The Cotswold Way runs just over 100 miles from the market square at Chipping Campden to Bath Abbey, and most walkers give it a week. Four days is a different proposition: roughly 25 miles a day, six to nine hours on your feet, and no room for a slow start. For a fit walker travelling light, it is a superb way to see the whole spine of the Cotswolds in one sweep. Here is how to split the stages, where to sleep, and what to put in the pack.

What Four Days Actually Asks of You

Take the arithmetic seriously. At around 102 miles, four days means an average of 25.5 miles daily. The Cotswold Way is not mountainous, but it is far from flat: the climb onto the escarpment above Winchcombe, the pulls at Haresfield Beacon and the long ridge before Bath add up to proper ascent, and the clay between Birdlip and Stroud turns heavy after rain.

If you have never strung together consecutive 20-mile days, build up over a few months first, or split the route across two long weekends. The northern half finishes neatly at Painswick or Stroud, both with buses and trains, and the southern half can start from there. Walking southbound is traditional and ends in Bath, where a long soak and a decent dinner are waiting.

The Four-Day Route

Day 1: Chipping Campden to Cheltenham (about 26 miles)

A quiet, hedged start through fields before Broadway Tower appears on the skyline. Then Stanton, one of the most photographed villages in England, and the steady climb to Winchcombe. From there the trail lifts onto the escarpment past Belas Knap long barrow and across Cleeve Common, with the Severn and the Malverns laid out to the west. Finish at Dowdeswell or Leckhampton, on the edge of Cheltenham. It is the toughest of the four days.

Day 2: Cheltenham to Dursley (about 25 miles)

Leckhampton Hill, then Crickley Hill, then beech woods and a run of fine viewpoints. Painswick is the natural lunch stop, with its yew-lined churchyard. After that come Haresfield Beacon, Coaley Peak and the descent through the Stroud valleys to Uley and Dursley. Cam & Dursley station sits at the foot of the hill, which makes this a forgiving place to end a hard day.

Day 3: Dursley to Tormarton or Old Sodbury (about 25 miles)

The gentlest section. Wotton-under-Edge, Alderley, Hawkesbury Upton, Horton and Little Sodbury arrive in a rhythm of lanes, pasture and old stone walls, with far fewer climbs. This is the day to hold a steady pace and make up any time lost earlier. Rooms are scarce here, so plan your bed before anything else.

Day 4: Tormarton to Bath (about 26 miles)

Dyrham Park, Cold Ashton, then the long high ridge above the A46 and the drop onto Lansdown. Bath appears below in stages, and the final miles run through streets and crescents to the abbey. Allow an extra hour for the city traffic at the end of the day, and book a table before you arrive.

Overnight Villages, Buses and Trains

Build each night around a transport link rather than a pretty postcode. Cheltenham Spa and Bath Spa are mainline stations; Stroud and Cam & Dursley sit on the Bristol to Gloucester line. Local buses connect Cheltenham with Winchcombe, Stroud with Painswick, and Dursley with Wotton-under-Edge. Check current timetables with the operators before you travel, since rural services change seasonally and Sunday timetables are thin.

That link matters when a day goes wrong. A twisted ankle at Cleeve Common or a storm over Haresfield is a bus ride, not a crisis, if your bed sits near a route. Between Wotton-under-Edge and Tormarton accommodation is genuinely limited, so book weeks ahead and consider a luggage transfer service if you would rather walk with a day pack. Several firms cover the full length of the trail.

What to Carry

• A 30–40 litre pack, kept under about 7kg. Anything heavier will be felt by mile 20.
• Broken-in boots or trail shoes with real grip for wet clay and limestone descents.
• Two pairs of walking socks, and a spare set for the second half of each day.
• Blister plasters and tape, plus a small pair of scissors.
• Waterproof shell and a light insulating layer. The escarpment is exposed even on mild days.
• Two litres of water capacity. Village pubs will usually refill bottles if you ask.
• Paper map or a downloaded offline map. The acorn waymarking is good, but stiles and field edges confuse people when tired.
• Head torch, power bank, and a little cash for village cafés and honesty boxes.

Food, Water and Feet

Cotswold kitchens close early. In smaller villages the last food orders are often around 8.30pm or 9pm, so eat when you arrive rather than after a shower and a rest. Carry lunch rather than assuming a pub will appear at

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