Day Five - Private Day Tour to the Cotswolds

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Geo: 51.7523, -1.25582

We had a great breakfast in Quod. We were booked on a winter bed and breakfast special, which was great. After that we were met by our tour guide Martin from Absolute Touring. We had booked Martin for two private day tours and today was our day to go to the Cotswolds. We were picked up in an extremely comfortable 8 seater minibus and Martin was a wonderful guide. He presented us with written notes on where we were going and was an absolute treasure trove of information regarding the towns and villages we visited.

We drove through Asthall and Swinbrook, had a brief stop at Burford, drove through Taynton and onto Bourton on the Water. As this was a private tour, we could ask him to stop whenever we wanted. We spent a bit of time at Bourton as I remembered it so well from my childhood. We then drove through Upper and Lower Slaughter and Stow on the Wold, with a few photo stops on the way, followed by a lunch stop at the Black Horse in Naunton. We had a really good pub lunch there. After lunch we drove through Stanway, Stanton, Broadway and Snowshill before a coffee stop in Chipping Campden. We returned to Oxford via Morton in the Marsh, Chipping Norton and Woodstock. It was an absolutely wonderful day out and we were lucky enough to have beautiful sunny weather, so the countryside was at its best for winter.

After freshening up we walked to the Eagle and Child for a predinner drink and then onto Jamie's Italian for dinner. It was my second time there and we really enjoyed it, except for my husband who didn't think his pasta was up to the standard Jamie talks about on television! The rest of us liked ours though. 

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Photos

Bourton on the Water
Bourton on the Water

The Black Horse Inn, Naunton
The Black Horse Inn, Naunton

Folly in the Countryside
Folly in the Countryside

A Cotswold Stone Wall
A Cotswold Stone Wall