Secret Cotswolds Tour From Stratford-on-avon Or Moreton-in-marsh

A lovely day on a perfectly paced tour with our highly knowledgeable guide Martin! Even with drizzly weather, this tour was a highlight of our week in the Cotswolds. We were taken to a variety of beautiful small villages and spots that we never would’ve gotten to on our own, and Martin was a wealth of information, especially on the history of everything we saw, and he kept it fun and engaging the entire day. So glad we booked this tour, highly recommend!

It was a great trip. We enjoyed everything we saw. Mark did a great job. He was informative, very interesting, and patient with a lot of questions.

The leader, Dave, was knowledgeable and passionate about the area. He gave us lots of information and insights which made the trip wonderful. He was polite and efficient and worked hard to make the experience great for all on board.

Booked directly online with Go Cotswolds. Emailed them with a couple of questions and they replied within 24 hrs. Booked the Secret Cotswolds and Cotswolds in a Day tours. The drivers were wonderful. They were very personable and extremely knowledgeable about the areas we toured. Love that they use smaller vans rather than large tour buses. Will book their other tours with them on my next trip. Highly recommend this company!!

We just happened to see the Go Cotswolds van near the train station. and walked over. There happened to be 2 extra seats so we decided to join the small group instead of just bussing it on our own. It was so worth it. Larry, our driver made the experience come alive with many stories and anecdotes and great recommendations. Plus he took us to many more villages than we would have done on our own We highly recommend the tour!

Great experience. Jayson was excellent as our tour guide - very knowledgeable and very patient. We had a 1-2 people in our tour that were a bit of a challenge and he handled it with patience and grace while still getting us the experience and information we wanted on the tour. Lots of local knowledge to add to the tour information about the Roll Right Stones, Burford, Guilting Power, Staton and Broadway tour stops. Although thou should take some water Jayson will see that you have plenty of opportunities for buying water or lunch or using the rest room. The experience included a lot of interaction with the group and Jayson was always quick to take a group of individual photo.Worth the cost of admission! Great day.

A great way to see the beautiful villages and back roads of the Cotswolds and avoid the crowds. Elaine was a super guide - very friendly and informative. It felt like touring with a friend who just happened to know everything about the area and history. I love that we got to visit the stone circle older than Stonehenge, vist small villages seemingly hidden in the hills, and have free time in beautiful larger villages (with shopping!) Elaine was fun, considerate, and helpful to everyone in the group.

Calming and pleasant journey. It was a wonderful experience to see quiet villages in the countryside.

An excellent day exploring some of the less well known spots. Elaine, our guide was extremely informative and helpful throughout the day, and we would recommend this trip as an excellent day out.

This Secret Cotswolds tour is absolutely the best way to see the real Cotswolds! Our guide Elaine knew all the best scenic back roads and took us to the villages and sites that gave us the flavor of this beautiful area. She made each of us feel welcome and provided tales and tidbits about the villages and the people that kept us all entertained. I am happy that I chose this tour for my day in the Cotswolds.

Elaine took us on a wonderful trip through the Cotswolds. We had a tour book which helped us with walking through all the destinations. While it was a Monday and certain places were closed, this was fine as there was much to see. She took us to churches off the regular experience. This enhanced the whole experience. She also took group pictures for us so that is was more memorable. Elaine even dropped me off straight at my hotel as the last stop. This was much appreciated. Loved the whole trip. Thank you, Elaine!

I usually leave the vacation bookings to my wife because her choices are consistently impeccable, and once again she didn't disappoint. Our guide, Martin, was punctual, courteous, and thoroughly professional. Having grown up in the region, he brought a unique perspective and depth of local knowledge that simply can't be found in a guidebook. In addition to the sites listed on the itinerary, he made several impromptu stops at hidden gems of historical, literary, and cultural significance that greatly enriched the experience. Martin is also a true history enthusiast, with an impressive command of both the documented history of the region and its fascinating mythology. His passion was evident throughout the tour and made every stop more engaging. The tour itself was excellent, striking the perfect balance between guided commentary and ample free time to explore at our own pace. What truly elevated the experience, however, was our exceptional guide, Martin. His knowledge, enthusiasm, and genuine love for the area transformed an already outstanding tour into one of the highlights of our trip.

Dave was very knowledgeable and friendly! Learned so much about the Cotswolds and the surrounding areas. Would highly recommend!!

