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The best Cotswolds hotels for luxury spa breaks and countryside cuisine
The Cotswolds is a countryside escape favoured by celebrities – here are the hotels to choose for the ultimate luxury getaway amongst picturesque landscapes
Chocolate-box villages of honeyed stone, dreamy patchworks of green fields dotted with sheep, down-from-London celebs shopping at the Saturday farmer’s markets – the Cotswolds conjures up a lot of cliches, but one thing’s for sure – this corner of the country is the perfect spot for a bougie break. The region, covering parts of six counties (Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire, Warwickshire, Wiltshire, Worcestershire and Somerset, is loved as a glitzy bolthole by everyone from Taylor Swift to Kate Moss, and most recently played the glorious backdrop to the Disney+ remake of Jilly Cooper’s boozy bonkbuster, Rivals.
To explore the Cotswolds in real style, stay at one of the swishest hotels dotted across the National Landscape. From Palladian townhouses to peaceful lakeside stays, and from foodie havens to proper country piles where you can play lord or lady of the manor for a weekend, these picks are the very best hotels in the Cotswolds.
Best Cotswolds hotels 2025
At a glance
- Best hotel for families: Calcot Manor
- Best hotel for couples: The Pig in the Cotswolds
- Best spa hotel: Whatley Manor
- Best luxury hotel: Le Manoir aux Quat’Saisons
- Best dog-friendly hotel: The Double Red Duke
- Best boutique hotel: The Rectory
1. Le Manoir Aux Quat’Saisons hotel
Great Milton
Chef Raymond Blanc’s temple of garden-to-table eating is the cosiest Cotswolds manor you could dream up – just with a little bit of a French twist. Each bedroom is different (stay in Stella McCartney’s favourite, Hydrangea, complete with enormous bath, or Lavande, inspired by the colours of Provence) and the extensive gardens, Japanese ponds and apple orchards complete with beehives are a delight to explore. The real highlights here, of course, are the sumptuous two-Michelin-starred suppers showcasing freshly picked ingredients from the kitchen garden. A blow-the-budget treat for gourmets.
Address: Church Road, Great Milton, Oxford OX44 7PD
Highlights: Michelin-starred restaurants, best for foodies
Read more: Best spa hotels in the Cotswolds
2. Calcot Manor hotel
Tetbury
A golden-hued manor house set in 220 rolling acres, Calcot is great for explorers – borrow bikes and wellie boots, have a game of tennis or join a yoga class. Or you can just spend your whole stay cocooned in a bathrobe in Calcot’s wonderful spa; the outdoor hot tub next to a crackling open fire is a highlight. This is also a stand-out stay if you’re bringing little ones – the family suites are lovely and there’s a children’s afternoon tea on offer, plus family pool slots and a monitor listening service, so you can have a decadent child-free dinner.
Address: Near Tetbury, Gloucestershire GL8 8YJ
Highlights: Best for lovers of the outdoors, spa, best for families
Price: From £294
3. The Pig in the Cotswolds hotel
Barnsley
The Pig hotels are dotted about in some of the loveliest corners of the country, so it’s no surprise their latest instalment is in the Cotswolds. Located in the village of Barnsley, a Grade II-listed house looks out over charming ornamental and potager gardens, and there’s an emphasis on the homegrown inside, too, with Cotswolds ingredients starring in the restaurant’s hyper-local 25-mile-radius menu. Rooms range from the cute Extremely Small to massive Wow-Wee, but the very best are hidden in the secret garden – try Rosemary’s Hideaway for extra romance points. A teeny spa offers treatments, and The Pig’s own Village Pub is across the road for a cosy pint.
Address: Barnsley, Cirencester GL7 5EE
Highlights: Local produce menu, secret garden, spa, luxury
Price: From £315
Read more: Best cheap hotels in the Cotswolds
4. The Rectory hotel
Crudwell
The gorgeous Georgian Rectory in Crudwell, dressed up in Cotswolds limestone, is all casual living-meets-country house and draws a young, fun crowd. Inside are 18 bedrooms plus a contemporary restaurant and a smart cocktail bar, but out-of-doors is just as special. The bucolic garden hides a lily pond, croquet set and a sky-blue heated pool that in summer feels more Mediterranean than middle England. Come in warm weather to swim, read and laze about or in winter for a glass of fizz by the fire in the Rectory’s sister pub, the Potting Shed.
