PREPARATIONS FOR THE TRIP TO THE ENGLISH CAMPIGN
While it is true that we can say that at the beginning of the year, even before, we already have more than revised the calendar of bridges and holidays to schedule the getaways, this year we get a pleasant surprise when we saw that on September 11, Sunday and Festive in Catalonia, it happened on May 16, Monday. With this we could begin to think about a new getaway, yes, preparing it with less time, since we knew this just when we arrived from our trip to New York at Easter so it was time to get down to work and start thinking about a destination for 4 days, including flights. We do not think too much: May, near destination and presented as a quiet destination, something we needed after the last trip that was much busier. We only had to do a search on Best Flight, check that there were flights on the dates we wanted, direct from Girona and start dreaming ...
... we are leaving trip to the English countryside (Cotswolds)!!.
The dates chosen for this trip will be from May 13 to 16, that is, long weekend, from Friday to Monday, in which, counting on the flight schedules, we will have two full days, plus some hours to travel this England area.
Our trip to the English countryside (Cotswolds), where we will have the support of VisitBritain where we have dived in search of all the information for this trip, will start in Bristol, to where we will fly from Girona. While we have to say that the initial approach was to fly to London, something that can be done without problems if for schedules or prices you do better, since the Cotswolds area is a little less than two hours by car, although from Bristol , if you have the option, it is much closer.
The arrival of the flight is in the afternoon, at which time we will pick up our rental car in Bristol to start the route through the English countryside, approaching to Castle Combe, which will be the first point of our itinerary and also the place we have chosen to stay the first night of the trip to Cotswolds in 4 days.
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The second day of this trip through the English countryside We will focus on touring some of the most emblematic and scenic towns and circuits in this area of England, those we are accustomed to seeing in movies and postcards.
The first hours of the morning will be dedicated to visit Castle Combe, the place where we will have stayed the first day of the trip, to continue touring places like Leacock, Tetbury, a small town, where an important monastery was founded in 681. Winner also of several awards, among which are the "Best Small Town"(Best Small Town), which he won in 2009.
After this stop, we will approach Painswick, Winchcombe and Broadway, where we will stay the second night of the trip and where before going to rest we will get lost in its little streets adorned with honey-colored stone houses, which they say are some of the most beautiful of Cotswolds, also approaching its famous Broadway Tower, an architectural whim, as they say in the guides and websites that speak of the area, from where you can have a unique image of the area and the surroundings.
All the visits of the day are quite close to each other, between 9 and 20 kilometers, so the time we spend on the road will be minimal and the rental car will allow us total freedom of movement and schedules, something that we find essential in this trip through the English countryside (Cotswolds).
Road trip to the English countryside (Cotswolds) - First day
Castle Combe - Lacock 17 min (8.9 miles)
Lacock - Tetbury 35 min (19 miles)
Tetbury - Painswick 30 min (14.6 miles)
Painswick - Winchcombe 40 min (27.7 miles)
Winchcombe - Broadway 16 min (8.5 miles)
On the third day of the trip and telling that we will have already entered directly and through the big door in Cotswolds, we will visit some of the most emblematic and also most beautiful places in this incredible area of the world.
We will start the day in Snowshill, a small, somewhat isolated town, located in the upper area of a cliff, dotted with beautiful country houses and a 19th century church. After this visit we will go to Chipping Campden, a city with a charming historic center, where we can find not only a particularly photographic environment, but also a place where tea rooms, a variety of restaurants and small shops of products stand out premises in which sure, we found some product with which to return home and keep remembering this trip to the English countryside.
After an hour in Chipping Campden, we will go to Upper Slaughter, another beautiful town of Cotswolds, and then go to Lower Slaughter, located practically next door, where we will meet a picturesque town, known for its traditional style limestone houses from Cotswold.
The town is crossed by two small bridges and a renovated mill, in which we can find a lot of handmade products.
We will follow our itinerary to go to Bourton on the Water, also very close to the previous ones and one of the most visited towns of Costwolds, especially on Sundays, day in which this place looks especially lively.
The next stop of the day will be Buford, located west of Oxford and one of the most visited places in the area. As the last point of the day we will approach the icing on the cake: Bibury, a town where we can find one of the most symbolic images of the English countryside and also where we will stay.
Road trip to the English countryside (Cotswolds) - Second day
Broadway - Snowshill 7 min (2.8 miles)
Snowshill - Chipping Campden 12 min (5.2 miles)
Chipping Campden - Stow on the Wold (optional) 16 min (10 miles)
Stow on the World - Upper Slaughter 9 min (3.3 miles)
Upper Slaughter - Lower Slaughter 3 min (0.9 mi)
Lower Slaughter - Bourton on the Water 6 min (2.1 miles)
Bourton on the Water - Burford 17 min (12.2 miles)
Burford - Bibury 13 min (9.9 miles)
Bibury will be the place with which we close this trip to the English countryside (Cotswolds), which we already know, even before we go, that it will be one of those corners of the world that we will not forget and that it is only necessary to see some images and read a couple of lines to know that this is one of those places to add to the essential list.
** All images have been provided by Shutterstock
Day 1: Lloret de Mar - Girona Airport - Bristol - How to get to Los Cotswolds (Castle Combe)