Having visited the Cotswolds a couple of times, I was eager to see some of the smaller, off-the-beaten-path villages and sites that I hadn't been to as well as to revisit a couple of my favorites. Colin is an excellent tour guide, and being a resident as well, is a great ambassador for this lovely region! He shared history and tips for what to see at each stop (I'd visited Broadway before, but didn't know I could say hello to the foxhounds...I love the church in Stanton...oh, and those sausage rolls at The Cotswolds Guy really are amazing!), and having a smaller group really makes for a more personal experience - lots of opportunity to ask questions, and to go places that a full-size bus would be difficult to manage. If you don't have your own car in the Cotswolds, then a tour like this is the best way to see more of the area than just whatever town you're staying in. Highly recommend!

My husband and I did the Cotswolds in a Day tour and thoroughly enjoyed it. We booked the Secret Cotswolds Tour for the next day. This tour was our least favorite of the two. Our guide was nice and personable. We did see some new and interesting things, but it mainly felt like a long, rushed drive through the region. We stopped in several small villages and were given approximately 40 minutes to look around. But after about 5 minutes you had seen everything. The tour isn't a bust, but I hope the company revisits it and makes some adjustments.

Good combination of sights, nice driving through beautiful landscapes. Flexibility which gave a longer stop in Burford. Good driver/guide

Elaine, was an excellent guide. Very friendly, helpful and informative about all the locations. We had plenty of time to explore each location and never felt under any time pressure. My two friends and I thoroughly enjoyed the day and my friend Val, was very appreciative over the birthday card received from the company. We would all recommend GoCotswolds tours. Five stars from us.

We did three tours with Go Cotswolds and all were wonderful. This one though, struck a chord with me. From walking around the Rollright Stones in the early morning as the birds sang and the sun shined, to visiting Hailes Church and Abbey along the Cotswolds Way, and so many other wonderful stops, I spent the day immersed in history and beauty. Don’t miss this tour!!

I went into this trip completely blind - my friend reserved it and I decided to join in without knowing what to expect. What an absolute joy it was! Our guide was Martin and he was personable and helpful throughout the day. The bus was right on time and was a mid-sized vehicle, rather than a huge coach - I think it seated maybe 12 or 15? We only had six or seven people with us so it was easy to chat and hear everything, and ask questions. I really enjoyed that all the talk was during the drive, and for the most part, we were able to just wander around at each stop, prioritizing what was of interest to us (sometimes just a cup of tea!), rather than follow around someone with a flag and travel at someone else’s pace. I really enjoyed this tour and the other tour I took with GoCotswolds and would happily book with them again.

The secret Coswolds was probably our favorite of the three tours of the Cotswolds. Mark was our tour guide and he was fantastic. The visit to the ancient stones ( 3800 BC! ) was very interesting. Mark even demonstrated his divining rods . This is something my father did when I was a child while searching for water. Mark was extremely knowledgeable about all of the towns we visited and had excellent tips about where to eat and where to purchase other items we were looking for. We had a small group so we really got to know one another. We never felt rushed and always had the time we needed in each location to visit. My wife and I highly recommend Mark and gocotswolds tour company. We entertained renting a car and doing the tour on our own. That would have been a HUGE mistake. Gocotswolds really has an efficient, safe, and thorough system to get you to many places in a day that you could never do on your own. We will recommend their services to anyone we know of that is visiting Great Britain!

Today, was our 3rd tour with Go Cotswolds! There are a 5 Star company. Their Guides/drivers are locals who love the Cotswolds area and have lived here many years. Their 16 passenger vans are the only way to get around the Cotswolds area with the narrow roads and the traffic. They know the back roads and know how to navigate them. Today our guide was Martin. He has lived in the Cotswold area for 35 years. Martin has a wealth of knowledge. He took us to amazing places that were on my bucket list to visit. Martin made the day extra special for us. I am so grateful I booked our tours with Go Cotswolds! They are the best.

I did the Secret Cotswolds tour with Dave, on a Monday in April. I joined the group in Moreton at 9h30. He was very punctual. We were only 6 people on the minibus which was great! There was a couple, a family of 3 and myself (solo traveller). Dave was really helpful and happy to tell us all he know about the different stops we did and all the Cotswolds area in general. I loved his explanations! He gave us enough time to explore each of the villages and even guided us a bit further in some of them, indicating important details to pay attention to. His suggestions were very useful! He even stopped several times on the way, for us to take some pics of the beautiful landscape. The group was fine. The price is adequate for the experience I had. I didn´t expect the guide to be so helpful in fact! It was more similar to a private tour than a mini-bus tour, I guess that was for the number of people. I would really recommend to join this tour to avoid the crowds and to have a real feeling of this more authentic side of the Cotswolds. None of the villages were crowded and we could perfectly walk around and take many photos with absolutely no other people on them.

