I’ve been walking the Cotswold Way as a series of day trips. This is my guide to the Cotswold Way Stage 1, from Chipping Campden to Broadway to Stanton.
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The Cotswold Way is a 102‑mile (164 km) National Trail in southwest England. It is one of many long-distance footpaths in the UK, and this one takes in some of the most beautiful English scenery in the Cotswolds.
I’ve been walking the Cotswold Way as a series of day trips. While many people do the whole route in 7-10 days with overnight stays, it’s also possible to walk this route as a series of day trips if you live nearby, or if you want to stay in just one place for the week.
If you want to read more about walking the Cotswold Way as a series of day trips, read my Ultimate Guide to Walking the Cotswold Way as a series of day trips. But this post will give details about the first section I did – from Chipping Campden to Broadway, and then to Stanton.
Stage 1: Chipping Campden to Broadway to Stanton
- Total distance on the map: 10 miles/17km
- Total distance on my phone apps: 11.5 miles/18.8km
- Total time: 5 hours walking (plus some breaks – give yourself plenty of time to stop in Broadway)
The first section of the Cotswold Way was one of my favourite sections of the whole trip. That might be partly because I was filled with the enthusiasm and excitement that I was actually starting! But it really was beautiful – the section from Chipping Campden to Broadway especially. I already want to go back and just walk that section again, taking more time to enjoy Chipping Campden and Broadway towns/villages next time.
The Cotswold Way starts in Chipping Campden – most people choose this as the start point, and walk towards Bath. Chipping Campden is a decent size town, and it’s beautiful. You can park here – the school car park is open on weekends for visitors to park in, and it doesn’t get too busy. Or there’s good public transport to get to Chipping Campden as well.
Chipping Campden town
Spend some time walking through Chipping Campden town at the start of your walk. The high street is really beautiful. It’s lined with historic buildings, with a great variety of independent shops, cafes and restaurants.
The official start point of the Cotswold Way is outside the historic Market Hall, on Chipping Campden High Street. There’s a small plaque on the wall here, marking the start/end of the Cotswold Way.
Grab a coffee in Chipping Campden and enjoy this pretty town, before starting your walk. And then, follow the well-signposted route out of the town, to begin your walk.
Chipping Campden to Broadway Tower
This first section of the walk was beautiful. As soon as you leave the town of Chipping Campden, you start seeing some of the beautiful English countryside that this walk celebrates so well.
Dover’s Hill is an early highlight on this section of the walk. It’s a short uphill walk to get to the peak, but nothing too strenuous. And the views from the top are lovely. It’s amazing to have a highlight of the walk so early on.
Continue following the clear path onwards. The next section takes you through farmland. In late July, the fields were full of wheat, just waiting to be harvested. I kept thinking of the song ‘Fields of Gold’ – it literally felt like I was walking through fields of gold, with the tall wheat swaying in the breeze around me.
There’s a short section of woodland after this, which provided some nice shade from the sun. But soon, you’re back out in the sun, getting your first glimpse of Broadway Tower.
Broadway Tower to Broadway Village
Broadway Tower is an 18th‑century structure standing on Beacon Hill. It’s the second highest point in the Cotswolds at 312m above sea level. The tower is 20m tall and was designed by architect James Wyatt, based on a concept by landscape designer Capability Brown.
The Cotswold Way passes just to the right of Broadway Tower. But it’s definitely worth going slightly off the path to the tower itself. You can pay to go inside and climb to the viewing area at the top. Or, you can enjoy the views from ground level. It really is a great place to enjoy classic Cotswold views.
The remainder of the route to Broadway Village follows an easy, downhill path to Broadway Village. You’ll pass a lot of people who are climbing uphill, from the village to Broadway Tower, so it’s nice to be doing this part of the route downhill – it’s quite steep in places! At the bottom, you’ll be in Broadway village.
Although Broadway is a village, it’s one of the bigger villages in the Cotswolds. It has a wide high street, with lots of shops, cafes and restaurants. It can get busy in the summer, but it’s still a lovely place.
I spent a bit of time in Broadway, but I walked through relatively quickly as I was keen to press on and continue my walk to Stanton. But in the future, I definitely want to come back here. I’d love to do this section of the Cotswold Way another day, just from Chipping Campden to Broadway, and then spend time in Broadway for a long lunch. But on this occasion, I continued my walk to Stanton.
Broadway to Stanton
This stretch of the Cotswold Way is 4 miles in total. My guide book actually called this Stage 2. But I thought it seemed realistic to combine Stage 1 (Chipping Campden to Broadway, 6 miles) with Stage 2 (Broadway to Stanton, 4 miles).
I’m glad I did combine them, because I didn’t find the route from Broadway to Stanton quite as interesting as the first stage of the walk. So it wouldn’t have felt great to have to travel specifically just to do this walk. But as a tag-on to stage 1, it was still pleasant. But my legs were definitely getting a bit tired by this point!
The uphill climb out of Broadway village was a bit challenging, especially as I was walking this on a hot day. So by this point in the early afternoon, the temperature was high. But some friendly horses helped, and some beautiful butterflies.
But once you’re at the top of this initial hill, the walk is fairly easy. The path is clear, and there are some nice views and some wooded sections.
Stanton Village and the bus back to Chipping Campden
Stanton village is a really small village. It’s nothing like Chipping Campden or Broadway. There’s not even a shop here. There’s a pub, but it didn’t open until 6pm on the Saturday. So there wasn’t a huge amount to do or see here. But nevertheless, Stanton was still a really pretty village. The lack of amenities means it’s not really on the tourist trail like Broadway is. So it was really quiet and peaceful. It’s the first glimpse of a ‘real’ Cotswold village – one that is virtually untouched by tourism.
I enjoyed walking through the quiet little village. And then, it was time to figure out the journey back to Chipping Campden.
The best way to get from Stanton back to Chipping Campden is the bus. The 606 bus runs roughly every 2 hours. The bus stop at Stanton isn’t actually in the village – you need to walk about 10 minutes to the main road. And the bus stop is called Stanton North Turn – it’s just on the side of the main road. The bus was on time, and wasn’t very busy. And it takes you back to the centre of Chipping Campden.
Make sure you treat yourself with a reward in Chipping Campden before heading back to your car or your onward transport. I decided I was going to get myself a treat at the end of each section – and on a hot afternoon in Chipping Campden, an ice cream was the perfect way to end walking the first stage of the Cotswold Way.
Enjoying these parts of the Cotswolds without walking
If you don’t fancy walking, navigating driving or public transport in the Cotswolds, there are lots of ways to enjoy this beautiful area on a small group tour. On these, you’ll have a driver and guide, who will show you the best areas. I recommend this affordable private tour of the Cotswolds villages (affiliate), or you can take this Cotswolds small group tour instead (affiliate).
You can also look on these websites for specific activities in the Cotswolds to mix up your days of walking. Check out this Cotswold pub landlord experience (affiliate), or this Cotswold lunch with a chance to make your own butter (affiliate). Or swap walking for cycling with this electric bike tour of the Cotswolds (affiliate).
Hope you enjoyed my guide to walking the Cotswold Way Stage 1, from Chipping Campden to Broadway to Stanton! For the next section, read my guide to Cotswold Way Stage 2 from Stanton to Winchcombe. Or you can read my full guide to walking the Cotswold Way as a series of day trips. Make sure you also check out my guides to nearby places to explore, including Cotswold Wildlife Park, an afternoon in Bibury village, and the top things to do in Oxford.
