Belas Knap Long Barrow
Historic houses and heritage · Winchcombe
A Neolithic long barrow on the hill above Winchcombe, with a false entrance and side chambers, free to visit and on the Cotswold Way.
Walker-friendly
Verified Oct 2026
Things to do in Winchcombe
7 places · every place verified by us
Winchcombe has a castle where a queen is buried, a steam railway, an abbey ruin and a Neolithic tomb on the hill, all within a few miles of the High Street. It suits walkers and families from spring to autumn. In winter most of it closes.
7 places
7 places
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Gloucestershire Warwickshire Steam Railway
Family days out · Winchcombe
A heritage railway running steam and diesel trains for 14 miles between Cheltenham Race Course and Broadway, by Winchcombe and Toddington.
Family-friendly · Dog-friendly · Rainy days
Verified Oct 2026
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Hailes Abbey
Historic houses and heritage · Winchcombe
The ruins of a Cistercian abbey near Winchcombe, founded in 1246, once a place of pilgrimage, now open for booked tours on the first weekend of each month.
Walker-friendly
Verified Nov 2026
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Prescott Speed Hill Climb
Sport and activity · Winchcombe
The Bugatti Owners' Club's hill climb course near Gotherington, between Cheltenham and Winchcombe, holding competitions since 1938, with spectator events from spring to November.
Verified Nov 2026
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Sudeley Castle and Gardens
Historic houses and heritage · Winchcombe
A castle on the edge of Winchcombe where Katherine Parr, Henry VIII's last queen, is buried, with gardens, a Tudor history and the Dent family's home.
Family-friendly · Walker-friendly
Verified Nov 2026
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Winchcombe Museum
Museums and galleries · Winchcombe
A free, volunteer-led museum in Winchcombe's former Town Hall, with fragments of the Winchcombe meteorite, a rare pair of fifteenth-century town maces and the town's story from its trades and tanneries to the Arts and Crafts makers.
Rainy days · Car-free
Verified Oct 2026
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Winchcombe Pottery
Independent shops · Winchcombe
A working pottery at Greet, a mile north of Winchcombe, where Michael Cardew restarted pottery-making in 1926; its shop sells the wood-fired and soda-glazed tableware made on site.
Verified Oct 2026
What there is to do in Winchcombe
Most of what there is to do in Winchcombe is history you can walk to. Sudeley Castle, on the edge of the town, holds the tomb of Katherine Parr and ten gardens. Belas Knap, a long barrow built around 3000 BC, sits on the hill to the south, and the ruins of Hailes Abbey are 2 miles north-east. The Gloucestershire Warwickshire Railway calls at the town on its steam line between Cheltenham Race Course and Broadway.
In the town itself, Winchcombe Museum in the former Town Hall is free and shows fragments of the Winchcombe meteorite. At Greet, a mile north, Winchcombe Pottery has made everyday pots since 1926 and sells them from its shop from Monday to Saturday. Prescott Speed Hill Climb, a few miles towards Cheltenham, opens only for its motor sport events.
Who it suits
Winchcombe suits walkers first. The Cotswold Way runs through the town, past Sudeley and up to Belas Knap, which is free and open in daylight all year, and it passes the gate at Hailes. From the lay-by on the lane the last half mile is steep, with two stiles and a kissing gate, and sheep may be grazing, so wear boots.
Families do well on the railway, where under-5s travel free and Toddington, the next main station north, has a play area and engine shed tours on Tuesdays and Sundays, and at Sudeley, which has an adventure playground with a picnic area. Hailes Abbey takes more planning: it opens only on the first weekend of each month, for tours booked online.
Seasons and busy times
Plan a Winchcombe day between mid-March and the end of October. In 2026 Sudeley opened daily from 14 March to 1 November, with last admission at 3pm; the dates for next season are still to be announced. The railway runs from spring to late autumn, mostly on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, weekends and bank holidays, then Santa and festive trains from late November to early January, and is closed for the rest of the winter. From 2 November 2026 the museum opens at weekends only. Mid-May brings the Winchcombe Cotswolds Walking Festival, three days of guided walks.
