England

A great VBT tour through the England Lake District and the Scotland highlands. The rides are quite challenging and very scenic across baron countryside dotted with sheep and cattle. Our weather was good, with only one day of drizzle at the top of a mountain pass. We enjoyed the pre and post trips and would definitely recommend those. The hotels were quaint and most were centrally located, others were out in the countryside. The food was delicious and the people we met along the way were very friendly and helpful.

I loved the places we saw — lots of variety and beauty and some long, awesome descents! The ride is not for beginners due to often steep terrain and extremely heavy e-bikes that are difficult to handle. Many of the activities described as ‘experiences’ were not offered, and there were few interactions with local folks compared to most VBT trips.

The Cotswold biking experience is wonderful, small villages and beautiful country scenery to enjoy on your bike rides. I would recommend this bike tour for experienced bikers because of the narrow country roads and potholes. Our bike guides were great, always ready to assist in any way and the hotels were perfect meeting our every need. The breakfasts were excellent, fueling us for the ride ahead. Biking offers a up close view of the scenery and towns and allows us to go at our own pace and stop for photo opts when desired. I love VBT trips!

Our guides, Jeremy and Lucy, went above and beyond to make our trip fun and pleasurable even on the rainy days. Accommodations were excellent. Food was great, bicycle equipment was like new. A very memorable trip of cycling the Cotswolds.

My husband and I did this self-guided tour in early September and absolutely loved it. Country Walkers did an impeccable job taking care of every detail--booking hotels, moving our suitcases between hotels, and, best of all, the "route notes" book was so detailed and had everything we needed from step-by-step directions and restaurant suggestions to history and ideas for things to do. It felt like a wonderful adventure following the famous paths through sheep pastures and little forest thickets, past gardens and ancient churches, and climbing over or around all the different gates. It was often overcast and misty in the mornings, but the mid-day sun burned it all away. Our highlights are choosing to stop for an hour to check out the Hailes Abbey Museum and rubbing elbows with some locals at the only pub in a tiny village. So many great memories! We liked the intimate experience of doing a self-guided trip and the independence (without the planning!) that it provided. We spent some extra days in London at the end of our trip...that was just icing on the cake.

What a fantastic trip this was. This was my 6th time going to England, but my first for the Cotswold region and what an extraordinary time it was. The food was fantastic, everywhere you looked the views were spectacular. It was fantastic trip which I would do again in a heart beat.