What is this 4-day itinerary?
The Cotswold Way in four days is the dash. You sleep only at Cleeve Hill, Painswick and Hawkesbury Upton. Broadway, Stanton and Winchcombe are passed on the way to the high ground, and King's Stanley, Dursley and Wotton-under-Edge are passed on the long day into Hawkesbury. The finish still starts there, so Tormarton and Cold Ashton are not nights. The official guidebook suggests seven to ten days. Four is quicker than that. Book the three nights first. The towns you pass have more beds than the ridge.
Read the Cotswold Way guide for the whole trail.
Will this 4-day split work for you?
- A dash, for someone who already walks long days and wants to finish rather than linger.
- Three nights only, at Cleeve Hill, Painswick and Hawkesbury Upton. The towns in between are passed.
- Book those three nights first. The ridge has fewer beds than Broadway or Winchcombe.
Fitness & effort
You should be happy with four long days, and with eating and sleeping rather than lingering in the towns. Anyone reasonably fit can walk the Cotswold Way. This pace is for someone who already walks long days, travels light or sends the bag, and wants to finish. The path climbs often. It is waymarked. Take a map anyway. A compass may help, and the phone can drop out on the commons. There is no scrambling. If a long day at home is comfortable, and you can walk further the next morning, four days is a dash, not a first week.
Your 4-day route on the map
Toward Bath
Chipping Campden to Bath in 4 days
Chipping Campden to Bath, the way most people walk it, with the escarpment views to the west and the city as the finish.
| Day | Stage | Distance | Overnight / destination |
|---|---|---|---|
| Day 1 | Chipping Campden → Cleeve Hill | 25.5 mi (41.0 km) | Cleeve Hill Hotel (opens in a new tab) |
| Day 2 | Cleeve Hill → Painswick | 21.3 mi (34.2 km) | Painswick Hotel (opens in a new tab) |
| Day 3 Longest | Painswick → Hawkesbury Upton | 31.2 mi (50.2 km) | Hawkesbury Upton Fox Inn |
| Day 4 | Hawkesbury Upton → Bath | 24.3 mi (39.0 km) | Cotswold Way Finish |
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Day 1
Chipping Campden to Cleeve Hill
25.5 mi (41.0 km) ↑ 1,020 m (3,350 ft) ↓ 910 m (3,000 ft)
Broadway, Stanton and Winchcombe are all passed. The five-day sleeps at Winchcombe. This one goes on. Dover's Hill and Broadway Tower come first, then Shenberrow Camp, Stanton, and Hailes Abbey just before the town. Belas Knap is the barrow before the last climb. The night is Cleeve Hill, the highest point on the Way, after those first climbs. Eat in Winchcombe. There is less food on the hill. Book this night with Painswick and Hawkesbury Upton.
Example stay Cleeve Hill Hotel (opens in a new tab)
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Day 2
Cleeve Hill to Painswick
21.3 mi (34.2 km) ↑ 720 m (2,350 ft) ↓ 820 m (2,700 ft)
Dowdeswell has no bed, and Birdlip is a village you pass, not the night. The five-day sleeps there. Cleeve Common looks over Cheltenham, and the Devil's Chimney stands on Leckhampton Hill. A diversion near Birdlip has been signed since July 2026. Follow it. Cooper's Hill and the ramparts on Painswick Beacon bring you to the mid-point, and that is the night. The five-day and the seven-day walk through Painswick. Stop here. Eat in the town. Tomorrow does not stop until Hawkesbury Upton.
Example stay Painswick Hotel (opens in a new tab)
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Day 3 Longest
Painswick to Hawkesbury Upton
31.2 mi (50.2 km) ↑ 1,350 m (4,450 ft) ↓ 1,310 m (4,300 ft)
This is the long day. King's Stanley, Dursley and Wotton-under-Edge are places you pass. The five-day sleeps at King's Stanley and splits the ground. Take the path through that village. Stonehouse is a bed off the line, and this plan does not leave the path for it. Stinchcombe Hill is the long way round, then the Tyndale Monument, and the Somerset Monument is the last climb into Hawkesbury Upton. Use the shops in Wotton. Hawkesbury is a smaller night, and the finish starts there tomorrow. Book it. Eat before you leave the town.
Example stay Hawkesbury Upton Fox Inn
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Day 4
Hawkesbury Upton to Bath
24.3 mi (39.0 km) ↑ 590 m (1,950 ft) ↓ 760 m (2,500 ft)
Tormarton and Cold Ashton are villages you pass, so the finish starts at Hawkesbury Upton, the same place as the five-day. Old Sodbury and the park at Dodington come first, then the wall of Dyrham Park. After Cold Ashton the path drops to Lower Hamswell, climbs to Lansdown, and passes the racecourse. The end is the stone disc in the pavement outside the west doors of Bath Abbey. Carry food and water from Hawkesbury. The villages in between are thin, and this day comes after the long one.