Prices, parking and dogs
Sudeley is the dearest: £24 for an adult and £59.50 for a family in 2026, with free parking. A day rover on the railway was £28 for an adult and £75 for a family. Belas Knap and the museum are free, and National Trust members go free at Hailes. Prescott sells tickets per event; for Rallye Prescott in November 2026, advance sales closed at 5pm the day before.
In the town, Back Lane car park (GL54 5PZ) is £1.50 all day and Bull Lane charges by the hour. Both take RingGo, and Blue Badge holders park free. Without a car, Stagecoach's W (about hourly, by Cleeve Hill) and Pulhams' 606 run from Cheltenham, Monday to Saturday only.
Leave the dog behind for Sudeley: pet dogs can use the café and visitor centre but not the castle, gardens or playground. English Heritage lists Hailes among its dog-friendly places, so dogs can come on a lead. Dogs ride the railway on a lead (£5 a trip in 2026) and go on a lead at Belas Knap, where sheep graze. For a bed, see where to stay in Winchcombe.
For a meal, see places to eat on the Cotswold Edge. Our dog-friendly weekend is based at an inn in the town that takes dogs in every room.
Our picks in and around Winchcombe
Sudeley for the Tudor story and the gardens, the railway for a day with children, Belas Knap for the walk, Hailes for a planned weekend, the museum for a free hour and the pottery for a weekday stop.
All places-
Sudeley Castle and Gardens
Historic houses and heritage · Winchcombe
A castle on the edge of Winchcombe where Katherine Parr, Henry VIII's last queen, is buried, with gardens, a Tudor history and the Dent family's home.
Family-friendly · Walker-friendly
Verified Nov 2026
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Gloucestershire Warwickshire Steam Railway
Family days out · Winchcombe
A heritage railway running steam and diesel trains for 14 miles between Cheltenham Race Course and Broadway, by Winchcombe and Toddington.
Family-friendly · Dog-friendly · Rainy days
Verified Oct 2026
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Belas Knap Long Barrow
Historic houses and heritage · Winchcombe
A Neolithic long barrow on the hill above Winchcombe, with a false entrance and side chambers, free to visit and on the Cotswold Way.
Walker-friendly
Verified Oct 2026
-
Hailes Abbey
Historic houses and heritage · Winchcombe
The ruins of a Cistercian abbey near Winchcombe, founded in 1246, once a place of pilgrimage, now open for booked tours on the first weekend of each month.
Walker-friendly
Verified Nov 2026
-
Winchcombe Museum
Museums and galleries · Winchcombe
A free, volunteer-led museum in Winchcombe's former Town Hall, with fragments of the Winchcombe meteorite, a rare pair of fifteenth-century town maces and the town's story from its trades and tanneries to the Arts and Crafts makers.
Rainy days · Car-free
Verified Oct 2026
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Winchcombe Pottery
Independent shops · Winchcombe
A working pottery at Greet, a mile north of Winchcombe, where Michael Cardew restarted pottery-making in 1926; its shop sells the wood-fired and soda-glazed tableware made on site.
Verified Oct 2026
Before you go
- Parking
- Back Lane is £1.50 all day and Bull Lane charges by the hour, both by RingGo. Sudeley and Hailes have free car parks, and Belas Knap only a small lay-by.
- Booking ahead
- Hailes Abbey opens on the first weekend of each month, for tours booked ahead. Prescott sells tickets per event online; for Rallye Prescott in 2026, sales closed at 5pm the day before.
- Prices
- In 2026 Sudeley was £24 for an adult and a railway day rover £28. Belas Knap and the museum are free.
- Dogs
- Welcome on the railway (£5) and at Belas Knap on a lead, but not in Sudeley's castle or gardens. Hailes is on English Heritage's dog-friendly list.
