11 Best places to stay in The Cotswolds

Built for a party-loving millionaire in the 1920s, Whatley Manor has attracted the well-heeled from London and beyond since it opened as a destination hotel in 2003. With an award-winning La Prairie spa, Aquarias, and a double Michelin-starred restaurant, this is one of the area’s most upscale addresses.

Set in 12 acres of grounds in idyllic English countryside, there are plenty of hearty outdoor activities nearby – including walking, cycling and horse-riding, but pack something elegant for the evening alongside fleece and walking boots – Whatley is all about good old-fashioned glam.

More of a country estate than a boutique hotel, the heart of Thyme is the elegant manor house, home to 31 individually-designed bedrooms that ooze country-house style without ever straying into chintz.

Beyond the house, other farm buildings have been converted into the spa, cookery school, shop and the Ox Barn restaurant. The Swan at Southrop is also part of the estate; both create menus using fruit, vegetables and herbs grown on the estate.

Sustainably run, and mindful of the estate’s history, this is one for those who want low-impact luxury and a sense of staying somewhere intensely personal to those that run it.

Something of a Cotswolds institution, the Lygon has been welcoming guests since the 14th century, and has played a part in some of the pivotal moments in British history, including acting as a base for King Charles I and his supporters to assemble before battle.

The 21st-century Lygon combines its long past with plenty of contemporary comforts – handmade mattresses and quality toiletries in the rooms, a luxury spa with a gym and pool, cocktails by the fire and upscale dining in the opulent Lygon Bar and Grill. Décor is dark and moody – great for cosy winter stays, but less appealing when the sun is out.

It’s beloved of American tourists and those searching for something a little more old-school than the Cotswold’s new breed of boutique hotels – traditionalists will find much to love.

A traditional, luxurious bolthole with grounds that roll down to Castle Combe – England’s most complete medieval village – this is a classic country house retreat with a good dollop of history thrown in.

Golfers come for the Peter Alliss-designed 18-hole course (and to settle in for post-round drinks at the elegant clubhouse), while couples come for the romantic four-poster rooms, Michelin-starred dining at the Bybrook restaurant and the gorgeous Italian gardens that wrap around the hotel.

Proximity to the village is the extra bonus – meaning guests are free to explore in the early morning or late afternoon, when the coach parties and crowds have left.

A classic Cotswold-stone house in the heart of the rolling Farmcombe Estate, Dormy is the ideal place for people who want a country retreat with all the style and comfort of an urban five-star hotel.  This is a contemporary spin on a country house hotel; rooms are plush without being chintzy, and the glass-walled lounges bring the surrounding countryside into the chic interiors.

Meals can be as informal or as grand as you like, with full-on gastronomic experiences at the Chef’s Table and simpler (but still sophisticated) dishes in the Potting Shed, while the House spa is one of the best in the region.

Laid-back but hugely luxurious, this is a perfect romantic retreat, with the picture-perfect town of Broadway just a ten-minute drive away.

This 1511 Tudor castle, turned luxury hotel, once hosted King Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn on their honeymoon. It was also the home of Queen (then princess) Mary I.

Dripping with royal history, it’s everything you expect from a castle: Tudor-style interiors, spiralling tower staircases, suits of armour, large open fireplaces, and panelled rooms with four-poster beds.

There’s even good old-fashioned archery and falconry in the grounds.

A hotel fit for a king (or queen). Children over 8 only.

An elegant, 17th century manor house, reinvented as a super-chic, sybaritic bolthole, with three restaurants, a world-class spa with a cocoon-like indoor pool and delightful gardens, from where many of the kitchen’s ingredients are sourced.

Bedrooms, which are sumptuously comfortable, range from cosy to the expansive Stables Suites, all with a good selection of books, and artwork and objects that continue the garden theme.

The hotel is welcoming to families, but really this is a place for couples; to relax and indulge in the Cotswolds’ particular brand of rural luxury.

Located in a mid-18th century building in an idyllic Cotswold village, the Wild Rabbit is the sister property to Daylesford Organic – the Cotswolds’ world-famous eco-farm shop, spa and restaurant.

The rooms, bar and restaurant are filled with a similar organic elegance – four-poster beds fashioned from birch trunks, stripped-back stone walls and rustic furniture smothered in flowers and artfully-arranged bushels of leaves.

The food – predictably – is a high point, with most of the dishes sourced from whatever is in season at Daylesford – but the whole shebang is a lesson in pure class.

In a region famed for its luxury manor-house hotels, Foxhills stands apart – not just because of its size (just eight rooms) but because of its style of service. The aim is to create the feel of a private house, rather than a hotel – there are no rules, no set times for meals – and instead of a menu, the chef will discuss what you might fancy to eat and then set about preparing it.

The fire-lit lounges come with a menu of complimentary drinks (including spirits and champagne), and guests are welcome to browse the bottles in the well-stocked cellar.

Foxhill Manor is the little sister of Dormy House, and guests are welcome to use their spa and facilities. If you’re looking for somewhere luxurious that’s totally chilled-out, this is a great choice.

Only children over 12 are permitted.

This multi-award-winning hotel and spa is the Cotswolds’ finest. Close to Cheltenham, it’s ideally placed for exploring the Cotswolds.

The 30-roomed Italianate stone house is surrounded by 55 acres of parkland, meadows and lakes, while the designer interior has been much aped but never bettered; all the textiles, furniture and artwork are by British designers.

The spa remains one of the best-regarded in the UK. Their delectable natural products used in spa treatments became so popular with guests that it now sells them under the Green & Spring brand.

Surprisingly for a hotel with such style, it’s also very family- and pet-friendly.

Chipping Campden is one of the Cotswold’s most picturesque towns, and this is its best hotel; a honey-hued Regency building and adjoining period houses, fronting onto the town’s main street.

Bedrooms are chic and unfussy, with a refreshing lack of chintz, spread out along the maze of corridors, and as charming, stand-along cottages in the garden.

The Bistro on the Square is a lively spot for dinner or cocktails (there are 70 types of gin to choose from), but the cherry on the cake is the enchanting garden that stretches behind the hotel, with loungers and deckchairs dotted among flower-filled borders.

At the far end, the former coach house is home to the hotel’s excellent spa, offering soothing Decleor treatments.