Tilman2007, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Couples
- Walkers
- Autumn
Two days in the North Cotswolds: a 2-day Cotswolds itinerary
A two-day Cotswolds itinerary from a base in Stow-on-the-Wold: the Slaughters on foot and Daylesford on day one, then Batsford, Chipping Campden, Hidcote and Broadway Tower on day two. By car, with about 55 miles of driving in all.
- 2 days
- By car
- Base: Stow-on-the-Wold
- About 55 miles (90km) driving
- 6 miles (9.7km) on foot
Day 1: Stow, Bourton, the Slaughters and Daylesford
The market town, the water villages on foot, and a farm shop for the afternoon
-
9am
9am Market town 45 minutes here
Stow-on-the-Wold
Start on the Square before the shops open: the medieval market cross, then St Edward's church, open daily, with its north door between two yews.
-
10am
10am Village 30 minutes here
Bourton-on-the-Water
About 15 minutes by car down the A429. Park at Rissington Road (£4.40 for two hours, £10.60 for ten in 2026) and walk along the Windrush.
-
10.30am
10.30am On foot
Walk to Upper and Lower Slaughter
A 6-mile (9.7km) circuit from Rissington Road, with a few stiles: up a lane to Upper Slaughter, down the River Eye to Lower Slaughter's mill, and back to Bourton. Take care at the two crossings of the Fosse Way (A429).
-
1pm
1pm Eat and drink 1 hour here
Lunch by the river at the Croft
A café on Riverside by the Windrush, walk-in only at lunch, and dogs welcome. The Willow on the High Street serves food all day if the Croft is full.
-
2.15pm
2.15pm Things to do 20 minutes here
The Model Village
Bourton at one-ninth scale, as it was in the 1930s, in the garden of the Old New Inn. Adult £4.95, child £4 (2026).
-
3.15pm
3.15pm Eat and drink 1 hour here
Daylesford Farm
About 20 minutes by car east. The organic farm shop and café, open daily until 6pm (5pm on Sundays); the Old Spot serves lunch until 4pm.
-
7pm
7pm Eat and drink The evening here
Dinner in Stow
About 15 minutes back to Stow. The Old Butchers on Park Street, in the Michelin Guide, opens Tuesday to Saturday; book. On Sundays and Mondays eat at the Porch House.
Day 2: Batsford, Chipping Campden, Hidcote and Broadway
Trees in the morning, the wool town at lunch, the great garden, then the tower
-
9.30am
9.30am Things to do 1.5 hours here
Batsford Arboretum
About 15 minutes by car. Sixty acres of trees, best in spring and autumn. Adult £12, child £3.50 (2026); opens 9.30am, 10am on Sundays.
-
11.15am
11.15am Village 30 minutes here
Blockley
Five minutes on. A village of old silk mills along a fast brook, with a Norman chancel in its church. Park with care: there is no car park.
-
12pm
12pm Market town 1.5 hours here
Chipping Campden
About 10 minutes by car. Walk the High Street from the Market Hall of 1627 to the almshouses and St James's. Lunch at the Bantam Tea Rooms, opposite the Market Hall.
-
2pm
2pm Things to do 2 hours here
Hidcote
About 10 minutes by car. Lawrence Johnston's garden rooms, begun in 1907. Adult £20 to 1 November, £12 after (2026); last entry an hour before closing.
-
4.15pm
4.15pm Things to do 45 minutes here
Broadway Tower
About 15 minutes by car. Last admission to the tower is 4.45pm from April to October; in winter, come here before Hidcote. Adult £14.82 online (2026).
-
5.15pm
5.15pm Market town The evening here
Broadway
Five minutes down the hill. Walk the High Street and eat before the drive back to Stow, about 25 minutes.
In more detail
Two days is the right length for a first trip to the North Cotswolds, and Stow-on-the-Wold is the place to base yourself: everything on this itinerary is within about 25 minutes' drive of its Square. Day one is the water villages, Bourton-on-the-Water and the Slaughters, walked rather than driven. Day two is the wool town of Chipping Campden, the garden at Hidcote and Broadway Tower on the escarpment.
How this two-day Cotswolds itinerary works
The plan puts the busiest places at the quiet end of the day and the driving into short hops. You drive about 17 miles (27km) on day one and about 37 miles (60km) on day two, and walk 6 miles (9.7km) on day one. If you only have one day, follow our one-day Cotswolds route instead; with a third, see three days in the Cotswolds.
Day one: Stow, Bourton and the Slaughters
Begin on Stow's Square at 9am, before the shops open. The market cross is medieval, restored in 1878, and St Edward's church held more than 1,600 prisoners after the last battle of the first Civil War, in 1646. If you would rather walk here than in Bourton, the 3.75-mile circuit by Maugersbury has no stiles, and the loop to Lower Swell passes the Lutyens war memorial on the green.
In Bourton, the best of the day is the walk. Neither Upper nor Lower Slaughter has a car park, so the 6-mile circuit from Bourton through both villages is the way to see them: the Old Mill on the River Eye, the ford at Upper Slaughter and St Peter's church above it. Back in Bourton, cross the Narrow Bridge of 1756 and see the village at one-ninth scale in the Model Village. On the full circuit, walkers on AllTrails, in reviews up to 2026, name the two crossings of the Fosse Way (A429) as the hazard to take care over and report mud on the bridleways after rain, and about a mile into Upper Slaughter is on a lane with no pavement.
In the afternoon, drive east to Daylesford Farm near Kingham for the farm shop, or stay in Bourton for Birdland, where the penguins are fed at 3pm; when we checked in October 2026, last entry was also 3pm, so go straight after lunch.
Day two: Batsford, Chipping Campden, Hidcote and Broadway
Batsford Arboretum opens at 9.30am, and its 60 acres are at their best in spring and autumn. From there it is five minutes to Blockley, a village of former silk mills with a Norman chancel in its church, and ten more to Chipping Campden.
In Campden the buildings are the point: the Market Hall of 1627, Grevel's House, the almshouses and St James's, with William Grevel's brass of 1401. Eat at the Bantam Tea Rooms, open daily, or the Eight Bells by the church.
Hidcote is one of the best-known gardens in the Cotswolds, a run of outdoor rooms begun in 1907, and it is best early or late in the day. Kiftsgate Court, half a mile away, is the quieter neighbour; its opening days change through the season. Finish at Broadway Tower, then drop down to Broadway for dinner.
Rain, gardens and a slower pace
On a wet day, keep the morning in Stow and Bourton short and give the time to the museums: Court Barn in Chipping Campden tells the story of Ashbee's Guild of Handicraft, and Broadway Museum and Art Gallery has a John Singer Sargent portrait. For a slower second day, drop Hidcote and walk the Cotswold Way to Dover's Hill from the Market Hall instead, two and a half to three and a half hours. Our guide to Cotswold gardens covers Hidcote, Kiftsgate, Sezincote and the rest.
The Cotswolds Info newsletter
Events, new places and the best of the season, about once a month. Unsubscribe at any time.
Where to stay for two days in the North Cotswolds
Stow sits in the middle, so you never drive more than about 25 minutes back at night. The Kings Arms is a former coaching inn on the Square with its own car park, rare in Stow, and two rooms for dogs; its Booking.com listing warns that the old building has many stairs, some of them steep, and may not suit guests with reduced mobility. The Old Stocks Inn, also on the Square, has a two-Rosette restaurant, and the Porch House serves food from breakfast to dinner every day. For more, see places to stay in Stow-on-the-Wold.