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If you find yourselves visiting the Cotswolds, be sure to stay at The Bell Inn, in Selsey. A 16th century grade two listed Cotswold inn near the city of Stroud. This is a friendly country pub with rooms, giving a true taste of the Cotswolds and all that it has to offer. Serving real ales, locally-sourced food and seasonal game.
This is part 2 of our Day Trips From London Series. Previously, Day Trip From London – Visiting Winchester.
Visiting the Cotswolds can hardly be done in day, it could be argued that even a week wouldn’t be enough time to fully explore the entire area.
However, my husband and I had to work with the time we had and for our first trip to the Cotswolds, we had only a few days. Just enough time to get a taste of the area and add it to our list of places to visit again.
Visiting The Cotswolds
A little over an hour west of London is the bustling town of Stroud, a picturesque city filled with shops, cafés, galleries and a lovely museum. Stroud is described as the “Covent Garden” of the Cotswolds. Just outside of Stroud, we discovered the quaint village of Selsley where we stayed for the night.
We arrived in Selsley mid-afternoon and checked into The Bell Inn.
The Bell Inn sits on a quiet residential street and is about 2 miles south of Stroud. If you’re arriving by train, The Bell Inn is about a 5 minute drive from the train station.
Selsley took me by surprise. It’s a charming storybook town with beautiful views of lush green rolling hills in every direction.
Our Cotswolds Accommodations
We entered the inn through the pub which was buzzing with locals. The room felt so cozy and inviting, we knew we wanted to come back for a drink after we dropped our bags off in our room.
We stayed in the Dovecot room and it was beautiful. This two bedroom suite featured a comfortable living room with a pull-out sofa sleeper and provided the perfect place to relax and unwind after the drive.
The soaps and shampoos in the bathroom are all made by a UK company and smell wonderful. Coffee and tea along with fresh milk and biscuits were brought up to the room when we arrived. The Dovecot room sleeps up to three people.
After relaxing for a short time in our room, we went back to the pub to enjoy a drink. The Bell has a specialist gin collection with 59 gins!
After our break, we decided to step outside and explore the area. Just outside the inn is a tiny road which leads to a walking path through the fields.
We hiked up a small hill to Selsley Common which offered beautiful panoramic views over the Cotswolds.
It was recommended that we book a table for dinner at The Bell when we reserved our room and I was so glad we did. After our long hike, we were looking forward to a nice meal. The Bell did not disappoint, the food was incredible.
The restaurant in The Bell is a 2 AA rosettes restaurant and is also included in the Michelin Guide and the Good Food Guide.
We found The Bell Inn to be the ideal place to begin our Cotswolds travel weekend. If you happen to be in the area over a weekend, be sure to visit the incredibly popular Farmers’ Market in Stroud.
THINGS TO DO IN STROUD
Visit the Stroud Farmers’ Market – Every Sunday 9am – 2pm – Multi award-winning and known as one of the biggest and most popular farmers’ markets in the UK.
Eat at Woodruff’s Organic Cafe – Britains’s first totally organic cafe.
Plan a walk across the Stroud District.
Eat at Upper Lock Cafe, a comfortable canal-side cafe near the Stroud town centre.
Plan an afternoon of shopping in the various shops in the city.
Explore the many art galleries and art events in the city.
If you’d like to find out more about The Bell Inn, please visit their website.
Disclosure: The Bell Inn was able to offer me a media rate during our stay with them. All opinions shared about this hotel (as always) are my own.
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Wow you took some great pictures!
Oh this was a wonderful post! I really loved all the beautiful pictures you shared and the great tips and advice. Thanks for sharing!
This place looks absolutely amazing!
The inn looks so cozy! I love it!