UK TOWN & COUNTRY Castle Combe & the

BY LUKE WATERSON

With its country estates, medieval taverns and pretty villages, it’s no wonder the Cotswolds has charmed visitors since the 15th century

o beguilingly cute that numerous period filmmakers have sought it out as a set, Castle Combe rose to prominence in the S Middle Ages as one of the Cotswolds’ most celebrated weaving centres. And its scattering of honey-blonde 15th and 16th-century houses have changed little since. The castle may be long gone, but, as befits a settlement regularly proclaimed ‘’s Castle Combe See & Do prettiest village’, there are architectural delights from ancient taverns to 500-year-old weaver’s 15TH-CENTURY WALKING TOUR in pubs. Park above the village cottages, photogenic packhorse bridges and Walking Tour (Dunn’s Lane), saving tricky a grandiose country mansion. Embosomed in a of Castle Combe parking manoeuvres in the centre. wooded valley in the surprisingly unsung southern Why? Frozen circa 1500, flank of the Cotswolds near Bath, Castle Combe is chocolate-box perfect THE VILLAGE CHURCH also well positioned for visiting other surrounding Castle Combe is small, without St Andrew’s Church stately homes. Come while the village remains a blockbuster sights, and best Why? The 15th-century spectacularly untarnished trip back in time. appreciated simply by strolling butterscotch-coloured church of through. From the top of the St Andrew’s, overlooking Castle village, of particular note are Combe’s Market Place, presents the two medieval inns either side a rare opportunity for visitors to of a beautifully preserved Market explore inside one of the village’s Cross, the gaggle of weaver’s buildings. The church thrived cottages by the Old Pack Bridge on the neighbourhood’s once- and the second crossing over the lucrative wool trade and features Bybrook stream – the still-prettier an impressive fan-vaulted ceiling Roman Bridge. reminiscent of more-famous Bath Don’t miss To the right of St Abbey. The star attraction within, Andrew’s Church, walk through though, is one of Britain’s earliest the pedestrian gate to imposing, working clocks, keeping time 14th-century Manor House Hotel, since before 1500. nestled within the grounds. Don’t miss The display on the Time tip Come Monday to filming of Steven Spielberg’s War Thursday to avoid weekend Horse, which took place in the crowds and get swifter service village in 2010.

32 WHICH? TRAVEL JANUARY 2019 DESTINATIONS UK TOWN & COUNTRY

Sleep

The Keeper’s Lodge

What? Tasteful gamekeeper’s apartments Our verdict Offering two elegant, rustic, self-catering apartments a pleasant 20-minute walk from the village centre, the Keeper’s Lodge is more than your average holiday let. Not only is it excellently appointed, but its well-stocked kitchens provide tasty snacks Eat & Drink and everything you need to rustle up a gargantuan breakfast. There Salutation Inn are also 17 acres of woodland and What? 16th-century tavern paddocks to recce. Our verdict Locals flock to the We love Secluded, thoughtfully- ‘Sally’s’ – a spacious-but-snug furnished apartments that beamed interior complete with manage to walk the line between log-burning stove – and it’s self-catering and B&B; and easy to see why. There’s friendly the patio seating overlooking service, tasty old-fashioned grub, the grounds. such as treacle-roasted ham We don’t love Walking through with homemade piccalilli, and the woods from the property into interesting local beers, such as Castle Combe; it’s easy to get lost. the zesty WPA ( Pale Need to know The official line Ale), to sample. is two-night minimum stays; but We love Nursing a Wiltshire- exceptions are sometimes made brewed pint around the stove if you ask. and bantering with the locals. £130 £200 £0 £30 We don’t love It’s scraping the keeperslodgecastlecombe.co.uk bottom of the barrel, but it would have been good to see more The Old Museum regional ales on tap. thesalutationthegibb.co.uk; mains avg £12 Left: Parsonage What? Transformed Wood, Above: village museum Castle Inn Old Pack Our verdict Castle Combe’s What? Beamed inn with an Bridge, Castle Combe, Right: former museum has been innovative menu the village, converted into a cosy holiday Our verdict We could not Above right: let, rentable by the night, which fault the food at Castle Combe’s the Keeper’s does wonders with limited space busiest pub (highlights include Lodge to blend the best of rustic and the oh-so-soft pork belly, fat modern. Think flagstone floors, triple-cooked chips and delicious Time tip If time is not on your and with a walking time of power showers, light, bright lemon-drizzled vegetable sides). side, make a beeline for the clock between two and three hours. furnishings, wood-burning But service, while amiable, and insert 20p to see the ancient Begin by the village’s first stove, a gleaming kitchen occasionally stuttered (saying workings illuminated. (uppermost) house, ascend into and a coffee machine. no tables are available, when bybrook.org.uk; free but donations accepted one of England’s loveliest woods, We love Within a five-minute several clearly are does make Parsonage Wood, and continue walk of the centre, the Old a poor first impression). THE WOODLAND RAMBLE along the Macmillan Way, along Museum provides a superb We love The beautiful, thick- Castle Combe to Ford and the idyllic White Hart location but with plenty of walled interior and setting to Ford Walk inn. Return on the Bybrook welcome privacy. fronting the Market Place. Why? Most people are aware valley’s other side, finishing with We don’t love The location on a We don’t love With the clientele of the Cotswolds Way, which a stroll through the Manor House beautiful but dark tree-shadowed largely being tourists who are skirts this region’s western edge, Hotel’s sumptuous grounds. lane can feel claustrophobic. sitting down to eat (you are but few know of the gorgeous, Don’t miss Stopping for a drink or And parking is tight. discouraged from coming for less-traipsed trails here, such lunch at the beautiful White Hart £125 £125 £0 a pint alone), the ambience as this circular five-mile ramble in Ford: surely a contender for colhamfarm.co.uk/accommodation/ can be a tad flat. starting in Castle Combe itself Britain’s best beer garden. the-old-museum thecastleinn.co.uk; mains avg £16

