Cotswolds question

We will be traveling by train after cruise in April. We are looking for a village for lodging and a good tour. Several years ago we stayed in Broadway, and had a fantastic time. This time we are looking for a village close to rail station, and a day tour of the area. Any suggestions will be greatly appreciated. Is the area around Oxford picturesque - ie a good place to stay?

Thanks - :)Mary

Hi, Mary. If you are looking to stay in the Cotswolds themselves, a better bet would be Moreton-in-Marsh, which is not too far from Broadway. There is a station there and several hotels/B&Bs/pubs to stay at, either in the town itself or nearby villages.

There are several tour operators who will pick you up from the station or your accommodation. Moreton is also served by various bus routes that make it possible (with planning) to tour independently by public transport.

I can provide further information if that sounds good. Moreton is 40 minutes from Oxford by train or around 1 hour 40 minutes from London.

You can get tours from Oxford, often calling at Blenheim Palace on the way to the Cotswolds, but unless you specifically want to see Oxford, I'd suggest basing yourself out here in the beautiful Cotswolds :)

Agreed - Oxford is not great for tourists really. Traffic is terrible.

Moreton in Marsh is an excellent place to base yourself and has a direct connection to London Paddington by train.

A friend of ours stayed at The Old Schoolhouse in Little Compton (about 5 miles out of M-i-M) and was highly impressed (not easy with her).

http://www.theoldschoolbedandbreakfast.com/

Oxford is easy for trains & bus tours. Can make sense for a day-trip from London.

But for lodging? I'd go for a Cotswolds town - or at least a village with a pub ;) - that's handy to a rail station and a tour pick-up.

JB :)

Hi, Mary. If you are looking to stay in the Cotswolds themselves, a better bet would be Moreton-in-Marsh, which is not too far from Broadway. There is a station there and several hotels/B&Bs/pubs to stay at, either in the town itself or nearby villages.

 

There are several tour operators who will pick you up from the station or your accommodation. Moreton is also served by various bus routes that make it possible (with planning) to tour independently by public transport.

 

I can provide further information if that sounds good. Moreton is 40 minutes from Oxford by train or around 1 hour 40 minutes from London.

 

You can get tours from Oxford, often calling at Blenheim Palace on the way to the Cotswolds, but unless you specifically want to see Oxford, I'd suggest basing yourself out here in the beautiful Cotswolds :)

We are planning a driving tour of England and Wales for 3 or 4 weeks and will be visiting Bath, Southern Wales, Stratford on Avon, Nottingham, York and more.

I researched B&Bs in Moreton as well as Stratford on Avon. Not sure we will go to Oxford?

There are some wonderful places to stay in Stratford in the city walking distance from the key sites. Should we stay in Stratford or Moreton and tour or drive there on our own.

Also, I suppose we could spend a day in Oxford either by taking the train to Oxford from Moreton or a tour.

Another of topic question. We are visiting places where our ancestors originated in the old world. I have ancestors from Plymouth. From what I have found, it doesn't seem to be a key tourist site. Not sure we will go there? What do you think? Also, would love to go as far north as Hadrian's wall and the lake district, but that might take up too much time?

We are planning a driving tour of England and Wales for 3 or 4 weeks and will be visiting Bath, Southern Wales, Stratford on Avon, Nottingham, York and more

 

Another of topic question. We are visiting places where our ancestors originated in the old world. I have ancestors from Plymouth. From what I have found, it doesn't seem to be a key tourist site. Not sure we will go there? What do you think? Also, would love to go as far north as Hadrian's wall and the lake district, but that might take up too much time?

Hadrians Wall is fascinating and you could do a loop from York through the Yorkshire Moors / Dales?, Northumberland, go west at to Hexham / Carlisle, and then go south into the Lake District. Don't have a map in front of me but we have done this. Distances in the UK are not far --they just take time. You just need to prioritize and create a loop --or two. Use motorways to go distances quickly then get off to explore.

We are planning a driving tour of England and Wales for 3 or 4 weeks and will be visiting Bath, Southern Wales, Stratford on Avon, Nottingham, York and more.

 

I researched B&Bs in Moreton as well as Stratford on Avon. Not sure we will go to Oxford?

 

There are some wonderful places to stay in Stratford in the city walking distance from the key sites. Should we stay in Stratford or Moreton and tour or drive there on our own.

Also, I suppose we could spend a day in Oxford either by taking the train to Oxford from Moreton or a tour.

 

Another of topic question. We are visiting places where our ancestors originated in the old world. I have ancestors from Plymouth. From what I have found, it doesn't seem to be a key tourist site. Not sure we will go there? What do you think? Also, would love to go as far north as Hadrian's wall and the lake district, but that might take up too much time?

