Cotswolds Revisit July 2021

Claire Summers on 19 July 2021
We decided to return to the Cotswolds following our previous visit in 2017.

Last time we stayed for 4 nights, which we didnt feel was enough so we decided to go back again with some friends to show them where we had visited before. The weather was glorious, possibly too hot, we picked one of the only weeks in 2021 that was blistering hot, although I would rather that than raining, however it was difficult to keep cool in our accommodation.

If you have never been, it is well worth a visit. You can stay in a central place and visit different towns every day and just meander through the streets to admire the architecture and the scenery and just relax.

We stayed in a 2 bedroom cottage on the outskirts of Chipping Campden, in a village called Ebrington, which is a very picturesque small village to stay in. There was a pub in the Village, The Ebrington Arms, but due to Covid it was only open for restaurant bookings on certain days and we couldnt get in to eat as you had to pre-book so it was fully booked for the time we were there. It had excellent reviews so if you are in the area, give it a try.

We stayed in a property called The Granary, which was part of a farm and are converted farm houses, there were 3 in a row with private parking plus a B&B Guesthouse at the front so it was nice and peaceful. It had a lot of character, it was a self contained cottage with a terrace, full kitchen and 2 upstairs bedrooms plus a private terrace out the back with garden furniture. It was handy for such a small place to have two ensuite bedrooms plus a downstairs toilet as well, so ideal for 2 couples sharing (although one room was a twin).

It was an great location as as base, very near Chipping Campden and within driving distance of the other Cotswolds towns as well.

We re-visited Bourton on the Water, which is a very pretty village with the stream running through it and the overhanging trees, the quaint shops. It is always extremely busy being one of the most popular Cotswolds towns. It has some lovely little independent shops where you can buy things a little bit different from. We sat on the grass and had some fish and chips in the shade plus an ice cream - well it was hot!

On other days we visited a few towns, namely Broadway, a fairly small town but one of my favourties, a few quirky shops there and a lovely hotel called the Lyggon Arms if you fancy a bit of luxury. Moreton in the Marsh on market day, which is Tuesdays, they sell everything there and is good for a meander. Chipping Campden itself is very picturesque and we ate in an Indian restaurant one evening called The Maharajah, which I can highly recommend, the food is delicious and very reasonably priced.

We visited Stow on the Wold and Burford, all are in the same style of Cotswold stone, it really is a beautiful part of the UK and you can just walk through the towns, looking at the quirky shops, grab a cream tea, ice cream, sit on the grass or benches, a really nice place to relax and take your time.

Whilst we were in our Cottage, we started watching Jeremy Clarksons The Farm in the evenings, which is in Chipping Norton. So when we went to the town, we drove out to the farm with the intention of going into his farm shop, but it was absolutely heaving, the queues were very long and as the weather was blistering hot we didn't want to queue that long in the heat, so we just did a drive by to take a look but didnt stop. Chipping Norton for me doesnt quite have the same feeling as the other towns so we werent there very long, apart from buying some pies from the pie shop, which are very nice so my friends told me!

There are quite a few attractions in various towns, museums, train journeys, etc so you can plan quite a bit if you want to but for us it was just about visiting a few of the towns and having a mooch about!

It was lovely going back and seeing the towns again and if you have never been I would highly recommend a visit.