The Cotswolds conjurs up images of rolling green hills and picturesque villages and towns. A large area covering five counties it is to the east of the Forest of Dean and Wye Valley.
The History of the Cotswolds
The Cotswolds National Landscape is a designated Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB), and the largest AONB in Britain. It covers a huge area – almost 800 square miles – and runs through five counties (Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire, Warwickshire, Wiltshire and Worcestershire).
Things to do in the Cotswolds
The Cotswolds is known for its quintessentially English villages of honey-coloured stone and its lively market towns. Visit some of the country’s greatest palaces, castles and country houses from Blenheim Palace in Oxfordshire to Sudeley Castle just outside Cheltenham in Gloucestershire. Walk its many footpaths or settle in to a village tearoom, the Cotswolds is a beautiful rural area to relax and explore.
Visit the Cotswolds from the Dean Wye
The River Severn separates the Cotswolds from the Forest of Dean, with bridges at Gloucester in the north and Chepstow in the south. It is around a 30 minute drive from the Forest of Dean to Cheltenham in the north west of the Cotswolds or around 45 minutes from Chepstow to Bath in the south west of the Cotswolds.
See our Getting Here page for information on travel. Interested in walking? The Gloucestershire Way joins the Cotswolds and the Forest via a fantastic off-road national trail.
Discover more at www.cotswolds.com
