PLAN FOR THE DAY
0800 We depart from Cambridge for the journey cross-country via Oxford into the centre of England.
1015 Our first stop is in Burford, the gateway to the eastern Cotswolds. Burford was once a wool town in the late medieval period and today the legacy of that wealth is reflected in the numerous pretty buildings that line opne of the most impressive high streets of any small town in Britain. We'll take a stop here for a stroll around and a stop for an invigorating coffee in one of the many quaint cafes before heading deep into the Cotswolds nearby.
1115 Arrive in Bibury, once referred to as 'the most beautiful village in England', with its trout-filled River Coln and perhaps the most famous cottages in the Cotswolds, Arlington Row.
1200 We then take advantage of travelling by minibus which allows us to navigate the narrow country lanes that the large tour buses cannot use to show you the benign beauty of the Cotswolds that most visitors do not see. We travel to quiet backwater villages and to countryside viewpoints as we weave our way across the region. Weather-permitting, we stop to take an easy peaceful walk between villages in a sublime Cotswolds river valley.
1330 Lunch in the picturesque tourist village of Bourton-on-the-water with its busy shops lining the bubbling stream that flows through the village centre or in the pretty hilltop town of Stow-on-the-Wold.
1430 After lunch we continue our journey northwards, stopping at ancient churches and quaint villages. Then to the edge of The Cotswold hills for the stunning views across the Severn river valley to Wales. Finally, we arrive in the small, old wool merchants' town of Chipping Campden. Sometimes in the ancient marketplace there are stallholders selling sheep skins, the ideal souvenir for a region made wealthy through its historic connection with the wool trade.
1645 We depart from Chipping Campden for the journey back to Cambridge.
1900 Arrive back in central Cambridge.
