Bourton-on-the-Water is not your typical sleepy idyllic English Cotswold village; this is really a tourist honey pot. It has got all the right ingredients, with the river Windrush and its six arched bridges and wide grassy banks, running parallel with the main street and dividing the village in two. The traditional Cotswold architecture, some dating back to the seventeenth century, with honey coloured limestone walls, mullioned windows, stone tiled roofs and a generous helping of gables. This village has everything and knows it and on a warm summers day it makes a memorable visit, just promenade up one side of the river and down the other, taking in all the sights.
It is not short on attractions, including Bird land, a trout farm, model village, model railway, motor museum and a perfumery, there are also a number of pleasant walks to be had. Of the above Bird land is my favourite, it has a large collection of exotic birds including penguins, pelicans, Toucans and pink flamingos. All this and history too, with its older name of Boroughton its origins can be traced back to Roman times and beyond, there is evidence to indicate a Bronze age settlement (1500-700 BC). The Roman Fosse Way that runs from the mouth of the Humber to Devon passes the top of Bourton-in-the-Water.