Skip to content
Cotswolds Info
Stone riverside buildings reflected in the calm Thames

Michael Dibb, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Lechlade-on-Thames

The town where the Thames becomes navigable, with the highest lock on the river, a toll bridge and Father Thames, and William Morris's Kelmscott Manor 3 miles away.

Nearest station
Swindon, about 11 miles, then a taxi
Best time
Spring to autumn by the river; Kelmscott opens April to October
Toilets
Burford Street, 50p, 8am to 7pm in summer and 8am to 6pm in winter, with baby change and an accessible toilet (free with a RADAR key)

About Lechlade-on-Thames

Lechlade-on-Thames is a small town of about 3,100 people where the River Leach joins the Thames, at the southern edge of the Cotswolds. It is the highest town on the Thames that larger boats such as narrowboats can reach, and its river, its lock and its bridge are the reasons to come. On the Market Square, Lynwood & Co, the first of its cafés, opens every day from 8am to 4pm (3pm on Sundays) for breakfast, coffee and lunch.

The river

St John's Lock, east of the town, is the first and highest lock on the Thames, built in 1791. Beside it reclines Father Thames, a statue by Raffaelle Monti made for the grounds of the Crystal Palace in 1854; it stood at the river's source from 1958 and was moved here in 1974. Upstream, the Ha'penny Bridge of the 1790s carries the road over the river in a single stone arch, and walkers paid a halfpenny to cross it until 1839. The Thames Path, 185 miles from the source near Kemble to Woolwich, runs through the town. The riverside loop is one of our short walks, and one of our dog-friendly walks: dogs swim in the Thames on it.

To be on the water rather than beside it, Cotswold Boat Hire at Buscot Lock, about 1.5 miles downstream, lets small electric boats by the hour and cruisers by the day from April to October, with no experience needed and dogs welcome.

A reclining stone statue of a bearded river god behind a low fence by a lock
Father Thames at St John's Lock Photo: Philip Halling, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

St Lawrence's church

St Lawrence's, listed Grade I, was largely rebuilt in the 1470s, and has a west tower with a spire. In 1815 the poet Shelley wrote "A Summer Evening Churchyard" here, and the path through the churchyard is called Shelley's Walk. The church has been closed since January 2026 while it is restored, and the parish expects it to reopen in time for Christmas 2026; check before you go. Shelley's Walk and the churchyard stay open.

A church spire above a small market place of stone buildings under a blue sky
St Lawrence's over the Market Place Photo: Philip Halling, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Kelmscott Manor

Three miles east, by road or along the Thames Path, is Kelmscott Manor, William Morris's country home. It opens from April to the end of October, Thursday to Saturday, with the house seen by timed ticket from 10.30am and last entry at 3.30pm. In 2026 an adult ticket was £15.50 and a family ticket £36; the gardens, shop and tearoom are free. Dogs on leads are welcome, but not in the house or the walled garden. The house closes for the winter on 31 October 2026 and reopens in April 2027. The free car park, by St George's church, is a 10 to 12 minute walk away, with a free shuttle minibus for those who cannot walk it. There is no regular bus, only a limited summer Saturday service from Faringdon. His life there is told in William Morris and the Cotswolds.

Food and drink

The Riverside on Park End Wharf has a garden on the Thames and serves food every day, all day from Friday to Sunday; it takes no table bookings, and dogs are welcome where you eat. On Burford Street, New Wave Brasserie is a seafood restaurant opened in 2022, from Wednesday to Saturday, with a fish market in the passage beside it on Fridays from 8.30am to 2pm. Under a mile out on the Fairford road, Mulberry and Thyme at Hillier Garden Centre serves breakfast, lunch and afternoon tea, from 9am to 4.30pm Monday to Saturday and 10am to 4pm on Sundays, with hot food until 3.30pm (3pm on Sundays); afternoon tea needs 48 hours' notice.

People on a riverside pub deck beside a wide tree-lined river
The Riverside by Halfpenny Bridge Photo: Philip Pankhurst, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Every place to eat in the town, with what each suits, is on our page of places to eat in Lechlade.