Address: Crudwell, Malmesbury SN16 9EP
Highlights: Best for couples, boutique stay
Price: From £150
Read more: Can you visit Diddly Squat? The Clarkson’s Farm and Cotswolds farm shop location
5. Whatley Manor hotel
Malmesbury
If you conjured up the quintessential Cotswolds stay it might look rather like Whatley Manor, which has 23 bougie bedrooms upstairs, a Michelin-starred dining room downstairs and the delightful Aquarius spa looking out at lush green gardens. Bring popcorn, because there’s even a private cinema. This is a more sustainable pick, too, with a Green Michelin star for food and a gold certification in Sustainable Wellness; Whatley shows that you can make going green look gorgeous. While Tetbury and Westonbirt Arboretum are on your doorstep, you may never want to leave this cocooning hotel.
Address: Easton Grey, Malmesbury SN16 0RB
Highlights: Boutique stay, Michelin-starred restaurant, spa
Read more: The UK’s best spa towns
6. The Greenway Hotel and Spa
Shurdington
Down a long, tree-lined avenue straight out of a period drama, you’ll find The Greenway. While it may be 400 years old, this Elizabethan manor house was given a fresh new look in 2024, with 21 unique bedrooms featuring treats such as roll-top baths and four-poster beds. The restful Elan Spa and a heated pool make a stay here feel more like a retreat than most, and the gardens are a relaxing haven to wander in, complete with croquet lawn and tall yew hedges.
Address: Shurdington Road, Shurdington, Cheltenham GL51 4UG
Highlights: Boutique stay
Read more: Could a night at this ‘sleep retreat’ cure my insomnia?
7. The Painswick hotel
Painswick
Painswick is one of the most picture-perfect villages in the Cotswolds – and that’s saying something. Explore its golden-hued streets, ancient yew trees and Rococo Garden from The Painswick, a Palladian beauty of a hotel tucked down a side street. Snug bedrooms have big views of the surrounding countryside (the very best is George’s Suite, complete with a four-poster bed and wood burner), and the refreshed restaurant, SAUCE, will feed you up with unfussy yet finessed fare, such as BBQ monkfish with curry sauce and Walter Rose rib of beef, all served with local produce in a relaxed setting.
Address: Kemps Lane, Painswick, Stroud GL6 6YB
Highlights: Local produce menu, best for wine lovers, best for foodies
Read more: I hiked to the UK’s most remote gastropub and foraged for my own dinner
8. The Fish Hotel
Farncombe
At the fancy-yet-friendly Fish Hotel, you can choose to hole up in a treehouse, a soft-hued hotel suite complete with a wood burner or a shepherd's hut with your very own hot tub in the garden. If you’re feeling energetic, The Fish will provide you with walking maps and Muck Boot wellingtons to borrow so you can get out in the surrounding Cotswolds, and adventure isn’t far from home, either – the sprawling Farncombe Estate surrounding the hotel offers clay pigeon shooting, falconry or even a spot of duck herding. Seafood restaurant Hook is all about freshly caught goodies, although there are also options such as hot dogs if you’re after an informal lunch.
Address: Farncombe House, Campden Lane, Farncombe, Broadway WR12 7LH
Highlights: Best for lovers of the outdoors, best for seafood lovers
Read more: Best boutique hotels in the Cotswolds
9. Thyme hotel
Southrop
A historic country estate brought bang-up-to-date, Thyme is a cluster of honeyed stone properties in the postcard-pretty village Southrop (this is where Kate Moss tied the knot). If you’re after a mini wellness retreat, the Meadow Spa and Botanical Bothy are bucolic delights, and there’s a heated spring water swimming pool for a dip. Retox with a negroni in the Baa cocktail bar or out by the pool and fill up at the plus Ox Barn restaurant or at Thyme’s very own pub, The Swan. You can also take lessons at the on-site cookery school using ingredients straight from Thyme’s kitchen garden and farm.
Address: Southrop, Lechlade GL7 3NX
Highlights: Best for wellness, best for drinkers
Read more: Best affordable hotels in the Cotswolds
10. The Double Red Duke hotel
Bampton
An inn for all seasons. In the summer, sit out under red and white striped parasols with an iced cocktail, and in the winter, hole up in its cosy bar and restaurant to feast on retro classics – think prawn cocktail and sumptuous steak, and aim to stay over on a ‘Live Sunday’ for great music. This boutique bolthole has 13 delightfully decked-out bedrooms in the main house and six more affordable ones in a modern annexe – top picks are the ground-floor garden rooms in the main house, complete with freestanding tubs and patios.
