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Vacation Rentals in the Cotswolds
Vacation rentals (also called holiday cottages or self catering) are houses or apartments that you rent by the night or week. They are fully furnished and equipped, giving you a "home away from home". Read more - All About Vacation Rentals. This page is my list of favorite ways to find vacation rentals in the Cotswolds.
Our sister website Slow Europe has a good list of vacation rentals in the Cotswolds and reviews.
Vacation Rentals in the Northern Cotswolds
Broadway Cottages: Two cottages in Broadway (sleeps 4 - 7+) and one in a nearby village (sleeps 7-8). Website: Photos, prices, customer reviews, credit cards, PayPal.
Broadway Manor Cottages: Five vacation rentals (cottages and apartments, 1 - 2 bedrooms) on the grounds of a Manor House on the edge of Broadway. Some have Internet access (broadband). 4 stars. Website: Photos, layout diagrams, location maps, prices listed, star ratings, customer reviews, availability calendar, credit cards, PayPal. Reviews on Slow Europe | Slow Europe Profile
Bruern Cottages: Luxury cottages on an estate near Stow-on-the-Wold, varying sizes. 5 star rating - very expensive. Website: Photos, prices, availablity calendar.
Campden Cottages: Agency based in Chipping Campden with several vacation rentals in or near Chipping Campden. Website: Photos, location maps, prices, availablity calendar, credit cards. Reviews on Slow Europe
Cotswold Charm Cottages: Five cottages (sleeps 2, 4 and 6) near Chipping Campden and one near Cirencester. Website: Photos, prices, availablity calendar.
Cotswold Holiday Cottages: Five cottages near Chipping Campden and Moreton-in-Marsh (1 and 2 bedrooms). Website: Photos, prices, credit cards (no availability calendar).
Cotswold Holiday Cottages: Four row cottages and one detached cottage (1 and 2 bedroom) in Upper Oddington, near Stow-on-the-Wold. Prices high but luxurious furnishings, new renovation. Can rent for less than a week. All have internet (broadband - wifi) and telephones. Website: Photos, location map, prices.
Cotswold Property Lettings: Agency based in Broadway with several vacation rentals in or near Broadway. Website: Photos, prices, availablity calendar, credit cards.
Heath Farm: Apartments on a farm on the eastern edge of the Cotswolds near Banbury (1 and 2 bedroom). Broadband in cottages. Website: Photos, availability calendar, online booking.
Lower Court Farm - Cotswold Cottages: Three cottages in villages between Burford and Stow-on-the-Wold (2 and 3 bedroom). Website: Photos, prices (no availability calendar).
Stow Cottages: Four cottages in Stow-on-the-Wold (1 and 2 bedroom). Website: Photos, location maps (no availability calendar).
Vacation Rentals in the Southern Cotswolds
Bibury Holiday Cottages: Four cottages on the grounds of the owner's house in Bibury, near Cirencester (1 and 2 bedrooms). Website: Photos, cottage layouts, price range (no availability calendar).
Cotswold Cottages Online: Three large cottages in the valleys near Stroud (sleeps 10, 13, 19). Website: Photos, location maps, prices (no availability calendar).
Five Valley Holiday Cottages: Seven cottages in different locations near Stroud, Nailsworth and Minchinhampton (1 and 2 bedroom). Website: Photos, prices (no availability calendar).
Great Tythe Barn: Vacation rentals and B&B on an estate on the edge of Tetbury, in the southern Cotswolds. Cottages sleep 2, 4, 6, 8. Website: Virtual tour (no prices, no availability calendar).
Hillcrest and Ambrose: Two vacation rentals above Brimscombe just below the Minchinhamptom Commons. One is attached to the owner's house, the other is a row house across the street. Website: Photos, prices, availability calendar.
Lilac and Lavender Cottages: Two cottages on a farm near Cirencester in the southern Cotswolds (sleep 3 and 4). These are listed on other agency sites, but best price is booking with owner. Website: Photos, prices, availability calendar, online booking form.
Luxury Holidays: Five star vacation rentals in the Cotswolds Water Park area, south of Cirencester. Modern buildings with good amenities, including Internet access (broadband). Website: Photos, virtual tours, floorplans, prices, availability calendar, online booking, takes credit cards.
Owlpen Manor: Nine cottages on Owlpen Manor in the southern Cotswolds. Cottages are not grouped together, but are spread out on the estate. Website: Photos, availability calendar, online booking.
