The Cotswold Way - UK

Travel Story

Visiting the UK was, at first, a choice of convenience.

We had to find a destination to spend our honeymoon, Mina had to reset her Schengen visa and we could only afford two weeks of holidays. Eventually, what the country had to offer caught us off-guard, and we felt that those two weeks were too short.

We first wanted to visit our friends in Norwich, than head to the beginning of the Cotswold way, several hundred kilometres further West.

Planning this trip turned out to be a bit more difficult than expected. Indeed, the railway workforce decided to strike the week we would arrive at Stansted airport. Fortunately, we could rely on our friends who gave us a ride until Oxford. From there, we tried to get as close as possible to Chipping Campden by bus. Once arrived at a neighbouring village, we managed to quickly hitchhike to Chipping Campden, where we could begin our hike.

Overall, visiting this country was a lovely experience. We passed through a bunch of places, but this article will mainly focus on the Cotswold Way.

Overall feel

What we appreciate

• Beautiful landscapes
• Well-maintained footpaths
• Cute villages

What we dislike

• Nothing in particular

In details

Stats

• Way of travelling: Walking
• Starting date: June 25, 2022
• Duration: 7 days
• Distance: 164 km

Crossing the border

We took a low-cost flight from Marseille to Stansted Airport. Arrived at the British airport, we had to pass through the automatic gate system which was only a matter of a few minutes. We didn’t have to provide any information about the reasons of our trip.

Fab 🇫🇷

You just need to present your passport at the gates and you’ll be allowed to stay six months as a visitor.

Mina 🇯🇵

Same as above, plus you are also allowed to study. Going to the UK is the easiest solution for resetting a Schengen visa.

Road condition

The UK has strong laws that protect the public footpaths. Consequently, the footpaths are in great conditions and easy to follow. It is not necessary to bring any specific hiking gear and, although touristic maps for the Cotswold Way can be purchased, it’s possible to only follow the landmarks without using them. You will sometimes get through private properties, but since it’s the law, the owners are required to make the paths accessible to the pedestrians. Thus, it is common to walk across farmlands, golf courses or even private backyards. At first, we felt we were trespassing people’s places, but we got used to it. While crossing the golf fields, mind the players and the balls’ trajectories. The players are nice but can be a little bit too much focused on the game to notice you.

We took seven days to complete the Cotswold Way from Chipping Campden to Bath, but we had to rush it. We would recommend to do it in 10 days for a more enjoyable hike.

Accommodations

We only stayed one night in a hotel towards the end of our walk, so we don’t have much to say here. We noticed that they weren’t any cheap accommodations on the way. The few times we tried to call for booking a room, we couldn’t reach anybody or we would be told that the business is no longer running. We guess that the covid crisis took a toll on the local tourism.

Freedom camping

Freedom camping felt easy and safe on the Cotswold Way. It was not too busy so we could pitch our tent near the main path every time. We didn’t feel we were bothering the locals or the animals too much. However, we usually prefer to find a sheltered place to pitch our tent, but we couldn’t find any on the way. Fortunately, the weather was rather good and without any heavy rains.

Facilities

Everyday, we would pass at least one village where we would be able to do our groceries.

Regarding the water supply, it’s possible to find water taps for the hikers, but not everywhere. We had to ask the locals to refill our bottles.

Also, the shops’ schedules are really limited, so it’s better to visit them early in the day. We often miss the restaurants opening hours, but we got saved by the pubs which are open all day long.

For short breaks, the Cotswold Way offers a lot of picnic tables and benches with scenic views on the shire.

Last thing, carrying cash is not necessary as the credit card is accepted pretty much everywhere.

Communication with the locals

The locals were utterly friendly and speak English, of course! They seemed to be really proud of their respective regions and would gladly share additional information about the surroundings. Hikers are welcome and we could find our way easily, thanks to the help we were provided.

Food

On the Cotswold Way, we mainly had light meals we would purchase at the grocery store.

But, during the rest of our trip, we could experience the local food better and it was great! The English cuisine matched our preferences in terms of flavours and tastes. The only reason we scored it 4/5 is because we don’t think what we had was healthy.

Otherwise, restaurants offer a great service with excellent food that has been influenced by a lot of different cultures. We especially enjoyed the Indian restaurants which were the best we have tried so far.

Overall, we think that, compared to France, the UK has tastier food for similar prices.

Vegetarian friendly:

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

It’s great news for us, veggie and vegan people. The country is totally inclusive regarding the different existing diets. There is always at least one option for us, even in the countryside. It is made visible to the customer thanks to obvious marks on menu that would indicate wether the dish would suit your diet or not.

Special mention for the “Vish & Chips” which is a vegan version of the national fish & chips, made of banana blossoms and potatoes.

What we eat:

• Hummus
• Fish and chips
• Bagels
• Savoury pies
• Indian cuisine
• Chinese cuisine
• Yorkshire tea
• Posh coffee
• Scones
• Short bread biscuits

⭐ Fab's favourite:

Maybe the best Indian cuisine in the world.

⭐ Mina's favourite:

Cream tea, which is served inside a teapot with scones, clotted cream and jam. Interestingly, tea is always to be had with milk.

5 memorable places

Chipping Campden	Start point
Broadway Tower	Nice view from the hilltop next to a historical stone wall tower
Birdlip Viewpoint	Hobbiton-ish landscapes
Seven Springs Pub	Relaxing pub inspired by the Japanese style family restaurants, open 7 days a week, from morning to night
Bath	Finish line