JANUARY 2019 WHICH? TRAVEL 33 The Cotswolds See & Do

ANCIENT ABBEY-CUM-MANSION Lacock Abbey & Fox Talbot Museum Why? Going strong for eight centuries, this one-time abbey, country house and birthplace of photography is understandably much frequented, especially with the heritage village of Lacock alongside boasting similarly ancient origins. The abbey stands firm, intriguingly incorporated into the building’s subsequent transformations. The cloisters became novelty features of the 15th-century country home where William Henry Fox Talbot made photographic history in 1835 by creating the world’s first-ever Above: Deer at Dyrham Park, Above negative. A separate museum right: the approach at Lucknam Park Hotel, Right: The Old House at Home chronicles these developments. Don’t miss The enchanting courtesy bus ride down to the cloisters and south gallery window house, but it’s worth taking Sleep where the aforementioned the 45-minute scenic trail for negative was taken. wonderful views across to Wales. Guyers House and statues, and the croquet lawn. Time tip Interesting aspects nationaltrust.org.uk/dyrham-park; £12.50 2 We don’t love Service can be of the Fox Talbot Museum are What? Country garden manor overly formal, some bedrooms covered in the self-guided tour. THE MANOR GROUNDS Our verdict Initial impressions are poky and have outdated nationaltrust.org.uk/lacock-abbey-fox- Lucknam Park wowed: ornate grounds with bathrooms. talbot-museum-and-village; £13.40 1 Hotel & Spa lily ponds, walled gardens and £130 £170 £0 Why? Lucknam Park, one of a croquet lawn that would guyershouse.com 4 THE DEER PARK several lavish country estates shine out in any Country Life Dyrham Park hereabouts, is arguably the magazine. Inside, vestiges of Rudloe Arms Why? It sometimes seems Cotswolds’ best hotel: but you that luxuriousness continue, every hill in this chunk of the can still enjoy this aristocratic with chandelier-hung rooms, and What? Outlandish period property Cotswolds harbours a wooded playground without splurging on Victorian cartoon sketches on Our verdict Two different stories enclave lovingly fashioned into accommodation. The mile-long the walls. Dinnertime paves the could be written after staying in a landscaped country retreat, 400-strong double avenue of lime way for some sublimely cooked Marco Pierre White’s eccentric- but of all the fetching estates, and beech trees, dating back to dishes, but the morose waiting looking hotel-cum-restaurant. Dyrham Park wins the beauty 1827, comprises one of England’s staff create a distinctly chilly One: you hole up in the surreal- contest. You enter from the grandest hotel approaches. But dining experience. but-unique main house, where main at the top it also makes a good walk, and We love The topiary walkways beautiful one-of-a-kind boutique and everything thereafter is non-guests can wander this, leading to orchards, hidden seats rooms are decorated with increasingly serene: the descent the park’s walled garden and its over 275 acres of open parkland arboretum. A spa is on-site, too. SCALE: 10KM through patches of woodland Don’t miss The equestrian to the striking lily-pond-dotted centre, where you can feel like M4 M4 8 formal gardens and the the lord or lady of the manor by Burton Castle stupendously-sized mansion touring the estate on horseback. Combe 2 itself, with deer herds wandering Money-saving tip The British- 7 in and out of the picture. European Restaurant Hywel 3 BRISTOL 6 Don’t miss The award-winning Jones is expensive for its COTSWOLDS 4 AONB courtyard café/tearoom, often three-course menus; eat at the 5 9 A46 1 Lacock serving venison dishes from the Brasserie for 20% off the price, A4 estate’s deer, alongside great where mains average £13-24. homemade cakes and snacks. lucknampark.co.uk; grounds free, A350 Time tip From the car park it’s horse-riding £85 per half hour, 60-minute BATH a 15-minute walk or five-minute spa treatments from £70 3