Port House: Four vacation rentals in the southern Cotswolds, near Stroud. All ETC 4 star. Website links to holidaylettings.co.uk for more information. Website: credit cards.
Well Farm Cottages: Three cottages on a farm on a hillside above Painswick, near Stroud (studio, 1 bedroom and 2 bedrooms). Beautiful views of the Painswick valley, well cared for cottages, onsite owners. Website: Price, availability calendar. See reviews on Slow Europe.
Westley Farm Holiday Cottages: Five cottages on a large farm between Stroud and Cirencester (1 to 3 bedrooms). Cottages are spread out on the farm on a south facing hillside. Website: Not many photos, prices, availability calendar, credit cards.
Vacation Rental Agencies for North and South Cotswolds
Cottage in the Country: Agency based in Chipping Norton with cottages in the Cotswolds and surrounding areas (70 properties in the Cotswolds). Website: Photos (small), location maps, ETC star ratings, prices, availability calendar, online reservation requests, credit cards. Search by date, or click "Map", then click the region to see all properties for an area.
English Country Cottages: Agency based in England with listings for all of England, many listings in the Cotswolds. Listings are hand-picked by the agency. Agency has been in business for over 30 years and are now part of Holiday Cottage Guide (large company that owns several vacation rental sites). Website: Photos, location map, prices, availablity calendar, online booking, credit cards.
Great Trips Unlimited - England: US based agency with about 12 listings in the Cotswolds and some for Bath. They represent some Rural Retreats properties, but at the same price. Website: Photos, prices (no availability calendar).
Jigsaw Holidays: Agency with character properties in the Cotswolds. Extra services like maid service, catering, childcare are available. Many of their properties have internet (broadband). Website: Photos, availability calendar, prices.
Manor Cottages: Agency based in Burford (Cotswolds) with listings throughout the Cotswolds. You will find these same listings on other websites. Website: Photos, prices, customer reviews, availability calendar, online booking, credit cards. Good searching by location, date, amenities. Reviews on Slow Europe
National Trust Holiday Cottages - The Cotswolds: National Trust owned historic cottages in all parts of England. They offer three sets of cottages in the Cotswolds - Snowshill near Broadway, Lodge Park in Sherborne near Burford, Newark Park near Wotton-under-edge. Website: Not many photos, prices, availability calendar, online booking, credit cards, reviews.
Rural Retreats: Agency based in the Cotswolds with good quality vacation rentals for the United Kingdom, many listings for the Cotswolds. Their rentals are at the high end of the price range. US representative (prices are the same) is Suzanne B. Cohen. Website: Good descriptions, photos, prices, and availability calendar, online booking, credit cards. Reviews on Slow Europe
Stately Holiday Homes: Selected listings in historic properties in the United Kingdom, with some in the Cotswolds. Website: Small photos, price, availability calendar.
Sykes Cottages: Agency based in Chester with vacation rentals in many regions of England, Scottish Borders, North Wales. Over 20 properties in Cotswolds and nearby. Website: Photos, prices, availability calendar, shortlist feature.
Unique Home Stays: Luxury vacation rentals (self catering), B&Bs and Country Houses. Also large country homes. Short breaks available. Agency based in Cornwall. Website: Photos, prices, availability calendar, customer reviews, online booking, credit cards.
Vacation Rentals Near the Cotswolds
Hideaways: Agency based in Wiltshire with listings in the Southwest of England (a few for the Cotswolds, several for Forest of Dean). Listings for towns (Salisbury, Oxford, Bath, etc.) as well as countryside. Website: Photos, prices, availability calendar, online booking, credit cards. Reviews on Slow Europe
Hidelow House: Cottages and B&B on a farm, in Herefordshire, west of the Cotswolds near Great Malvern.
Knightcote Farm Cottages: Five cottages on a farm outside of the Cotswolds between Banbury and Warwick (sleeps 4 - 10). Broadband in cottages. (5 star rating) Website: Few photos, availability calendar, online booking.
Shakespeare Holiday Cottages: Four cottages (5 star) on Arden Hill Farm three miles from Stratford-upon-Avon (2 - 3 bedrooms). Weekends or by the week. All have internet access (wifi broadband).
Weekly Homes: Oxford apartments, from 1 week to 5 months.