Perfect day with great guide Eleine and fantastic opportunity to learn about Costwolds.

The "Secrets of the Cotswolds" Tour was just wonderful tour and great day! Our tour guide, Mark was very friendly and helpful, and tremendously knowledgeable about the history and many points of interest on this tour. During the day, we started with a visit to three different sites of ancient stones, and then toured 5 of the Cotswolds towns/villages. In each village, we had an adequate amount of time to explore, find a place to eat, and to visit some of the highlighted areas that our guide suggested to us. Our guide, Mark, also drove through many other small villages along the way, explaining the history and significance of each place. The day really gave us a very good picture of life, history and culture in the Cotswolds. We were fortunate to do another tour, "Cotswolds in a Day", a couple of days later, visiting visiting six different communities, and many other small communities on a different route than the "Secrets of the Cotswolds" tour. These two tours are really complimentary and we would really recommend considering doing both of these tours, for a fuller Cotswolds experience. We were really impressed by the quality of the guided experience and value of both of these tours!

Great experience to get familiar with Cotswolds. Lots of interesting information about landowning, houses, history and happenings. Our guide Colin was really nice with people and has great humour. We enjoyed our day!

Excellent experience and very good, guided tour. Ellen was great presenter of Cotswold values and also material delivered on the start of the tour help us to understand the area on good way.

We’re local to the area and chose the Secret Cotswolds tour as a pre-Christmas treat. Our driver, Martin, was punctual, knowledgeable, engaging and amusing. The mini-coaches are clean, comfortable, and well equipped — including charging points for social media devotees. Martin brings the tour to life with his deep knowledge of the landscape, local sites, and both UK and Cotswolds history. His understanding of toponymy is particularly impressive. The itinerary included a mix of familiar locations (to us) and others we’d only ever seen on road signs or maps but never taken the time to explore. Martin clearly knows the area inside out, taking routes only a true local would know, which is key to what makes this tour so special. It allows you to fully enjoy the scenery while someone else takes care of the driving, with the added bonus of spontaneous stops along the way. I would highly recommend Go Cotswolds to anyone wanting to learn more about the area. Everything is delivered seamlessly, though it’s clear there is a great deal of planning and hard work behind the scenes to make these tours such a success. For locals looking to discover something new, treat a loved one, or simply enjoy the Cotswolds without the stress of driving, Go Cotswolds is well worth considering. Many thanks to everyone involved.

It was welcoming, informative and safe. Truly fun and easy. I really learned quite a bit. Jason was a great guide.

We had a wonderful day touring the Cotswolds with our driver/ guide Martin. He was very knowledgeable and passionate of the area while adding a lot of wit and humour making our day most enjoyable. The van was very comfortable and length of time at each stop perfect for wandering and grabbing a bite to eat. He also added a couple of non scheduled stops…”the secrets of the Cotswolds”. We now hope to come back to tour more of the area with Go Cotswolds

I’m not generally a tour person but this one was excellent. It provided the overview of the area on our first day in the Cotswolds. Our tour guide Martin was superb! He shared a vast amount of historical information and trivia about the area that we referenced throughout the remainder of our stay. His presented it all in a fun and engaging manner that kept our attention and shared details that made each stop more meaningful. The tour offered sufficient free time to explore on our own. The overwhelming 5-star reviews for Go Cotswolds are for real! Great tour!

Perfect way to explore the back roads in the Cotswolds. The gorgeous scenery and Elaine, our wonderful tour guide, made the day one of our favorites on our tour of England. Elaine was knowledgeable and also entertaining which made for an amazing experience. Highly recommend.

Amazing guide and great tour! Such a good way to see the Cotswold’s, especially ifnyou only have a day. Beautiful villages and knowledgeable tour guide.

Elaine was such a wonderful host for the day! The locations visited were beautiful and the timing at each spot felt perfect. I learned so much about this gorgeous area in England and would 100% recommend this trip! My standout was the Rollright Stone Circle; such magical energy to start the day.

It is a very convinient way to visit the amazing Cotswolds. Great company with fantastic tour guides. Last year we went on the "Cotswolds ina day tour". This year we had the chance to go on the "Secret Cotswolds tour". Our guide, Elaine is a lovely lady with great knowledge of the region.

Excellent tour company, highly recommend. Martin was fantastic! Wealth of knowledge and a great pace, we had a lovely day.

