The Cotswolds & Oxford

Rendezvous in Chipping Campden at the Cotswold House Hotel on the High Street of one of the most charming and unspoilt Cotswold towns. Welcome Dinner and Introductory Talk.

We set off through the gently rolling hills to reach the famous Hidcote Manor Gardens, created by the American Lawrence Johnson almost one hundred years ago. Here at the gardens, generally recognized as one of the world's greatest, we can stroll through the nineteen 'outdoor rooms' which make up this vast garden. We will be greeted by a local TV and radio garden expert who will answer any of your gardening questions. We return to the hotel on a different footpath or, for those who would rather spend time in the village or visit the famous 200-year old folly, Broadway Tower, the van can return to you to Chipping Campden after lunch at Hidcote.

We meander through the quintessentially Cotswold honey-toned stone villages of Broad Campden, Blockley to arrive at Lord Dulverton's Batsford House, once home to the infamous Mitford sisters. From the Arboretum we visit the Birds of Prey Centre where we watch owls, falcons and eagles put through their paces. After lunch we continue walking towards our next hotel in Stow on the Wold, passing the extraordinary Sezincote House.

We set off to explore Stow-on-the-Wold ('where the wind blows cold') and then on through pretty Upper and Lower Slaughter. Their names are from the old word for the stream that links the two picture-postcard villages, rather than referring to any great massacre! A local farmer will tell us about Cotswold farming and introduce us to his sheep dog. After a pub lunch, we return to Stow via a different route.

We leave the rural Cotswold hills and villages and head to historic Woodstock to walk through some of the Duke of Marlborough's 2,000 acres of parkland surrounding the awe-inspiring Blenheim Palace. We see the quiet village graveyard where Sir Winston Churchill is buried and, after a hearty pub lunch, head alongside the Thames to that 'city of dreaming spires', Oxford. Our Farewell Dinner is held in one of the thirty-eight prestigious and historic Oxford University Colleges.

After breakfast, we set out on foot to explore this ancient center of learning, seeing aspects of both Town and Gown; We leave our wonderfully situated hotel on 'The High' and walk through the heart of the University. At a secluded spot on the river we experiment with the traditional Oxford pastime of Punting. We end at Oxford Rail Station for onward connections.