With its small villages of thatch-roofed stone cottages, rolling meadows, grazing sheep and stately manor homes, it looks like what England is supposed to look like.

This beautiful area is one of Concierge Traveller’s favorites. With its small villages of thatch-roofed stone cottages, rolling meadows, grazing sheep and stately manor homes, it looks like what England is supposed to look like. Bordered roughly by Oxford to the southeast, Bath to the southwest, Stratford-upon-Avon to the north and Gloucester to the west, the Cotswolds have an atmosphere unchanged since medieval times—except, that is, by large numbers of tourists. At least two days are needed to visit its charming hamlets: Upper and Lower Slaughter, Stanton, Stanway, Stow-on-the-Wold, Northleach, Burford and Painswick are among the most popular villages.

Broadway is known for antiques stores and lots of tourists. Cheltenham, a former spa town, retains its fine Regency and Greek Revival buildings. The town of Cirencester has an immense, richly carved parish church and a notable Roman museum. If you’re up for some outdoor activity, take to the 160-km Cotswold Way, a well-travelled footpath (or at least a portion of it). Or find the source of the Thames, just north of the village of Kemble. Lots of other, shorter walking trails are dotted across the region.

WHEN TO TRAVEL to The Cotswolds

The weather in The Cotswolds region is fairly mild year round due to the warm Gulf Stream off England’s west coast. The Cotswolds gets most of its rain in the autumn and winter months, with its driest season being between April and July. Most visitors tend to come during the spring and autumn months when the weather is at its best.