Cotswold Hills Country Park

Many famed parts of Central England can be easily reached from here, so pick a county, town or attraction and get stuck in. Make for the Cotswolds for their comely villages of characteristic yellow Jurassic stone, hills rising from the upper Thames meadows, and towns including Bourton-on-the-Water, Chipping Norton, Moreton-in-Marsh, Stow-on-the-Wold and Stroud. The Cotswolds Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty covers three nature reserve areas and over 80 Sites of Special Scientific Interest. To hike among the Cotswold hills, tackle part of the Cotswold Way, running for just over 100 miles with views over the Severn Valley and the Vale of Evesham. Elsewhere, over 3,000 miles of public rights of way are in the region, across hills, woodlands and wildflower meadows. Cheltenham, Cirencester, Gloucester and Tewkesbury are all within day trip distance.