Last verified 1 November 2026 by our editors

A still river under a weeping willow with stone cottages on the far bank

Part of

Cirencester and the Coln Valley

Cirencester, the Roman town of Corinium, and the River Coln running past Bibury, Coln St Aldwyns and Fairford to meet the Thames by Lechlade.

  • A humped stone bridge over a broad river with swans and willows
  • Boats moored on a still river reflecting trees and stone houses
  • A slender church spire seen over trees across a still river in spring
  • A wide river between meadows under a cloudy sky, willows on the bank
  • Old stone and painted inn buildings on a town street corner

Things to do in Lechlade-on-Thames

The gabled stone front of Kelmscott Manor beyond its garden path and lawn

Historic houses and heritage · Lechlade-on-Thames

Kelmscott Manor

William Morris's country home by the upper Thames near Lechlade, which he rented from 1871 until 1896, with its rooms, gardens and his grave nearby.

  • A Thames Path fingerpost by the river with moored boats and a stone house beyond

    Cotswold Boat Hire, Buscot Lock

    Parks and gardens · Lechlade-on-Thames

    Self-drive boat hire on the upper Thames from Buscot Lock near Lechlade: small electric boats by the hour and cruisers by the half day or day, April to October.

    Dog-friendly · Family-friendly

    Verified Nov 2026

Where to stay in Lechlade-on-Thames

  • The New Inn's brick front lit at dusk on Lechlade's Market Square, below the church spire

    The New Inn Hotel

    Hotel · Lechlade-on-Thames

    A 17th-century coaching inn on the Market Place in Lechlade-on-Thames, with thirty rooms, a restaurant and bar, and weddings.

    Wedding venues

    Verified Nov 2026

  • A two-storey timber and glass house on the edge of a lake, with a deck, a jetty and kayaks

    The Lakes by YOO

    Self-catering · Lechlade-on-Thames

    An 850-acre lakeside estate at Coln Park, west of Lechlade, with rooms, apartments, cabins and houses sleeping up to 14, a spa with a 17-metre pool, and a lakeside bar and kitchen.

    Family-friendly · Hot tubs

    Verified Nov 2026

  • A caravan on a grass field under big clouds, with Lechlade church spire in the distance

    Bridge House Campsite

    Camping · Lechlade-on-Thames

    A small family-run touring and camping field on Thames Street, Lechlade, a short walk from the river and the town, with 42 pitches and three bell tents, open from late March until it closes for the winter.

    Dog-friendly · Walker-friendly

    Verified Nov 2026

Holiday cottages in and around Lechlade-on-Thames

Where to eat and drink in Lechlade-on-Thames

Lechlade-on-Thames: eat and drink
  • A café shopfront behind pink tulips on a town street

    Lynwood & Co, Lechlade

    Cafes and tearooms · Lechlade-on-Thames

    The first Lynwood & Co café, opened on Lechlade's Market Square in January 2015: an Australian-style café for breakfast, coffee and lunch, open from 8am every day.

    Verified Oct 2026

  • People at tables on a riverside lawn beside a wide river

    The Riverside, Lechlade

    Pubs · Lechlade-on-Thames

    An Arkell's pub on Park End Wharf in Lechlade with a garden on the bank of the Thames, food every day, pizzas, a Tuesday pie night and rooms.

    Dog-friendly · Family-friendly

    Verified Oct 2026

  • The dining room at New Wave, with banquettes, teal chairs and menus laid on the tables under the windows

    New Wave Brasserie and Bar, Lechlade

    Restaurants · Lechlade-on-Thames

    A seafood brasserie on Burford Street, Lechlade, opened in 2022 by a fish merchant and the chef Bob Parkinson, with a terrace, a Friday fish market and Sunday dates.

    Verified Nov 2026

Walks in and around Lechlade-on-Thames

All walks starting here
  • Boats moored on a still blue river in front of willows and a cottage

    Lechlade, Buscot and the Thames

    Walk · Starts in Lechlade-on-Thames · Circular

    A level 4.5-mile (7.2km) circular walk from Halfpenny Bridge, Lechlade, with three stiles and no time given: by the Thames Path meadows to Inglesham church, over to Buscot by lanes and fields, across Buscot Weir and Lock, and back by St John's Lock and the Trout Inn.