Address: Bourton Road, Clanfield, Bampton OX18 2RB
Highlights: Boutique stay, value for money
Price: From £250
Read more: The best walks in the Cotswolds
11. The Lakes by Yoo hotel
Lechlade
The Cotswolds’ network of freshwater lakes is one of the National Landscapes’ best-kept secrets, with 180 bodies of water perfect for swimming, water sports and wildlife watching – there’s even a ‘beach’ to chill out on. Explore them from The Lakes, a posh playground of a hotel known as the ‘Hamptons of the Cotswolds’ with its own 10 lakes to dip in, plus an additional sprawling collection of self-catered homes, cabins and a spa offering therapies inspired by forest bathing.
Address: High Street, Lechlade GL7 3DT
Highlights: Luxury, best for lovers of the outdoors, wellness break
Read more: Why this quiet patch of England is among the best regions to visit
12. Stonehouse Court hotel
Stonehouse
Pack your hiking boots for Stonehouse Court – this 17th-century ivy-clad manor sits right alongside the Cotswold Way, a walking route stretching for 102 miles through the National Landscape. A stay here would make for a wonderful walking holiday (or just a big leg stretch) exploring the bucolic Stroud Valley. Relax afterwards in this cosy charmer of a hotel, with 36 bedrooms decked out in velvets and bright wallpaper (rumour has it that Elizabeth I once slept in the master suite). Plus, there are family rooms if you’re bringing little explorers.
Address: Bristol Road, Stonehouse GL10 3RD
Highlights: Historic hotel, best for families
Read more: Most beautiful Cotswold towns and villages you must visit
FAQs
When is the best time to visit the Cotswolds?
The Cotswolds are considered a year-round destination as the quaint countryside thrives in any season. In the spring, expect the region to come to life with blooming flowers, lush greenery across the rolling hills, while summer casts a golden light and warm weather over the meadows, hiking trails and little villages.
In autumn, the area transforms with green leaves turning a deep auburn, rich reds and maroons, while the temperature drops a little, making a ramble across the trails and paths rather pleasant (when it is not raining). In the winter, picture yourself tucked up in a cosy cottage with a roaring fire while frost makes buildings and trees glisten.
While the Cotswolds is an expansive place, Cirencester, known as the region’s ‘capital’, has an average maximum temperature of 22C in July, its hottest month, while this drops to 7C in January and December.
What are the best things to do in the Cotswolds?
There are over 3,000 miles of footpaths and bridleways to explore across the rolling hills and meandering valleys in the Cotswolds as you stumble across charming English towns built with honey-coloured stone and historic English landmarks.
For the most well-known ramble across the Cotswolds countryside, walk along The Cotswold Way. The region’s defining walk is a 102-mile-long route that begins in the picturesque town of Chipping Campden in Gloucestershire. For a mix of charming towns and delightful views, we recommend the sections between Cleeve Hill and Dowdeswell and Cold Ashton to Bath.
The landscape has plenty of other sights to behold and paths to tread, including Coln St. Aldwyns to Bibury, which highlights some of the area’s prettiest villages, and Winchcombe to Cleeve Hill, which covers the Cotswolds’ most ancient landmark, Belas Knap, and its highest point at Cleeve Hill.
For more walking recommendations, read our review on the best walks in the Cotswolds.
Visitors to the Cotswolds will also become aware as soon as they arrive that they are spoilt for choice for picture-perfect towns, sleepy chocolate-box villages and breathtaking landscapes as far as the eye can see.
Trips to villages such as Broadway and Bourton-on-the-Water, market towns like Chipping Campden and the ever-photographed parish of Castle Combe with its Cotswold stone cottages will allow you to immerse yourself in some of the prettiest destinations in the UK.
Aside from its honey pot villages attracting tourists all year round, the Cotswolds also boasts historic houses like Sudeley Castle and Blenheim Palace, meanwhile, the Westonbirt Arboretum houses one of the most beautiful plant collections on the planet.
There is a whole range of museums to delve into the Cotswolds’ past, such as a motoring museum, whilst the aforementioned Belas Knap is one of many Neolithic remains found here.
For more details, check out our guide to the most beautiful Cotswolds villages and towns.
Where should I eat and drink?
The Cotswolds are known for championing local goods, seasonal produce and a farm-to-table way of cooking. Michelin-starred chefs are drawn to this neck of the woods, and most set up shop in cosy pubs in rural areas, making for unique dining experiences away from busy city centres. Many of the hotels on our list include some of these top-rated eateries, such as The Painswick, Whatley Manor and Le Manoir Aux Quat’Saisons.
Some of the other top places to eat include The Wild Rabbit in Chipping Norton, The Old Butchers in Stow-on-the-Wold, The Bell in Charlbury and Cowley Manor.