Three or four weeks is a nice amount of time to have to tour England by car - although it may sound daunting, it's really not that large of a country and so quite doable. I think the trouble you might be having is deciding on or narrowing down what are some of the key places to see - really, there are no wrong places but whatever interests you but sometimes a little help first to know what that might be. A great guide book can help you narrow down what might most be of interest - for me, even though we are in the age of the internet, I still find flipping through the pages and reading about the different places in England that much more helpful...charm and history and appeal abounds in England plus you have an ancestral connection to Plymouth which I would not overlook - what's a day or two?

York is AMAZING, as is the Lake District and Hadrian's Wall (an ancient wonder!) and while some people love Stratford Upon Avon, others find it disappointing - maybe not everyone's cup of tea or not Shakespeare fans? The Costwolds charm just about everyone but nearby Oxford - not always. Nottingham will be lovely as will just about any part of Wales. Your drive throughout the country will be scenic and beautiful...will this be your first visit to England or have you already been there before, maybe to London? Cambridge is also very beautiful - there are so many places to consider...depends upon where your specific interests lie, how much you want to drive (shorter stays and more destinations or longer stays with less driving) and do you feel compelled to hit the tourist spots (Stonehenge, Castles) only?

For guide books in England I have loved Eyewitness (beautiful rich colors photos and maps) and Rough Guides (lots of details on hotels, restaurants and destinations) which might then help your further down your choices on Trip Advisor which can feel overwhelming when you're not sure where to start. The biggest thing guides will help with is choosing towns and villages...I have my favorites but I chose them on my own - it's personal! Make your driving trip your own is the best advice I can give you...you'll be glad you planned it specifically for yourselves. It's a spectacular, fascinating, historic and amazing country - plan it well. :)

Host Bonjour

Colleen

HostBonjour@CruiseCritic.com

Hadrian's Wall and The Lake District are 'just' scenery. With limited time you don't want to spend hours and hours driving on our crowded motorways.

I would pick out the places with which you have some connection or interest like Plymouth (although that is a long way South).

Since you are driving, you will get better value away from the tourist places like Stratford upon Avon. Great and interesting to visit with some well presented Tudor houses as museums, but I would go for Moreton. It's only a 20 minute drive away. April is an unpredictable month for weather, so you should be prepared for just about anything (except, hopefully, snow).

There are places in Plymouth to visit - there is a Mayflower Museum, but much of the historic city is long gone. Some of the surrounding countryside is very pretty and you can be back in Bristol in 2½ to 3 hours.

We are planning a driving tour of England and Wales for 3 or 4 weeks and will be visiting Bath, Southern Wales, Stratford on Avon, Nottingham, York and more.

 

I researched B&Bs in Moreton as well as Stratford on Avon. Not sure we will go to Oxford?

 

There are some wonderful places to stay in Stratford in the city walking distance from the key sites. Should we stay in Stratford or Moreton and tour or drive there on our own.

Also, I suppose we could spend a day in Oxford either by taking the train to Oxford from Moreton or a tour.

 

Another of topic question. We are visiting places where our ancestors originated in the old world. I have ancestors from Plymouth. From what I have found, it doesn't seem to be a key tourist site. Not sure we will go there? What do you think? Also, would love to go as far north as Hadrian's wall and the lake district, but that might take up too much time?

You'd find Stratford-upon-Avon is bigger, so has a lot more to offer (including to an over-niter) than Moreton-in-Marsh. But Moreton does have a few pubs & restaurants. They're only half an hour apart, and Stratford-upon-Avon has a large parking lot that's very easy to access from the Moreton-in-Marsh and five minutes or less walk from the sights. So where to overnite depends on the sort of atmosphere you're looking for (& perhaps access to Oxford). Do check parking availability/cost at or near Stratford lodgings.

Consider visiting Warwick castle, about half an hour from Stratford upon Avon.

Not sure you'll find a tour to Oxford from Moreton-in-Marsh, mebbe not even from Stratford.

Trains direct from Moreton-in-Marsh direct to Oxford hourly or better, £10 day-return, journey time under 40 minutes. Stratford to Oxford involves at least one change of train, journey times considerably longer, & frequency is much poorer. Oxford rail station is a ten-minute walk from the centre.

Driving to Oxford is no great problem out of commuter times, but finding parking can be very problematic - a lot of folk opt for park-and-ride parking lots outside the city & with included shuttlebuses.

Oxford is pretty easy to explore on foot.

Plymouth is in Devon, in the south-west of England. It's about 3 hours by fastest route from the Bath to South Wales road, so perhaps a bit out of your way.

