London (Part 4) - Cotswolds

Day 4 – Cotswolds

• Our friend was skeptical weather we could see Cotswolds in a day but it’s really doable. However, I would have loved to spend more time there even though we still did a lot in one day.

[ Our Sat Nav worked really well ]

• Hire Car - The best way to see Cotswolds is by car. I got a driving map from this site. It’s comprehensive and gives really clear instruction. I have changed the route to suit my scheule so I couldn’t cover all the destinations.

• There are lots of car rentals (e.g. Avis, National, Europcar) in the UK so if you do need to hire a car, shop around first. We picked up our Peugeot with Europcar from their Waterloo Railway Station outlet which was only 10 mins. walk from where we lived. I think we got a pretty good deal, it was around £88 with a Sat Nav (Tom Tom) and insurance cover.

• We spent the first half an hour trying to find our way out of the city as it was the first time we used a Sat Nav (*you will need to enter a postal code into the Sat Nav for driving direction), I could only hear the instruction but can’t see the route map on the screen. I only figured it out how it worked when we actually arrived Cotswolds! Not bad I suppose only relying on the verbal instruction. Once you hit the highway, it’s actually pretty easy. The weather was beautiful once we got out of London. The English countryside is just so beautiful.

• Bourton-on-Water - We arrived our first destination Bourton-on-Water. This small town is known as the Little Venice of the Cotswolds because of the waterways. It is very romantic and picturesque but can get very busy with tourists. As we were really pushing on time, we only managed to have a quick stop here then we drove to Snowshill and had lunch in Snowshill Arms (Zip: WR12 7JU)
  

  

  [ Bourton-on-Water ]

  

• Snowshill - The hill was full of traditional English limestone houses. The pub was really cute overlooking at a small cemetery. It was quite busy and full of retirees. The food was unexpectedly excellent. We both had smoked trout with salad and chips. We didn’t stay for long as we had to manage our time, but it’s the sort of places you would like to stay and relax.
  

  

  

  [ Snowshill Arms ]

  

• Broadway Tower - We couldn’t find the way driving up the Broadway Tower (Zip: WR12 7LB) so we just parked our car near the foot path and walked up the hill. It was a muddy road and we bumped into a lady walking with her two dogs who had told us it would only take 20 mins. walk up to the tower. Man it was over 40 mins.!! I was a bit agitated cos’ of time but nonetheless, it was probably highlight of the day because the view up the hill was amazing. We walked pass a field with a heard of sheep. I was tempted to touch them but they looked filthy and frigid. The tower itself looked like it came out of a fairy tale! We didn’t go up, so soon after made our way back to the car. We did see a carpark near the Broadway Tower so there must have been a way up for cars. 

  

  [ Half way towards Broadway Tower - amazing view ]

  

  [ Finally arriving our destination ]

  

  [ the fairy tale like tower ]

• Lower Slaughter – As we left Broadway Tower, it was 4pm already. To save on time, we drove to Lower Slaughter directly so we had missed the town Broadway and some other small towns along as listed on the route map. Lower Slaughter is a quaint but affluent looking town. We had afternoon tea in a very smart hotel, Washbourne Court (Zip: GL54 2HS). The scones with clotted cream were delish.
  

  

  [ Lower Slaughter ]

  

• Arlington Row – since we have still got a bit of time before heading back to London. I squeezed in one more destination which was not on the route map. The main attraction of Bibury is the row of old cottages built in 1380. They are the reason why I wanted to go to Cotswolds. The cottages are small with tiny entrances, like a house for hobbits! It would have been nice to be able to see what it is like inside but they are currently still being occupied.
  

  

  [ Arlington Row ]

  
  

  

  
  

  

  We spent around 20 mins. walking around and took a few more snaps before making our way back to London. We were doing very well until the Sat Nav was losing signal before we hit the highway and we lost half an hour there. By the time we dropped the car, it was already 9:30pm.