Sights in and around Lechlade-on-Thames

All sights
  • A reclining stone statue of a bearded river god behind a low fence by a lock

    Father Thames and St John's Lock

    Sight · Monument · Lechlade-on-Thames

    Raffaelle Monti's reclining river god, modelled in cement for the Crystal Palace in 1854, beside St John's Lock below Lechlade, the first lock on the Thames. He lay at the river's source from 1958 until vandals drove him here in 1974. Grade II.

  • A single-arched stone bridge over the Thames with willows and swans

    Halfpenny Bridge, Lechlade

    Sight · Bridge · Lechlade-on-Thames

    The single tall stone arch that carries Thames Street over the Thames at Lechlade, built under a turnpike Act of 1792, with a little square tollhouse on its corner. Named after the halfpenny walkers paid until 1839. Grade II; free.

  • A small stone church glowing in low sunlight against a dark stormy sky beyond a hedge

    St John the Baptist, Inglesham

    Sight · Church · Lechlade-on-Thames

    A tiny church by the Thames at Inglesham, south of Lechlade, saved from Victorian restoration by William Morris: box pews, medieval screens, seven layers of wall paintings and a late Saxon Madonna and Child. Grade I; Churches Conservation Trust, open daily.

Stories about Lechlade-on-Thames

All stories
  • The long Arts and Crafts front of Rodmarton Manor across its lawn under a blue sky

    The Arts and Crafts movement in the Cotswolds

    Story · History · 10 minute read

    How Ashbee's Guild of Handicraft, Gimson and the Barnsleys, Rodmarton Manor, Gordon Russell and the gardens at Hidcote made the Cotswolds a home of Arts and Crafts, and where to see it now.

  • Rows of purple lavender running toward green hills and woods

    The Cotswolds in July

    Story · Guides · 8 minute read

    The Cotswolds in July: the warmest and sunniest month, the lavender at its peak, the air tattoo, the Cotswold Show and four music festivals, the gardens and houses that open only in summer, cool walks for hot days, and the day the schools break up.

  • The stone porch and mullioned windows of the manor above the garden

    William Morris and the Cotswolds

    Story · History · 9 minute read

    William Morris's Cotswold life: Kelmscott Manor, his heaven on earth by the upper Thames, his grave at Kelmscott, the churches at Inglesham and Burford he fought for, and the Bibury line he may never have said.

History of Lechlade-on-Thames

Lechlade had a market charter by 1210, and stands at the head of navigation for larger boats on the Thames. The Ha'penny Bridge came in the 1790s, around the time the lock at St John's was built, and its toll lasted until 1839. Shelley visited in 1815.

Questions about Lechlade-on-Thames

Can you walk from Lechlade to Kelmscott Manor?

Yes, along the Thames Path from St John's Lock, about 3 miles. Check the opening days first: Thursday to Saturday, April to October; the house is closed from 31 October 2026 until April 2027.

Where is Father Thames?

Beside St John's Lock, just east of Lechlade. The statue was made for the Crystal Palace in 1854 and moved here in 1974.

Is St Lawrence's church in Lechlade open?

Not while it is restored. It closed after the services of 18 January 2026, and the parish expects it to reopen in time for Christmas 2026. Services are held in the Memorial Hall and the Baptist church meanwhile.

Getting to Lechlade-on-Thames

By bus
Stagecoach West's 77 runs from the Market Place to Fairford and Cirencester, and to Highworth for Swindon, four journeys each way Monday to Saturday. There is no Sunday bus.
By train
Swindon is the nearest station, about 11 miles away; take a taxi.
Distances from Lechlade-on-Thames
Kelmscott Manor3.1 mi
Fairford4.3 mi
Burford8.7 mi
Swindon station11.2 mi
Map of Lechlade-on-Thames
© OpenStreetMap contributors

Don't miss a thing

What is on, what is new and what is in season in Cotswolds Info, in your inbox about once a month.

About once a month. Unsubscribe at any time.