- Winter
- Sudeley closes from early November until its spring reopening, and the railway from early January until spring. Belas Knap stays open in daylight.
Walks from Winchcombe
The Cotswold Way runs through the town. These walks start in it or close by.
All walks starting here-
Winchcombe and Belas Knap
Walk · Starts in Winchcombe · 2 hrs, 45 mins · Circular
A 5.5-mile (8.8km) moderate loop of two to two and three quarter hours from Winchcombe, up the Cotswold Way and through the woods to Belas Knap, the Neolithic long barrow, then home on the Winchcombe Way by Wadfield Farm and Sudeley, with two stiles and a narrow road.
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Hailes and Beckbury Camp
Walk · Starts in Winchcombe · 2 hrs, 15 mins · Circular
A 3.5-mile (5.6km) circular walk from Hayles Fruit Farm, moderate and about two and a quarter hours: up the monks' track to Beckbury Camp, down the edge of a wood over three stiles towards Wood Stanway, and back past Hailes church and the abbey ruins.
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Winchcombe, Belas Knap and Cleeve Common
Walk · Starts in Winchcombe · 4 hrs, 15 mins · Circular · Dog-friendly
A 9.2-mile (14.8km) moderate loop of four to four and a half hours from Winchcombe: up the Cotswold Way through the Sudeley estate to Belas Knap, west along the byways to the top of Cleeve Common, then down by Postlip's Norman chapel and Breakheart Plantation.
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Cotswold Way: Winchcombe to Cleeve Hill
Walk · Starts in Winchcombe · 2 hrs, 45 mins · Dog-friendly
A 5.6-mile (9km) one-way walk on the fourth section of the Cotswold Way, moderate and two and a half to three hours: from Winchcombe by Sudeley up to Belas Knap, down through Breakheart Plantation to Postlip's Norman chapel, then up to the golf club on Cleeve Hill.
Plan your day out
Where to go, what is on and what is in season, about once a month.
Questions
What is there to do in Winchcombe on a rainy day?
Start at Winchcombe Museum, which is free and has a lift to its two upstairs rooms, then take the steam railway on a running day: most of its main stations are step-free, and they have cafés. Sudeley's castle rooms are indoors, though the gardens are most of the visit. Except on Sundays, the shop at Winchcombe Pottery is a mile north at Greet.
Is anything open in Winchcombe in winter?
Yes, though less. Belas Knap is open in daylight all year, the museum opens at weekends from 2 November 2026, and the pottery shop opens Monday to Saturday. Sudeley closes from early November until spring, and the railway runs Santa and festive trains from late November to early January, then shuts until spring. Hailes opens on the first weekend of each month.
Can you see Winchcombe's sights without a car?
Yes. Stagecoach's W and Pulhams' 606 run from Cheltenham to Winchcombe, Monday to Saturday, and from the town Sudeley, the museum and the walk to Belas Knap are all on foot. The railway's Winchcombe station is about 20 minutes' walk out at Greet, and Hayles Abbey Halt is a short walk from Hailes Abbey, though not every train stops there. Cheltenham Spa is the nearest mainline station.
Which things to do in Winchcombe are free?
Belas Knap and Winchcombe Museum are free, and the pottery's shop at Greet lists no charge to visit. National Trust members go free at Hailes Abbey on its open weekends. The Cotswold Way and the Winchcombe Way cost nothing to walk, and Sudeley's Pavilion Café needs no ticket.
Is Winchcombe good for children?
Yes, for children who like trains or castles. On the railway under-5s travel free, a child's day rover was £14 in 2026, and Toddington has the engine shed and a play area. Sudeley has an adventure playground beside a picnic area, and the climb to Belas Knap suits older children in boots.
About Winchcombe
A walkers' town below the escarpment, with Sudeley Castle and Katherine Parr's tomb, the ruins of Hailes Abbey, Belas Knap on the hill and a steam railway.