Cotswolds

The Cotswolds is a region in central-southwest England, along a range of rolling hills that rise from the meadows of the upper Thames to an escarpment above the Severn Valley and Evesham Vale.

The area is defined by the bedrock of Jurassic limestone that creates a type of grassland habitat rare in the UK and that is quarried for the golden-coloured Cotswold stone. The predominantly rural landscape contains stone-built villages, towns, and stately homes and gardens featuring the local stone.

Designated as an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty in 1966, the Cotswolds covers 787 square miles and, after the Lake District and Yorkshire Dales national parks, is the third largest protected landscape in England and the largest AONB.