From Kate Moss to the Beckhams, most of London’s elite have a place to weekend in the Cotswolds. If you’re yet to sign a deal for a chocolate box cottage cuter than Kate Winslet’s home in The Holiday, don’t worry, there are plenty of chic boutique hotels and luxe country manors to satiate your Home Counties hankerings.
From stylish pubs with rooms and the hotel that’s all over Instagram, here are our top-rated places to stay in the Cotswolds.
The Fish
This laid-back lodge is one of the Cotswolds’ newer members and there’s a wealth of accommodation to choose from depending on what you’re after (and how deep your pockets are). Book into the stylish main rooms for the cheaper option (rooms start at £175 per night), the shepherd’s huts for something unique, or the treehouse rooms for a staycation to outdo all staycations.
The vibe is cool, the interiors are Scandi-inspired and they’ve found that perfect balance of romantic getaway for two and somewhere you can take the kids.
THE FISH, BROADWAY, WORCESTERSHIRE WR12 7LJ
WWW.THEFISHHOTEL.CO.UK
Cowley Manor
The décor of this country estate-turned-Cotswold’s classic could do with an update but its grounds are really something to swoon over. Sprawling greenery that Blake would go wild for, a lake, and Grade II listed gardens make it one of the most popular places to visit in the Cotswolds.
The C-Side Spa offers a range of holistic treatments on the menu and the indoor-outdoor pool situation is great for Insta opportunities. But if you really want to indulge, book into ‘The Best Room’ (it’s actually called that) for 75 sq ft of unadulterated luxury – think walk-in shower, bathtub for two, separate lounge, and a huge wrap-around balcony that looks out onto the lakes and fields of the Cotswolds.
COWLEY MANOR, COWLEY, CHELTENHAM, GL53 9NL
WWW.COWLEYMANOR.COM
Soho Farmhouse
Outrageously overpriced and totally overexposed on the ‘gram, but it’s got to be done at least once. Soho House’s answer to Center Parcs, it’s set across 100 acres of land with endless facilities meaning you don’t have to leave the hotel or get muddy – it’s probably the cleanest place in the Cotswolds.
Sleeping quarters come in the form of Hobbit-style huts – although they’re nice and spacious inside and come complete with outdoor metal tubs) and cosy Canadian-style cabins. There are also manmade lakes (photo ops) a Cowshed Spa (naturally, given that it’s Soho House), a pub and restaurant to make it feel like actual Soho House goes to the country, and bikes to get to and from them all on.
It might be one of the most expensive places in the Cotswolds but you will certainly have a good time.
SOHO FARMHOUSE GREAT TEW, CHIPPING NORTON, OX7 4JS
WWW.SOHOFARMHOUSE.COM
The Wild Rabbit
This one’s for foodies for sure. Set up by Queen of the Cotswolds, Carole Bamford, who also started the countryside behemoth that is Daylesford, The Wild Rabbit is a pubs-with-rooms fare. Tuck into delights such as curried Jerusalem artichoke velouté and Wootton Estate venison, before flopping into bed upstairs.
THE WILD RABBIT, CHURCH ST, KINGHAM, CHIPPING NORTON OX7 6YA
WWW.THEWILDRABBIT.CO.UK
Calcot & Spa
Dip your toe in Calcot’s famous outdoor fireside jacuzzi before pampering yourself in the spa with Elemis treatments. If food’s more your thing, The Conservatory is perfect for lazy lunches and there’s even a pub onsite for that proper English countryside vibe. The dishes are excellent, from the salt-baked celeriac cooked over wood and served with a slow-cooked duck egg and truffle emulsion to the decadent Chateaubriand for two.
And while Calcot will earn you brownie points with your other half for a romantic weekend away, the hotel is really accommodating for children too.
CALCOT & SPA, TETBURY, GLOUCESTERSHIRE GL8 8YJ
WWW.CALCOT.CO
Barnsley House
Gorgeous gardens, immaculate interiors, an indulgent spa and seriously good food. This is the perfect getaway for every occasion, from romantic stays in the secret garden suite to secret retreats for you and the girls.
Barnsley House, when can we move in?
BARNSLEY HOUSE, BARNSLEY, CIRENCESTER, GLOUCESTERSHIRE, GL7 5EE
WWW.BARNSLEYHOUSE.COM
Lakes By Yoo
Kate Moss has designed some of the interiors at these luxury barn houses on the lake. I mean, it doesn’t really come much cooler than that.
The double-height properties are out of this world and look more like an A-lister’s home in LA rather than the Cotswolds. From the gallery wall on the stairway littered with cool imagery of rock stars to inspiring coffee table books, jewel-hued soft furnishings, and a kitchen so cool it may as well be a bar; this place screams Le Moss and we guarantee you will not want to leave.
THE LAKES BY YOO, COTSWOLDS GL7 3DT
WWW.THELAKESBYYOO.COM
Thyme
From the Meadow Spa to the onsite Cookery School, if you’re a Londoner who gets itchy feet in the countryside after 24 hours, Thyme has plenty to keep you occupied. That is at a slow, Cotswolds’ speed of course.
The cosy pub-cum-boutique hotel takes food very seriously with a menu inspired and created prominently from the onsite farm and kitchen garden and a cookery school that teaches guests to whizz up anything from simple suppers to perfect patisseries.
Genuinely one of the loveliest boutique hotels in the Cotswolds, if not the country, make sure Thyme is right at the top of that staycation list.
THYME, NR, SOUTHROP, LECHLADE GL7 3PW
WWW.THYME.CO.UK
Dormy House
They call themselves “a bit like home, but better,” and we’d have to agree. The interiors are chicer, beds comfier and food tastier – ok, not that much like home then but somewhere we’d happily while away a weekend.
Perched high above the village of Broadway, the views are unrivalled, but we’d happily take the cosy corners and warm fireplaces of Dormy House’s interiors instead.
DORMY HOUSE HOTEL, WILLERSEY HILL, BROADWAY, WORCESTERSHIREWR12 7LF
WWW.DORMYHOUSE.CO.UK
By The Handbook