Forest campsites near Bourton-on-the-Water with campfires

This Cotswolds AONB beauty spot’s nickname—“Venice of the Cotswolds”—is some indication that even by Cotswolds standards, Bourton-in-the-Water is special. Its main street is flanked by village greens and the River Windrush, which drifts under five low stone bridges. Several long-distance trails—the Macmillan Way, Monarch’s Way, Windrush Way, Oxfordshire Way, and Gloucestershire Way—converge here, with the latter connecting up to the region’s best-known trail, the Cotswold Way, at Winchcombe. There is a model village and a Roman settlement to explore too, plus excellent cycling and horse-riding. There is limited tent space at the campsite by the lake southeast of the village but plenty of campsites a bit farther afield.

These low-lying undulating hills surround Bourton-on-the-Water. They secrete many more similarly gorgeous historic villages, all characterised by honey-coloured stone villages epitomising the English rural idyll with their preserved churches, centuries-old pubs, and duck ponds. Other bases with good campsites from which to explore the area include Moreton-in-Marsh, 10 miles north, and Chipping Campden, 14 miles north, while charming Castle Combe is the prettiest base in the southern Cotswolds.

September is a great month to visit the Cotswolds, when accommodation prices and crowds have dwindled but when the weather is still often sunny and warm. Autumn colours are also especially dazzling in September and October. Being near Cheltenham, Bourton-on-the-Water-bound campers can also take advantage of Cheltenham’s Jazz Festival (late April) and music festival (July).