Cotswolds Guide: Part 1
Links to where we stayed and my favorite spots
A couple weeks ago, I asked my followers on Instagram stories what they most wanted to know about my two months in England, and today I am here to discuss (at length!) the most common questions and curiosities.
In this newsletter, I’m covering:
The logistics of driving on the left and renting a car
The link to the rental home we stayed at and the town we based ourselves in
Other Cotswolds towns/villages I would consider staying in
My favorite spots (restaurants, shops, homes, gardens!) and the few I felt weren’t worth my time
In the next couple of paid subscriber-only posts, I’ll be:
Breaking down what we spent — it really is not cheap in the Cotswolds
Sharing a few itineraries for ideal Cotswolds days
Reflecting on how I measured up to the goals I had for my trip and what I think this trip means for our future. My original post on that here:
A note on the paywall:
Much of this post is paywalled because I am thinking of it like a downloadable travel guide (which I have personally payed $5-15 for in the past — recommendations and a POV from someone who has done it has value!).
And instead of asking those who are already paying subscribers to shell out additional cash and go to some other online surface to download said guide, it felt logical to put it where readers already are and where they can ask questions in the comments.
If you are only subscribing for a month in order to get this content, totally fair. I’ve done that. But I hope that by subscribing for at least a month, I might woo you into being a continuing subscriber because of the value you see in other paid subscriber-only posts. Some of my most popular paywalled posts to entice you are here, here, and here :)
Renting a car and driving
I did have a rental car for the entire two months I was there and I personally wouldn’t want to do the Cotswolds without one. I think having a car helps you explore all the nooks and crannies on your own time and driving the country roads and taking in the views is part of the experience. If you are an anxious or timid driver in the states, you are not going to miraculously find driving in the Cotswolds easier. It will probably be harder and more anxiety-inducing, which will not make for a good trip! Visiting the Cotswolds might not be for you if you don’t want to drive or aren’t traveling with someone who is a confident driver.
We rented a car through Avis because they had the best price for the two month rental and I picked it up and dropped it off at Heathrow. I literally walked off my overnight flight, picked up the car at Avis, and proceeded to drive on the left side of the road for the first time ever, and lived to tell the tale. It IS possible.
I was quoted £1500 for the two month rental, but ended up paying an additional £1200 because I opted into insurance and roadside assistance at the counter when I picked up. I didn’t love my experience with Avis — I think they incorrectly charged me a £250 location surcharge that I am still going back and forth with them on and I was billed three times over the course of my stay because they don’t process rental agreements longer than thirty days (and mine was 63). This was not made clear to me when I booked nor when I picked up and meant I was charged at day 30, day 60, and day 63, in addition to having holds of £1k+ put on my card at the start of each of those rental terms. All very confusing and COSTLY.
Next trip, I’m going to:
investigate if there are rental options better suited to long term stays with more clear cut terms and upfront quotes for insurance
potentially pick up not at Heathrow to avoid location surcharges (and take a train or taxi to the rental pick up location instead)
look for a rental pick up location near where we base ourselves in the Cotswolds. We have a couple credit cards that offer rental car insurance as an included perk, but they don’t cover rentals longer than 30 days. If we had a closer pick up and drop off spot, we could potentially do multiple separate contracts back to back so we don’t have to pay for insurance through the rental agency.
As far as the actual driving, being on the left side of the road was not the hardest part to me. After a week of driving there, I felt pretty comfortable. The challenges I didn’t foresee were:
The roads in the Cotswolds make it VERY easy to get a flat tire. There are a lot of potholes and country road speeds can be up to 60mph
That being said, I was often not driving the 60mph speed limit. I was usually going ~40mph. The speed limit there felt like the max people were driving as opposed to the 5-10mph (or more!) over the posted limit that people commonly drive in the U.S.
If I felt like there was a car behind me that wanted to go faster, I didn’t hesitate to pull into a turn out and let them pass. There are plenty of spots for this purpose along the country roads.
Multi-lane roundabouts took a bit of getting used to — both in signaling and positioning myself in the correct lane for which exit I wanted to take. This explanation and diagram about proper signaling and etiquette in roundabouts was helpful! I was encountering these bigger roundabouts when we were near Oxford and Heathrow, not so much on a daily basis in the smaller towns and villages.
It’s just tighter quarters than in the States. Oncoming cars are closer than you are used to. Cars parked along village lanes often mean there’s only room for one car to pass at a time. There aren’t shoulders to the roads. Nothing to do about this but exposure therapy!
There are of course reckless drivers everywhere, but I did find the drivers in the Cotswolds to be more conscientious and deferential to others. On single track roads, people are quick to pull to the side and flash their lights to indicate they are giving you right of way. People wave to say thanks when you’ve done the same for them. There is just a bit more congeniality on the road (which is probably borne from the fact that people simply have to make room for each other to get where they are going) and that does make it a bit less stressful.
Cotswolds without car
If you absolutely want to see the Cotswolds but don’t want to drive, I would probably add two nights in a Cotswolds village with a train station onto a trip to London. You’ll get a taste of the countryside but won’t be there so long you get bored of the village you’re in because you’re without a car.
If I were to do it this way, I would:
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