Withy Mill Farms: Three cottages (4 star barn conversions, sleeps 2 - 4) on a farm in the Cam Valley between Bath and Bristol. Website: Photos, prices, availability calendar.
Rent from the Owner - Vacation Rental Directory Sites
My Favorite Rent from Owner Sites
The Cottage Guide - Cotswolds: Rent from owner listings for the United Kingdom and Ireland. Over 80 cottages listed for the Cotswolds. Website: Easy selection by size of cottage, some listings have price and availability calendar, owner contact given.
Holiday Lettings - Cotswolds: Nearly 2000 listings for the UK, over 130 for the Cotswolds. Website: Great search options, photos, prices, availability calendar, personal shortlist. Reviews on Slow Europe
Premier Cottages - Cotswolds: This is an excellent list of quality vaction rentals with over 80 properties in the Cotswolds. Many are 4 and 5 star cottages on farms/estates. Website: Description, photos, prices, location map, availability search for property or region, online booking request, owner contact given.
Stilwell's Cottages Direct - Cotswolds: Over 140 properties in the Cotswolds. To see all listings, search only on size (number in party). Website: location map, availability calendar, online booking request, owner contact given. They have late availability sites with last minute discounts - Cottages Online and Next 6 Weeks.
Farm Stay Sites
Farm Stay - Gloucestershire and the Cotswolds: Farms with B&B or vacation rentals (self catering). Over 10 farms in the Cotswolds offering self catering. Website: Photos, ETC rating, owner contact/website.
Farm Stay UK: Farms with B&B or vacation rentals (self catering). Part of EuroGites, European Federation for Farm and Village Tourism. Website: Search by accommodation type (select "self catering" for vacation rentals) and region (select "Gloucestershire" or "Oxfordshire"), or use their map to locate properties. Owner contact given.
Other Rent From Owner Sites
Holiday Home Rentals: Over 200 listings for the Cotswolds. Website: Photos, location map, prices, availability calendar, favorites feature.
Independent Cottages - Cotswolds: Over 50 properties listed for the Cotswolds. Website: Good descriptions, photos, prices, availability calendar, owner contact given.
Internet-Cottages.com: Short listings with links to owner's website or a page with more details. Several other websites offer these same listings. Website: Search gives you a list for the Cotswolds.
The Holiday Cottages: Many listings for the Cotswolds. Search by region (Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire). Website: Photos, price range, owner contact given.
The Lady: A weekly magazine with lots of vacation rental listings. No vacation rental information is online; pickup the magazine in England.
Other Lists of Vacation Rentals
Cotswolds.info: Good list of cottages in the cotswolds.
OxfordCity.co.uk: Good list of apartments/cottages in and near Oxford.
Home Exchange
Home Base Holidays: Home exchange club based in London, established 1985. Many listings for the Cotswolds (search for Gloucestershire and Oxfordshire). Website: Must join to contact listings.
Sabbatical Homes: Homes to rent, house-sit or exchange. Website: No fees to contact listings.
Tourist Offices
Tourist Office websites have lists of local vacation rentals, but the sites for the Cotswolds have limited listings. Most accommodations listings are on the main Visit Britain site and are duplicated on the local sites.
Visit Britain - The Cotswolds: Main Tourist Office website for all of Britain with some information for the Cotswolds. Click "Where to Stay". Cotswolds vacation rentals are included in the "Heart of England" region (over 100 listings). Website: Few photos, location map, ETC rating, links to owners' sites for more information.
Cotswolds Tourist Offices
The Cotswolds: Glouchestershire Tourism. Listings for vacation rentals are by town or type of accommodation (several types to select from including barn conversion, apartment, cottage), so it not useful for finding a good list of vacation rentals in the Cotswolds because you have to know which town you want to stay in before you start your search.
The Cotswolds: Gloucestershire Tourism (and Visit Britain). Short list of vacation rentals.
The Cotswolds Stroud District: Southern Cotswolds near Stroud (including Painswick, Minchinhampton). Vacation rental listings by town.
Romantic Cotswolds and Historic Severn Vale: Short list of vacation rentals by town or for the whole area.
Gloucestershire: Cotswolds, Royal Forest of Dean, Severn Vale. Vacation rentals for this area.
Oxfordshire Cotswolds: Eastern Cotswolds, near Oxford. Vacation rentals for this area.
Visit Cheltenham: Cheltenham and the western Cotswolds. Vacation rentals for this area.