But you're very wrong about what it has to offer the tourist. The south-west is a major destination for Brit vacationers.

Plymouth has its historic quarter (the Barbican), the Mayflower steps (Pilgrim Fathers called into Plymouth for a few weeks for repairs & their last few passengers, before heading to America - hence Plymouth Rock in Massachusetts), Plymouth Hoe (where Francis Drake famously finished his game of bowls before sailing out to defeat the Spanish Armada), the Plymouth Gin distillery (a pink-gin should always use Plymouth gin) and a dozen other land & sea sights.

Plymouth is also the gateway to Dartmoor (Hound of the Baskervilles, etc), to the South Hams, to Cornwall, and to many other nearby places of interest.

The Lake District is also about 3 hours from the nearest place that you mention, York.

Also well worth visiting for a few days, but not suitable for just for a dash to & dash back.

So all the places (perhaps not Nottingham, at the risk of upsetting the locals) are worthy.

And over 3 to 4 weeks you could probably fit them all in.

JB :)

Many thanks to Host Bonjour, Bob++ and John Bull for your very helpful advise.

We were planning a four week driving tour, but the cost does add up. We will likely do 21-24 days.

We have been to London, as well as a BI cruise that stopped in Liverpool, to ports in Scotland and Harwich. We visited Cambridge as well as Windsor, Stonehenge, Avebury and Salisbury.

I have ancestors for South Wales, Plymouth, Worcester, Nottingham, York as well as the Lake Country and around London. More ancestors from Scotland and Ireland, but that is another trip.

We will skip London, Canterbury and the SE.

If we go into Devon and Cornwall, that will take an additional 2-3 days, also Hadrian's Wall and the Lake District.

Just doing Bath, Cardiff, Cardiganshire area, Worcester, Stratford on Avon, Nottingham, York and Winchester, ending in Southampton for a Transatlantic will take close to 21 days by my tally.

I will consider your advise and do more research, which I love doing. I will look for an Eyewitness, which I have used on many other trips.

One thing that I have discovered is that renting a car with automatic transmission will add about $100 a week to the cost. Still, having to shift with the left hand and still focus on the highway, I want an auto.

Plymouth has its historic quarter (the Barbican), the Mayflower steps (Pilgrim Fathers called into Plymouth for a few weeks for repairs & their last few passengers, before heading to America - hence Plymouth Rock in Massachusetts), Plymouth Hoe (where Francis Drake famously finished his game of bowls before sailing out to defeat the Spanish Armada), the Plymouth Gin distillery (a pink-gin should always use Plymouth gin) and a dozen other land & sea sights.

Plymouth is also the gateway to Dartmoor (Hound of the Baskervilles, etc), to the South Hams, to Cornwall, and to many other nearby places of interest.

 

JB :)

I hate to argue with an expert, but Plymouth, when I was there a few years ago, was pretty disappointing: The Hoe is just a field with some (uncertain) history. The Mayflower steps are long gone and all there is is a plaque which is sort of near where the steps were. The museum is pretty well done though and the distillery is worth a visit. No dispute about Dartmoor though, and I would recommend a visit to Dartmoor prison; built in 1806 as a Prisoner of War Depot for French and American prisoners of war, it was in use as a high security prison, right up to the end of the 20th century.

Most holidaymakers go straight over Brunel's bridge on their way to Cornwall.

I know that you can't fit everything in, but Constable Country in Suffolk is, in my opinion, every much as pretty as the Cotswolds, but less twee and touristy. Some of the 'wool' villages, with their enormous churches, are sights to behold.

Perhaps an area for your next visit?

I know that you can't fit everything in, but Constable Country in Suffolk is, in my opinion, every much as pretty as the Cotswolds, but less twee and touristy. Some of the 'wool' villages, with their enormous churches, are sights to behold.

Perhaps an area for your next visit?

I believe Constable Country is in southern East Anglia? We did see a bit of that area from Harwich, when we took an tour to Cambridge. It is a nice area.

I believe Constable Country is in southern East Anglia? We did see a bit of that area from Harwich, when we took an tour to Cambridge. It is a nice area.

Yes you are correct Suffolk is one of the counties of East Anglia that borders Cambridgeshire.

If you did go there the Audely End House and Framlingham Castle are worth visiting.

If you are driving, your choices of places to stay open up. For example, I would consider Chipping Campden (finest High Street in England, allegedly) instead of Moreton or Stratford - Campden has a good choice of hotels, B&Bs, pubs and restaurants. Or stay in a nearby village pub - the Horse and Groom in Bourton-on-the-Hill or Ebrington Arms in, er, Ebrington are local favourites.