We enjoyed this trip as much as the "Cotswold in a Day" trip we did the day before. We were fortunate to have Elaine again. While some of the general information was repeated, as you would expect, we visited ALL new places. There are some villages not open to tourists, particularly larger buses and, unless you are a local, you wouldn't know where to go. Stanton is probably the prettiest village in the area. Again, Elaine was an excellent driver and guide and we had plenty of time in each place. Highly recommend this tour, either on its own or in conjunction with the other tour.

Fun and intriguing dialogue with our guide. Beautiful towns and scenery, great food and drink options. The tour exceeded all of my expectations.

If you plan on only one tour of the Cotswolds this is it! Steve was born and raised in the Cotswolds and he brings them alive with history, magic, passion and humor!

We have done the cotswold’s in one day a couple of times now so we decided to do secret cotswolds this time. Our guide Dave was a source of knowledge of all the locations from residences estate to off beaten track villages. We visited locations with stories to a church ready for a lovely wedding to lovely spots without the crowd's passing village cricket to horses walking through the village to roll right stones and the king. Thank you again Dave we had a wonderful time

My best friend and I went on a trip to celebrate empty nesting. We did the “Secret Cotswolds” tour with Elaine, who made the tour fun, informative and entertaining. She even stopped at a church not on the tour hand out with amusing crypts that were unique and funny (see picts). We highly recommend the tour (the Cotswolds are gorgeous!!) and Elaine, who kept it fun and interesting the whole day! Thank you!!!

My husband and I had the best time on the Secret Cotswolds Tour. Our guide Jason was AMAZING! He was super friendly and is a local, so he knew all the shops, historic churches, architecture, where the best views were and so much of the region's history, lore and traditions. He kept us engaged and enthused the entire time. It was a lovely way to see more of the Cotswolds without being super touristy, rushed or renting a car. Jason knew all the best places to grab a cream tea, a pint, or a locally-made souvenir. Another couple also did the Cotswold in a Day and the Bath and Southern Cotswolds tours -- which sounded like an awesome way to see a lot of the region in a short amount of time. We'll definitely be back and we'll 100% be taking more Go Cotswolds tours! This time my husband and I were coming from celebrating our wedding anniversary in London and I surprised him with this tour. It was a perfect day. I 100% plan to take more Go Cotswolds tours. We'll definitely ask which ones Jason is leading. He made this tour just magnificent!

So my husband and I took this tour just last week. Our tour guide Elaine was fabulous. She had such knowledge about the whole area and made sure to keep it interesting. She took us around to the “non touristy “ part so we avoided most of the crazy traffic and people. We still were able to see beautiful churches, pubs, go shopping and stroll lil charming “Cotswold stone “villages. It was just a joy for us. We would absolutely book another tour in the future.

Excellent small group day to less crowded spots with plenty of time to walk and explore. Our guide Elaine was great, she gave us history and suggestions

Beautiful quiet villages tour with an ideal guide, Elaine, who is not only knowledgeable and enthusiastic but also warm and caring. Most highly recommended.

My daughter and I had an amazing day with Elaine on the Secret Cotswold Tour. She was friendly, informative and accommodating as we travelled to several not-to-be-missed Cotswold villages. We highly recommend this tour.

Steve is an excellent tour guide and story teller. He lives in the Cotswolds and knows the area well. He gave incredible flavor and texture to the area. We actually had him on a second (Cotswolds in a Day) tour. Both days were filled throughout with interesting stories and context. We saw things we never would have seen alone- back roads, incredible houses, incredible views, and lots of added color with details we never would have known. My wife and I would thoroughly recommend this tour. Steve would be an added bonus if you got him.

Our tour guide, Jason, was so great! He took us to many places off the beaten path, and they were all lovely! He was quite knowledgeable about each of the villages we visited and the area in general as well as a very safe driver. Loved this tour to secret Cotswold villages and would absolutely do it again!

What an amazing way to start my exploration of the Cotswolds!!! Colin had in-depth knowledge of this and other areas of the UK. His sense of humor also made the journey delightful. Both on and off the bus I was overwhelmed with beauty, history and fresh air. The more I learned the more questions came to mind… none went unanswered! I feel confident now to explore a bit more on my own. Do not pass up the opportunity to “Go Cotswolds”.

My 13 year old son and I went on an absolutely fantastic tour around the Cotswolds yesterday. Colin was our driver/ tour guide and what a wonderful and knowledgeable gentleman he was. He lives himself in the Cotswolds himself so he really knew everything about the local towns and villages that we visited on the tour and the region. It was not just text book information, but things you could only know about the Cotswolds from living there. Colin was very professional, a safe driver, helpful and fun while telling us about the places that we visited. My son really enjoyed the day, and I highly recommend this tour to other travelers and families with teens.