The Cotswolds and the County of Gloucestershire.

North of Bath the Cotswolds, an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, and Gloucestershire provide many opportunities for half and full day tours.

Stone and wool have given the Cotswolds their special richness. The natural soft limestone and the prosperity of the medieval wool trade created superb buildings in a spectacular landscape.

Cirencester, capital of the Cotswolds, was originally a Roman military station which can be explored in the Corinium Museum. Not far away, in a wooded Cotswold combe is the large, well preserved Chedworth Roman Villa.

Wool towns such as Cirencester, Tetbury, Fairford, Northleach (home of the Cotswold Heritage Centre), Stow-on-the-Wold and Chipping Camden all show the fine houses and magnificent 'wool churches' built and endowed by the wealthy medieval wool merchants.

Minchinhampton and Rodborough Commons are open grassland and woodland high on the Cotswold limestone plateau. For centuries they have been grazed by sheep and cattle and managed as common land.

Gloucestershire towns and villages have much to explore: Tewkesbury with its Abbey and Alleyways; Winchcombe, ancient Saxon capital and nearby ruins of Hailes Abbey; Malmesbury with its Abbey; the weaving villages of Bourton on Water and Bibury.

Gloucester, the county town, has a magnificent Norman Cathedral and Victorian Docklands, now home to the National Waterways Museum and the Museum of Advertising & Packaging.

The Regency spa town of Cheltenham was at its most fashionable between 1790 and 1840. The spa waters can be tasted in the Pittville Pump Room.

Stately homes to visit include: Berkeley Castle, scene of the brutal murder of Edward II; Snowshill Manor, with its eclectic collection of craftsmanship; Sudeley Castle, with Royal connections over 1,000 years; the Tudor Owlpen Manor in a remote wooded valley; the Elizabethan house, Chavenage; and Dyrham Park, little changed since it was built in 1692-1704.

Gardens to visit include: Painswick Rococo Gardens, Hidcote Manor, Barnsley House, and Westbury Court Water Gardens. There are arboretums at Batsford and Westonbirt. The Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust have a 120 acre site at Slimbridge on the Severn Estuary.

Let Bath Parade Guides help you make the most of your visit to the Cotswolds and Gloucestershire. 

Local Links.

> Visit Cheltenham (Tourist Bureau Site)
> Oxfordshire Cotswolds (Tourist Bureau Site)
> Cotswolds and Severn Vale (Tourist Bureau Site)
> Chavenage House
> Chedworth Roman Villa
> Cirencester
> National Waterways Museum
> Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust