Cowley — a walk, a hotel with Royal and literary connections and a lovely shop.
Half day itinerary (part 1), some history, and what I made of THAT interior
From the Cheltenham direction, Cowley is about five minutes’ drive from Charlton Kings (an outer suburb of Cheltenham. Glos). Cowley is a small village well known for its pub, The Green Dragon, and the very upmarket hotel, Cowley Manor, which looks like something out of a period drama. There are gateposts at the top of one of the roads leading into the village implying it was once part and parcel of the estate.
Cowley Manor is a place I feel quite connected to, almost at home in.
We used to eat there frequently, before it came under new ownership (the Experimental Group). Back then it was very relaxed and our kids were little and they did this fantastic kids’ menu (burger/fish & chips, an ice cream and a drink for £5) and it just seemed extraordinarily good value compared with fast food chains, given that you could enjoy the most incredible setting:
Anyway, times change, kids grow up, prices go up and it’s undergone a refurb for which ‘experimental’ is probably a good description. While this was much overdue, the interior design is bordering on gimmicky. There seems to be an obsession with a vague connection to Alice In Wonderland (see history, below) and it feels a little overdone. The building has huge French doors, high ceilings wooden panelling and parquet flooring — it did not need bedecking in loud fabric, busy wallpaper and chequerboard patterning and I can’t imagine the guests are delighted by the weird uncomfortable seating, particularly in the dining room because all this does is serve the designer’s vision, not the comfort of the guests, nor does it do any justice to the surroundings:
HOWEVER, I don’t want this to put you off because for me, it’s about the timeless grandeur of the building and the beauty of the grounds and the fact that you can experience it all without necessarily eating in the dining room or forking out to stay in one of the (unfortunately, looking at the website, equally gimmicky) bedrooms.
There’s also a spa with indoor and outdoor pools — which gives you another day-only option.
We got drinks on the terrace where (on a Saturday lunchtime) there was plenty of seating (less wacky than inside) with a choice of shade or in-the-sun and the most stunning views across the grounds, with a lawn sweeping down to the ornamental lake which you can stroll around like you’re in Bridgerton. There is a little walk you can also do around the other lakes to explore the further reaches of the grounds.
If you are on a budget, maybe steer away from alcoholic drinks (our three drinks came to a rather eye watering £33!) but I’m sure there are less pricy options as we had two Pimm’s (- or their version of). If you want to eat there, you could also consider bar food rather than restaurant.
From there we walked back to The Green Dragon (see walk details below). There is meadow with a public footpath running through it next to the hotel so that is possibly an option for a picnic. Back at The Green Dragon (10-15mins walk) there is a lovely upmarket “boujee” little shop with food, provisions, gifts, deli & farm produce which I highly recommend. You could eat from the bar menu at the pub or just get tea/coffee/ice cream and sit on the deck (with tables and chairs) at the back of the shop.
Don’t miss part 2 of this — my next piece — on Rendcomb and Cerney House both of which are really nearby and could be incorporated into this same day trip.
A little bit on the history of Cowley Manor:
The Royal connection here is Edward Confessor (Anglo Saxon king before the arrival of William the Conqueror) who is said to have owned the land on which the estate stands, and exchanged it for the land on which he later (re)built Westminster Abbey, (location for many a Royal wedding including Prince William’s and the coronations of most British monarchs and the funerals of Diana and Queen Elizabeth II).
A house was recorded on the site in 1674 but the building which stands today is actually Victorian, commissioned by James Hutchinson a London stockbroker, in 1855-60, an Italianate house with the benefit of a spa which included a Turkish bath, a modern luxury amenity in a country house, at that time. He also laid out the terraces south of the manor and formed cascades and lakes, still there today, by damming areas along the River Churn.
Alice in Wonderland (1865) is said to have been partly inspired by Lewis Carroll’s visits to Cowley Manor while staying at the Old Rectory in the village. (Similar claims are made for a house in nearby Charlton Kings which housed the actual Looking Glass).
In 1895 the manor house was improved on and extended again by James Horlick (founder of the Horlick’s drink company — which was probably found in almost every kitchen in mid-20th Century) and he also built many of the houses in the village.
During the Second World War, Cowley Manor was leased to Cheltenham Ladies' College (still one of the country’s most renowned private girls’ schools). Gloucestershire County Council bought the house in 1946, (it seems astonishing now that a county council should own such a building!) and by 1978 was using it as a conference centre and for social events; it was later used as a nursing home — not a bad place to end your days. It became a hotel around 2000.
One of the previous owners (William Baring-Bingham) is credited with having planted Cowley Wood and the avenue with 135,000 trees in 1882 — an astonishing feat of stewardship and benevolence for future generations.
Walk summary:
We parked at the Green Dragon Pub which is on the outskirts of the village, and took a walk following a footpath out of a gate at the top corner of the car park. On the path we turned right and kept right at each turn. It was approx 45mins along a farm track bordering woodlands and back along a road (a country lane) leading back into the village of Cowley. We used the All Trails app to navigate. There are longer versions of this walk. Once in the village, we headed to the hotel.
Afterwards, from the hotel, walk straight ahead out of the exit gates and turn left at the lane leading back to the Green Dragon (sign-posted). It runs along the boundary of Cowley Manor grounds.