34 WHICH? TRAVEL JANUARY 2019 DESTINATIONS UK TOWN & COUNTRY

Eat & Drink

White Hart eclipses what is served in most What? Rambling riverside curry houses. country inn We love The creative mix of Our verdict A 16th-century traditional English and Asian country pub idyll. It comprises food and the buzzing, historic three expansive eating areas, pub atmosphere. where delectable Sunday roasts We don’t love It’s sometimes are a menu highlight. There’s a too packed to get a table. beamed bar stocked with ales, ohhpubs.co.uk/old-house-home; including a smooth, spicy Bybrook mains avg £15 8 photography from Terry O’Neil bitter, a log fire for winter and a and David Bailey, and encounter verdant beer garden sloping to Mother & Wild only friendly staff. The other: you a stream for summer. What? Snug café bar check into a Treetops Room in the We love Location, location, lovely Our verdict This diminutive separate, modern building and location – and the friendly and eatery exudes a French bistro feel TRAVEL get the too-cool-to-be-courteous professional service. with its dark-wood alcoves, suave ESSENTIALS treatment. It’s a gamble. We don’t love The downside of yet down-to-earth service and We love Bizarre, opulent main a great pub: people know about continental-influenced small house rooms, full of fascinating it, and descend in their droves, plates. Coffee is standout, as are individual detail. especially come weekends. the array of cakes tucked behind How to get there From London to We don’t love Certain staff whitehart-ford.com; mains avg £12.50 7 the counter, and come evening, members’ attitudes and some the wood-fired sourdough pizzas Chippenham by train disappointments at breakfast The Old House at Home delight with their flavours. is £32 return and takes (come on: no jam and no fruit?). What? Tradition-steeped pub We love Lingering for the superb 1hr 15min. There are £110 £250 Some breakfasts carry with culinary surprises weekend brunch... pancakes with four buses a day supplement charges fee applicable Our verdict Replete with blueberries followed by heavenly to Castle Combe from depending on dog size and duration of stay blackened beams, myriad nooks brownies anyone? Chippenham. rudloearms.com 5 and crannies, and a blazing fire, We don’t love This place is The Old House at Home ranks popular, which sometimes Getting around Toghill House Farm among the area’s snuggest slows service right down. It’s easiest to travel around the southern watering holes. And the food, Time tip Don’t wait for table Cotswolds by car. What? 17th-century B&B although uncomplicated, sparkles service – go up to order at For bus information, Our verdict On a hill overlooking some way above average pub the counter. visit traveline.info Bristol from one side and rolling fayre: a feisty beef madras motherandwild.com; mains avg £9.50 9 uplands from the other, this historic hostelry was originally More information cotswoldsaonb.org.uk accommodation for monks. In keeping with this history, some of its large, thick-walled rooms sport original 17th-century beams. Ascending from the cities to the HOTEL/NIGHT £ Cotswolds west and south, this is among the first true tastes of Cotswolds 190 countryside you encounter, featuring a hearty farmhouse 109 107 107 99 98 102 103 92 90 87 breakfast and farm walking trails. 80 We love Tucking into berries, cereals and a tasty full J F M A M J J A S O N D English with smoked sausages in the pretty conservatory breakfast room each morning. We don’t love The lack of a DAILY HIGHS °C Castle Combe personal welcome, which can

lend an unfriendly feel to the stay. 25 22 21

Money-saving tip The website 20 18 often offers three-nights-for-the- 16 13 10 8 8 price-of-two deals. 8 6 £68 £98 £0

toghillhousefarm.co.uk 6 J F M A M J J A S O N D LODGE / THE KEEPER’S PHIL MALPAS ALAMY, IMAGES

JANUARY 2019 WHICH? TRAVEL 35