Here is our Cotswold Way 12 day hiking itinerary. We have outlined the details and what is included in your Cotswold Way holiday below:
Cotswold Way Thatched cottage
Key Points
Price is £1315 per person based on 2 people sharing a twin or double ensuite room. Single supplement is £65 per night
13 nights’ accommodation with en-suite/private bathrooms
A full English or Continental breakfast is included each morning, where available
We provide official guidebook with O/S mapping, detailed itinerary and sightseeing/refreshment recommendations for the Cotswold Way
Accommodation is in good quality B&Bs, local inns and small hotels.
If you would like upgraded accommodation, please enquire.
Daily luggage transfers along the route
12 days’ walking to complete the 102-mile Cotswold Way walking route.
You can contact us here to make an enquiry about our Cotswold Way 12 day itinerary.
Cotswold Way group hikers
Cotswold Way 12 day Itinerary
Day 1
Arrive Chipping Campden Travel to Chipping Campden where your first night’s accommodation is booked. Have a relaxing evening before your start. Chipping Campden is a historic market town and beautiful example of Cotswold stone craftsmanship.
Day 2
Chipping Campden to Broadway Walking up and along the Cotswold escarpment, with fine views, this walk takes you to Broadway Tower built as a folly in 1799 and onto the picturesque Cotswold village of Broadway. [Approx 6 Miles / 10 Kms]
Day 3
Broadway to Winchcombe Your longest walking day and also one of our favourite stretches of the route, highlights include: iron age hill forts of Shenberrow & Beckbury Camp, the superb villages of Stanton and Stanway with its Jacobean manor house and very impressive fountain, Hayles Abbey site of historic pilgrimages and onto Winchcombe – the capital of ancient Mercia [Approx 11 Miles / 18 Kms]
Day 4
Winchcombe to Dowdeswell From Winchcombe and the nearby Sudeley Castle, the trail continues to Belas Knap ancient longbarrow, then winds its way to Cleeve Hill the highest point of the Cotswolds at 317 mtres and offers fine views of the surrounding countryside, you will shortly pass “Bill Smylie’s butterfly reserve” and later decend to Dowdeswell Reservoir. [Approx 10 Miles / 16 Kms]
Day 5
Dowdeswell to Birdlip Today the route passes through woodland up and over farmland and onto Seven Springs, believed by some to be the source of the river Thames, following on with fine views onto Leckhampton Hill and the “Devils Chimney” manmade rock structure and local focal point. More excellent views take you through Crickley Hill Park and up to the pretty hamlet of Birdlip. [Approx 10 Miles / 16 Kms]
Day 6
Birdlip to Painswick Today’s walk passes through woodlands. At the Roman Villa at Witcombe, a bath house and fine mosaics have been unearthed. Cooper’s Hill offers fine views, formed part of an Iron Age encampment and is today famous for its annual “Cheese Roll”, the walk is completed at the picturesque Cotswold stone village of Painswick with streets dating back to the 13th Century. [Approx 8 Miles / 12 Kms]
Day 7
Painswick to Kings Stanley This section of the trail offers some fine sightseeing with the views from Haresfield Beacon over the Severn valley below, being quite wonderful. The route descends gently through Standish Woods and into the Stroud Valleys. [Approx 8 Miles / 12 Kms]
Day 8
Kings Stanley to Dursley Today’s walk is quite hilly but rewards you with fine vistas at Coaley Peak and historic sites, including a Neolithic long barrow and Iron Age fort. The walking trail passes down into a valley through farmland and onto your destination of Dursley, a town once famous for its wool and cloth. [Approx 7 Miles / 11 Kms]
Day 9
Dursley To Wotton under Edge A steep climb up Stinchcombe Hill rewards you with more lovely views then onto North Nibley and you will see The Tynedale Monument, a prominent landmark. Grass and woodland take you onto Wotton-under-Edge dating back to Saxon times, there is today a fine mixture of old buildings plus a selection of pubs, shops and places to eat. This part of the Cotswolds were once very important centres for cloth and woollen industries. [Approx 7 Miles / 11 Kms]
Day 10
Wotton under Edge to Hawkesbury Today you will pass close to The National Trust property of Newark Park then take a very pretty woodland track to the village of Alderley. Onwards through a valley then climbing to The Somerset Monument before heading towards the village of Hawkesbury. [Approx 7 Miles / 11 Kms]
Day 11
Hawkesbury To Tormarton This section is very rural with views towards Bristol and the Severn Bridge crossings. The highlights are Sodbury Hill Fort with 11 acres of ramparts and ditches with Iron Age and Roman origins. The walk through Dodington Park, landscaped by Capability Brown, is a highlight before crossing fields onto the village of Tormarton. [Approx 8 Miles / 12 Kms]
Day 12
Tormarton to Cold Ashton The trail today passes Dyrham Park (National Trust), famous for deer and a fine Tudor mansion and is worth visiting. Onwards then into Dyrham Woods before continuing through farmland into Cold Ashton with its magnificent Rectory and manor house. [Approx 7 Miles / 11 Kms]
Day 13
Cold Ashton To Bath The last day’s walking is through a very varied landscape of hills offering fine views. You will climb to the Civil War battle site of Lansdown then onto another hill fort and Bath Race Course where the trail later descends into the outskirts of Bath, an historic city, famous for its Roman Baths, Abbey and Royal Crescent. [Approx 10 Miles / 16 Kms]
Day 14
Depart after breakfast Explore Bath/ return Home. This concludes your Cotswold Way 12 Day itinerary.
Cotswold Way Hailes Abbey
Further Notes
Cotswold Way 12 day itinerary. If you would like any help with your travel arrangements please email us and we will be happy to assist you.
The journey to Moreton in Marsh (the closest train station) is 90 minutes from London (Paddington) and other train stations servicing the area are at Cheltenham & Evesham. There is free, long-term parking in Chipping Campden at ‘Back Ends’
For our overseas guests, the most convenient airports are Heathrow with rail connections to Moreton-in-the-Marsh via Reading and Birmingham International Airport has rail connections to Cheltenham via New Street Station