Finish Cotswold Way Finish
Cross-check: National Trails . The route is 102 miles (164 km), and the guidebook suggests seven to ten days. Distances on the cards are measured on the imported line. No official page prints a total climb.
Toward Chipping Campden
Bath to Chipping Campden in 4 days
The same nights, starting in Bath. The valley climbs become descents.
| Day | Stage | Distance | Overnight / destination |
|---|---|---|---|
| Day 1 | Bath → Hawkesbury Upton | 24.3 mi (39.0 km) | Hawkesbury Upton Fox Inn |
| Day 2 Longest | Hawkesbury Upton → Painswick | 31.2 mi (50.2 km) | Painswick Hotel (opens in a new tab) |
| Day 3 | Painswick → Cleeve Hill | 21.3 mi (34.2 km) | Cleeve Hill Hotel (opens in a new tab) |
| Day 4 | Cleeve Hill → Chipping Campden | 25.5 mi (41.0 km) | Chipping Campden |
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Day 1
Bath to Hawkesbury Upton
24.3 mi (39.0 km) ↑ 760 m (2,500 ft) ↓ 590 m (1,950 ft)
You leave the stone disc at Bath Abbey and climb to Lansdown, with the racecourse on the plateau. Cold Ashton and the woods above Dyrham come before Tormarton. The park at Dodington and Old Sodbury are the middle, and Hawkesbury Upton, under the Somerset Monument, is the finish. It is still the long day.
Example stay Hawkesbury Upton Fox Inn
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Day 2 Longest
Hawkesbury Upton to Painswick
31.2 mi (50.2 km) ↑ 1,310 m (4,300 ft) ↓ 1,350 m (4,450 ft)
You leave Hawkesbury under the Somerset Monument and drop through Wotton, so the Tyndale Monument and Stinchcombe Hill come before Dursley. Coaley Peak and Haresfield Beacon are the views later in the day. King's Stanley is a pass-through, and the finish is the climb to Painswick Beacon.
Example stay Painswick Hotel (opens in a new tab)
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Day 3
Painswick to Cleeve Hill
21.3 mi (34.2 km) ↑ 820 m (2,700 ft) ↓ 720 m (2,350 ft)
You climb out of the mid-point to Painswick Beacon, so Cooper's Hill is a pull in the morning. Birdlip and its diversion come next, then the Devil's Chimney. You drop through Dowdeswell and climb onto Cleeve Common. The view over Cheltenham is the end.
Example stay Cleeve Hill Hotel (opens in a new tab)
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Day 4
Cleeve Hill to Chipping Campden
25.5 mi (41.0 km) ↑ 910 m (3,000 ft) ↓ 1,020 m (3,350 ft)
You leave the highest point and drop through Breakheart Plantation to Belas Knap. Winchcombe, Stanton and Broadway all come after that, and none of them is a night on this walk. Broadway Tower and Dover's Hill are the end, into Chipping Campden.
Finish Chipping Campden
4-day itinerary FAQ
Is four days the right length?
Four is the dash, quicker than the official seven to ten days. You sleep only at Cleeve Hill, Painswick and Hawkesbury Upton. Five adds Winchcombe and King's Stanley, so the long middle day is split. Seven and more put the nights back in the villages this plan walks through. Four is for someone who wants to finish rather than linger.
Which day is the hard one?
Painswick to Hawkesbury Upton. King's Stanley, Dursley and Wotton-under-Edge are passed, and the five-day sleeps at King's Stanley instead. The finish the next day still starts at Hawkesbury Upton, with Tormarton and Cold Ashton walked through. The first day ends on Cleeve Hill, the highest point, after Winchcombe.
Do I need to book the nights?
Yes, and book the three nights early. Cleeve Hill, Painswick and Hawkesbury Upton have fewer beds than Broadway or Winchcombe, and those towns are not nights on this plan. The finish starts at Hawkesbury the morning after you arrive, so do not leave that bed until last.
Can I get my bag carried?
Yes, from about mid-March to the end of October. A bag a day is usually £10–25, ready by 9am. One service runs both ways. A bag toward Chipping Campden is not a promise on every service until you check. Book the bed before the bag. On this pace a carried bag is what makes the days realistic. Prices and dates change.
Can I download a GPX for the 4-day Cotswold Way?
Yes. Open this itinerary in the planner (free, no account). Download a full-route GPX or per-day files for Garmin, Komoot, or your phone. You can export the preset unchanged or edit overnight stops first.
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This 4-day itinerary is ready as it stands. Open it in the planner to keep these stops, or change where you sleep, then download the GPX for your watch or phone.
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