Late last spring, Ken’s family came to visit us in London.
Their love of the outdoors, along with the fantastic spring weather (although it looks grey in the picture below), led us to book a day trip to the Cotswolds via a guided bus tour that focused entirely on sightseeing in several quaint villages in the posh countryside (the yellow wildflowers went on for miles adding brilliant bursts of color).
Our journey started early in the morning at Victoria Station on a large tour bus. We drove straight to the first town, Burford, where we strolled down a sleepy high street with little tea shops, antiques and limestone houses.
Further down a side street, we toured an old cathedral with stained glass windows and a small cemetery.
The next town, Bibury, is famous for it’s Arlington Row cottages with steep pitched roofs which date back to the 16th century.
The River Coln runs through the village of Burbury and eventually snakes its way to the Bibury Trout Farm.
Next, we stopped at the Swan Hotel next to the trout farm for lunch. The smell of fish, or any food containing seafood, makes my in-laws and husband cringe.
After lunch, it was off on the bus again to another town called Bourton on the Water (AKA “The Venice of the Cotswolds”). The River Windrush runs along the center of the village and the main street where we stopped to buy a few souvenirs and enjoy the warm, sunny day.
The final stop on the tour was Stratford Upon Avon, Shakespeare’s birthplace.
We took pictures by his childhood home and met up at the famous Shakespeare pub to enjoy non-alcoholic beverages (a first in England) with biscuits (we stole a few extras for the drive home).
Due to the time constraints of the tour, we didn’t get a chance to tour any of Shakespeare’s old jaunts, which I would recommend if you have more time there.
The rest of the trip took us through a few more towns until we made our way back to London. Overall, the day in the Cotswolds lent itself to a relaxing trip outside the city, but I’d recommend taking a train or car and staying in one place longer than a few hours. It’ll be worth it.
