Listed below are a few questions I am frequently asked, with their answers. If you have anything else you would like to know please do not hesitate to email me at  john@cotswoldstravel.co.uk , call me on +44(0)7458311903 or use the contact form.

 

 

1. Will it not be cheaper for us to join a coach tour of the Cotswolds rather than travel with you in a private tour?

 

It might well be cheaper but coaches, because of their size, can only drive the main roads and visit the major tourist destinations and not travel down the narrow Cotswold lanes, which are the very essence and heart of the beautiful rural area known as the Cotswolds. The coaches are unable to visit the smaller, quaint, picturesque, and charming villages, which are quintessentially Old English.

Also, with me, the day is YOURS {not mine} so we stop where YOU want to stop and visit/shop where YOU want to rather than where the coach driver is able to stop...coach tours are very regimented whereas my days with you are all private and bespoke and designed for solos, couples, families, and small groups.

 

2. Does the word “Cotswolds” mean anything?

 

Yes, because the medieval economy of the Cotswolds was based on the Wool Trade, a “Cot” is a sheep enclosure and a “Wold” is a hill so, literally translated, Cotswolds means “Sheep`s enclosures on the Hills”.

 

3. “The Slaughters” sound as though, in the past, either lots of animals or people have been killed there...is that true please?

 

No, Slaughter, in this context, comes from an old English word “Slohtre” meaning “Muddy Place” but the word has, somehow, morphed into Slaughter.

 

4. There are a number of villages, and towns called “Chipping” something (like Chipping Campden). Is “Chipping” anything to do with golf?

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No, the word Chipping, means Market so any place {like Chipping Norton or Chipping Sodbury, where JK Rowling was born} all once {and most still have} a local market.

 

5. Are Highclere, Stratford-upon-Avon and Gloucester in the Cotswolds?

 

No, but they are close by and I often visit them on request.

 

6. Can we get to the Cotswolds by train from London?

 

Yes, there are regular train services to Oxford, Moreton-in-the-Marsh and from elsewhere, there are stations in Bath, Swindon, Cheltenham and Gloucester.

 

7. Can you see ALL the Cotswolds in just one day?

 

Absolutely not!... the Cotswolds cover circa 800 square miles. Ideally, you need to allow 3-4 days and some well-informed folk dedicate a week to this stunning area.

 

8. What are the nearest airports to the Cotswolds?

 

Birmingham and Bristol are very close and Heathrow is only a 1 hour drive from the edge of the Cotswolds.

 

9. When is the best time of the year to visit the Cotswolds?

 

Anytime between the beginning of March until the end of October.

 

 

 

A Footnote

The Cotswolds have links to;-

Neolithic man, The Saxons, The Romans (“Scratch Gloucester and find Rome”), Harry Potter, J R Tolkein, Henry VIII, the current Royal Family, the modern Jet Engine, William Morris, The English Civil War, Jeremy Clarkson, David Cameron, The Beckhams, Gustav Holst, Edward Wilson, Brian Jones (Rolling Stone), Liz Hurley, Jilly Cooper, Sir Geoff Hurst, to name but a few... please ask me about these and other connections.