I bring my hiking boots, instead of trail shoes (deep lugs, toe kick, no ankle support). I live in the Colorado mountains, and wear the boots for longer or steeper hikes, and the trail shoes for all other hiking. I'm not sure whether my trail shoes are waterproof; water is something we don't have a huge amount of in Colorado, but the boots are. I had decided to bring the boots, which will also give me the opportunity to take a special hike when we're in the French Basque country earlier in the trip (the Pass of Roncesvalles). But not two pairs of hiking footwear!
JanisJ - I didn't mean that "real people" don't live in Bloomsbury, or wherever, but in staying on Ebury Street last year, and walking around there especially in the morning, I felt more that I was walking amongst people just living their daily lives, vs. tourists like me. I'm now leaning toward that part of the city.
AnselmAdorne - Thanks for all of the suggestions. For three days walking, and with AllTrails and GoogleMaps on my phone, and to be honest, the comfort of hiking in the Cotswolds vs. my usual hiking, I wasn't thinking of purchasing a map. But now I think I will get a map (I like maps, anyway). And of course I love your pictures! I would love to come across a cow while hiking.

ChgoGal

Oh, small world, Lexma90 ! I've always ordered Ordnance Survey maps and carried a compass. I just don't trust my smart phone. I would photoscopy the area of the walk I wanted to take and laminate it.
Waterproof is needed. The paths can be really muddy. I only ever brought one pair of shoes, and b/c they were waterproof, I never had issues with having to wait for them to dry out.

Also, there is a walk from Bibury to Coln St. Aldwyns along the pretty river Cohn. That was muddy on the day I went, but enjoyable. And the circular walk wasn't anything spectacular. Were I to do it again, I'd just do the river walk to and from.

janisj

I know -- that's why I put the little emoji doohickey thingy -- was joking a bit . . .

janisj

Maps: I'd strongly second the suggestions re OS maps. I never venture out on longer than just short local village walks without the relevant OS map, either on-line or paper. Plus I consider the paper OS maps a great souvenir/reminder of the trip.

JohnEW2912

I think most people from the U.K. would struggle with the idea that the likes of Bloomsbury, Belgravia and South Kensington have plenty of real people living there. Of course there are people living there but you have to be very wealthy to be able to afford anything, even a broom cupboard. These are the sort of places that have billionaires, oil sheikhs and Russian oligarchs “living” there - for many in fact it will be one of many homes and frequently will lay empty. Ebury St and Pimlico a bit less so, but if you want to stay in areas where “ordinary” people live you need to be quite a bit further out or at least go further east in the centre.

Of course that doesn’t mean that these areas are not good places for a tourist to stay and they can be affordable for short stays. For me they are too sterile to really enjoy though but many disagree with me.