The Rough Guide to the Cotswolds, Stratford-upon-Avon and Oxford

Matthew Teller, Rough Guides

• Publisher: Apa Publications
• ISBN:
  9781789194791
• Edition: 3
• Topic: Personal Development
• Subtopic: Travel

Discover this exquisite region of England with the most incisive and entertaining guidebook on the market. Whether you plan to hike the Cotswolds' trails, marvel at beautiful stately homes and gardens or explore the local gastronomic scene, The Rough Guide to the Cotswolds, Stratford-upon-Avon and Oxford will show you the ideal places to sleep, eat, drink, shop and visit along the way.- Independent, trusted reviews written with Rough Guides' trademark blend of humour, honesty and insight, to help you get the most out of your visit, with options to suit every budget. - Full-colour chapter maps throughout- to explore Oxford's honey-coloured college buildings or discover the Shakespearean sights of Stratford-upon-Avon without needing to get online. - Stunning images - a rich collection of inspiring colour photography.Things not to miss - Rough Guides' rundown of the best sights and experiences in the Cotswolds, Stratford-upon-Avon and Oxford.- Itineraries - carefully planned routes to help you organize your trip. - Detailed coverage - this travel guide has in-depth practical advice for every step of the way. Areas covered include: Cheltenham; Gloucester; Stroud; Cirencester; Chipping Campden; Broadway; the Vale of Evesham; Stratford-upon-Avon; Burford; Banbury; Oxford. Attractions include: Blenheim Palace; Gloucester Cathedral; Kelmscott Manor; Westonbirt Arboretum; Cotswold Farm Park; Rollright Stones; Sudeley Castle; Compton Verney.- Basics - essential pre-departure practical information including getting there, local transport, accommodation, food and drink, festivals and events, sports and outdoor activities, shopping and more. - Background information - a Contexts chapter devoted to history and recommended books. Make the Most of Your Time on Earth with The Rough Guide to the Cotswolds, Stratford-upon-Avon and Oxford

Alamy

PAINSWICK ROCOCO GARDEN

Cheltenham and the south Cotswolds

Cheltenham

Seven Springs and around

Gloucester

Painswick and around

Stroud and around

Tetbury and around

Malmesbury

Dursley and around

The Vale of Berkeley

Chipping Sodbury

Castle Combe

Shutterstock

The central Cotswolds

Cirencester

Around Cirencester

Cotswold Water Park

Fairford and around

Bibury and around

Northleach and around

Bourton-on-the-Water

The Slaughters

Cotswold Farm Park

The Guitings and around

Stow-on-the-Wold and around

Moreton-in-Marsh and around

The central Cotswolds

Few main roads cross the Cotswold hills. Two east–west corridors – the A40 and A44 – more or less follow valley contours, linking Oxford with Cheltenham and Evesham respectively, but through history Cotswold topography hasn’t lent itself to many easily definable north–south routes. In that regard, not much has changed since the Romans: their Fosse Way road – now the A429 – is still the only north–south artery through the region, cutting a more or less straight line from the wilds of Warwickshire through the central Cotswolds to Cirencester and on south towards Bath. This leaves the best of the region tucked into the hills either side: beautiful landscapes, quiet villages, splendid country churches.

Southern parts are anchored by the presence of Cirencester, a lovely, old-fashioned market town which, these days, is the epitome of what has turned Gloucestershire into “Poshtershire” – a polo-playing hideaway on the fringe of classic countryside, yet with speedy links to Cheltenham and London, and now sporting upmarket bars, delis and department stores. It’s easy, though, to take what you want and leave the rest behind: Cirencester’s Roman museum, for instance, is a cracker, as are the villages of the quiet Coln Valley nearby – and humble Fairford hosts a church as splendid as any in the Cotswolds.

Pretty Northleach is thankfully bypassed by both the A40 and A429 at their crossroads, though riverside Bibury has become a very popular mid-Cotswolds stop. Bourton-on-the-Water is one of the most visited but perhaps least satisfying of all Cotswold destinations, and nearby Stow-on-the-Wold and Moreton-in-Marsh, though visually attractive, lie slap bang in the eye of the Cotswold tourism hurricane.

As always, head away from the main routes to find the best of the area: Blockley village, between Moreton and Chipping Campden, is a beauty, while the high wolds west of Stow are speckled with horsey hamlets flanking the splendid Cotswold Farm Park rare-breeds centre, itself only a spit from the famously beautiful twin villages of Upper and Lower Slaughter.

Cirencester

Plumb astride the A429 fifteen miles southeast of Cheltenham, pleasantly old-fashioned CIRENCESTER was a provincial capital under the Romans. The town flourished for three centuries: its grand forum was one of the largest in northern Europe, and in the province of Britannia “Corinium” was second in size and importance only to “Londinium” (London). The Saxons put paid to all that, largely destroying the Roman town. The wool boom of the Middle Ages saw a revival, and today, with its handsome stone buildings, Cirencester is an affluent little place that lays claim to be capital of the Cotswolds. Come, chiefly, for the outstanding Roman museum and the Church of St John the Baptist – but also make time to tap into the upmarket food-and-shopping lifestyle. Alongside a developing hinterland of quality food producers, the town now has genuinely good restaurants – often populated, entertainingly, by a very distinctive breed of ladies who lunch.

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COTSWOLD FARM PARK

Highlights

Cirencester The “capital of the Cotswolds” – a friendly market town with a grand church, quiet old lanes and good food.

Fairford Come to this attractive village near the Thames to marvel at the medieval stained glass in the church.

Bibury A one-street riverside village with perhaps the most photographed cottages in England.

Northleach This charming, unspoilt mid-Cotswolds village merits a detour.

The Slaughters Winningly handsome twin villages, with idyllic scenery and top-rated hotels – great for a luxury retreat.

Cotswold Farm Park A brilliant day out: rare breeds showcased on a working farm, perfect for families.

Batsford Arboretum Fine walks in beautiful parkland just outside Moreton-in-Marsh.

Blockley A typically charming Cotswold village: quiet, attractive and – most importantly – out of the way.

HIGHLIGHTS ARE MARKED ON THE MAP

FARMERS’ MARKETS

Dates may change around Christmas and New Year. See also

farma.org.uk.

Bourton-on-the-Water 4th Sun of month 9.30am–1pm.

Cirencester 2nd & 4th Sat of month 8.30am–2.30pm

cirencester.gov.uk.

Stow-on-the-Wold 2nd Thurs of month (May–Sept also last Thurs of month) 9am–1pm Wfresh-n-local.co.uk.

Market Place

Cirencester’s heart is the delightful, swirling Market Place, busy with commerce. An irregular line of eighteenth-century facades along the north side contrasts with the heavier Victorian structures opposite. The square is packed with traders’ stalls for the Monday and Friday markets, and the fortnightly Saturday farmers’ market.

Church of St John the Baptist

Market Place, GL7 2NX • Daily: April–Sept 10am–5pm; Oct–March 10am–4pm • Free •

01285 659317,

cirenparish.co.uk

The parish church of St John the Baptist, built in stages during the fifteenth century, dominates the Market Place. The flying buttresses that support the tower had to be added when it transpired that the church had been constructed over the filled-in Roman ditch that ran beside Ermin Street, the Gloucester–Silchester road, which passed this way. The grand three-tiered south porch, the largest in England and big enough to function at one time as the town hall, leads to the nave, where slen...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Title
• Contents
• INTRODUCTION
• BASICS
• THE GUIDE
• Contexts
• SMALL PRINT AND INDEX