Chipping Campden brings together the Cotswold Way and a townscape whose market, church and crafts each offer a different perspective on the town. The long-distance trail runs from Chipping Campden to Bath; the section to Broadway also starts here and climbs to Dover’s Hill. When planning your trip, you can choose between making walking the main focus and a stay centred more on architecture, design and local culture.
Walking and landscape
The Cotswold Way is a 102-mile National Trail from Chipping Campden to Bath. The Cotswold Way section from Chipping Campden to Broadway starts in Chipping Campden and climbs to Dover’s Hill. This brings two different scales together: the trail’s total length and a particular climb in the direction of Broadway.
Dover’s Hill is nearby, about a mile from Chipping Campden. It is a natural amphitheatre on a spur of the Cotswolds, with views across the Vale of Evesham. The landscape includes grassland and woodland, the site of a Roman vineyard, and habitats for birds, insects and wildflowers. The Cotswold Olimpick Games are still held nearby on Dover’s Hill.
Architecture and local history
The whole centre of Chipping Campden is designated a conservation area. The architecture on High Street dates from the 14th to the 17th century. St James’ Church is one of the country’s most outstanding wool churches; much of the present building dates from the 13th and 14th centuries. Street architecture and church buildings from different centuries stand side by side.
Chipping Campden Market Hall is a Cotswold market hall dating from 1627. It was built to provide shelter for traders. Chipping Campden Town Hall is also thought to incorporate material from a Norman chapel dedicated to St Catherine, consecrated in 1180.
Design, crafts and gardens
The Court Barn Museum tells the story of the designers and craftspeople who have worked in Chipping Campden and the northern Cotswolds since the beginning of the 20th century. The Gallery at the Guild is on Sheep Street, on the ground floor of the Old Silk Mill. A permanent cooperative of local artists and craftspeople exhibits, sells and promotes their work.
Robert Radford Welch rented a room in a disused 18th-century silk mill in Chipping Campden in 1955. The Ernest Wilson Memorial Garden is at the northern end of High Street and commemorates Ernest Wilson, who was born in Chipping Campden on 15 February 1876.
Markets and music
Campden Market is held monthly in the Town Hall and offers crafts, gifts, cakes, clothing and other goods. Market dates may change; check the date if you would like to include the market in your travel plans. The Chipping Campden Music Festival was founded by Charlie Bennett in 2002; performances take place at St James’ Church.
Discover more destinations: Mickleton, Guiting Power, Redmarley D'abitot, Parkend, Bream, Didmarton, Woodmancote, Littledean.
For the broader travel overview: Gloucestershire.