And JB is correct, if you want a day in Oxford take the train from Moreton if in that part of the Cotswolds. But avoid Moreton on Tuesday, which is market day when parking gets more challenging!

If you are driving, your choices of places to stay open up. For example, I would consider Chipping Campden (finest High Street in England, allegedly) instead of Moreton or Stratford - Campden has a good choice of hotels, B&Bs, pubs and restaurants. Or stay in a nearby village pub - the Horse and Groom in Bourton-on-the-Hill or Ebrington Arms in, er, Ebrington are local favourites.

 

And JB is correct, if you want a day in Oxford take the train from Moreton if in that part of the Cotswolds. But avoid Moreton on Tuesday, which is market day when parking gets more challenging!

Eagle,

Thanks, I appreciate some of the details that you have provided. I think that our time in the Cotswolds will include a day in Oxford, visiting Blenheim Palace, at least a full day in Stratford, another day in Warwick, at least a day doing the smaller towns like Moreton and Campden.

I have a Rick Steves' tour book for Great Britain and the internet has provided me with lots more informal as well as my friends on cc.

Would it make sense to find a good B&B in Moreton or Campden and do our touring from there every day? We could probably stay there 5 or 6 days According to some Stratford has a good parking garage for visitors. We will be using a Garmin gps to navigate.

One base would make sense for those visits - I live between Moreton and Campden and am no more than 40 minutes by car from any of them (and plenty more, of course!)

Yes, plenty of car parks in Stratford and it's a compact place to walk round once you are there.

If doing Belnheim and Oxford in one day, you probably want to drive there, and I strongly suggest using the Pear Tree Park and Ride to get in to Oxford itself. It is well signposted as you approach the Oxford Ring Road on the A44 from Blenheim (Woodstock).

We used Chipping Camden as a base for touring the Cotswalds. We like to stay somewhere with pubs/restaurants so that we can tour during the day, return to our base, park the car and then walk to dinner. Location was central - easy drive to Stratford on Avon, Blenheim Palace, and many of the charming villages in the area. We stayed at the Noel Arms, right on High St.

We used Chipping Camden as a base for touring the Cotswalds. We like to stay somewhere with pubs/restaurants so that we can tour during the day, return to our base, park the car and then walk to dinner. Location was central - easy drive to Stratford on Avon, Blenheim Palace, and many of the charming villages in the area. We stayed at the Noel Arms, right on High St.

We are planning on using Moreton the way you did.

Do you recommend trying to visit Blenheim Palace and Oxford in one day, or should we plan on two days?

Also, one point, if we stay in Stratford, there are B and Bs with free parking, while if we drive to Stratford from Moreton, we will have to pay for parking in a garage. What do you think?

I think it would be a very full day if you plan on visiting both Blenheim Palace and Oxford, particularly if the weather is nice and you end up spending time in the gardens at Blenheim.

We parked in a garage in Stratford and while I don't remember exact cost, I believe it was fairly reasonable. It was quite close to major attractions. I would stay in Moreton v Stratford - I think it will have more of the Cotswolds "charm". Stratford was very touristy - fine for a visit, but not necessarily as your base. Also, Moreton may be more centrally located for your touring

Agree with Host Bonjour. Stratford can be disappointing, has changed so much over the years. Also agree about Moreton in Marsh.

I would also recommend Chedworth Roman Villa if you can fit it in on a Cotswolds visit. Beautiful mosaic floors, Roman baths etc. Set in awesome countryside.

http://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/chedworth-roman-villa

Agree with Host Bonjour. Stratford can be disappointing, has changed so much over the years. Also agree about Moreton in Marsh.

 

I would also recommend Chedworth Roman Villa if you can fit it in on a Cotswolds visit. Beautiful mosaic floors, Roman baths etc. Set in awesome countryside.

 

http://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/chedworth-roman-villa

Thanks for the advise. Also, the Roman Villa looks like it is worth a visit. I was thinking about visiting Hadrian's Wall, but it appears that there is not much left of the wall. Do you think it is worth a visit?

Chedworth is definitely worth a visit if you are interested in Roman remains. But equally, there's not much left of it - it was "lost" for about 1400 years, so there are no original walls above ground level (you will see some walls, which are 19th century reconstruction). It's a very high status site with, as has been said, fabulous mosaics, and one of the biggest villas in the country - about which virtually nothing is known beyond the remains. I am Chair of our local Heritage Society and we had a interesting presentation on Chedworth by one of their outreach officers last month.

Personally, I would always recommend staying in Chipping Campden over Moreton if you have your own transport. Better town to wander round in my opinion.