England – Cotswolds – Bourton-on-the-Water (En)

Bourton-on-the-Water voted one of the prettiest villages in England, is in the heart of the Cotswolds. It is known for its honey-coloured stone architecture and idyllic scenes. It is famous for its five bridges made of local Cotswold stone, which give the village its name of the Venice of the Cotswolds.

Where to stay

We drove Ben’s mum’s mini, so we didn’t stay overnight. We parked at Bourton Vale Car Park (51.885992, -1.755341 lat, long), a 5-minute walk from the centre, the river, the museum, etc. We paid £3 and had enough time to see the town and have lunch.

What to see

We walked until we reached the river where we crossed one of the bridges to the Automobile Museum which displays vintage cars and a collection of toys. We didn’t go in because we were with Asha.

We walked along the River Windrush, crossing its stone bridges surrounded by shops, restaurants, cafes and tea rooms, passing by the village hall in its charming honey-coloured stone.

Following the banks of the Windrush you reach Birdland, home to species including parrots, owls and king penguins, as well as life-size dinosaur models.

We finished our tour by seeing the small Baptist church and the Model Village a scale replica of the 1930s village.

What to eat

There are plenty of places to have lunch, we had lunch at a restaurant overlooking the river where Ben had the local burger and I had a chicken and mushroom pie. Ben said his burger was very good, I have to say my pie was one of the worst I have had in England, with too much dough and not enough content. The price for the two meals with a pint of beer and a glass of white wine was £45, so not really cheap.

Our next visit to the Cotswolds is Stow-on-the-Wold a charming town known for its historic buildings, traditional pubs and picturesque streets, which you can see in the next post!