The Cotswolds epitomise what so many of our visitors love about Britain: cute tea shops, creaking wood-beamed pubs, crooked houses, cobbled lanes, and picturesque views abound.
It’s the quintessential English idyll – the kind of place where you wouldn’t be surprised to find Miss Marple bothering the local bobby, or Downton Abbey’s Sybil and Branson having a clandestine meeting.
And unlike some places where the reality doesn’t quite live up to the fantasy, in the Cotswolds it really does. Yes, the buildings really are that old and no, the views are not obscured by ugly modern additions – in some parts of the Cotswolds they haven’t built anything new in centuries.
Are you intrigued by Britain’s peculiar traditions and pastimes? Then the Cotswolds is the place to be. Think cheese rolling or fleece auctions. If it’s quirky and offbeat, the chances are they do it here.
But while much of the region’s allure lies in its small towns and villages, where the grocery store might double as the post office and everyone seems
