Cotswolds. Planning on moving there but where?

[mumma24]

looking To move to a town or village that has amenities in the Cotswolds.
Don’t really want any of the more touristy parts or anywhere the majority of house are 2nd homes/holiday homes. Happy to move just outside the Cotswolds (15 miles) . Any suggestions please?
So far looking at Evesham, Tetbury, Cirencester, fairfford, Malmesbury, Marlborough, Banbury etc Would like a nice community place.

I live in tetbury. There are things going on in the evenings and events generally in both Tetbury and Cirencester but public transport is rubbish. Probably about 2 taxi firms and you need to book in advance. Buses don't run at night. Kemble train station halfway between the towns is useful though.
Cirencester sounds more suitable for you.

Fairford is a lovely place, nice coffee shops, amenities, great chippy, takeaways, independent shops, brilliant pub, close to the Airshow, can get to places like Designer Centre Swindon, Cirencester etc. Lovely walks, some shops, churches if you go, really picturesque cottages, it’s near Lechlade for bigger shops etc. We had family there and used to visit regularly until 2-3 years ago, I miss it terribly. Beautiful place not too big not too small x x

The plus side of Fairford is you get to watch the air show for free, the downside is you can't move for people with long range cameras a week either side of it and getting around the local area on the weekend itself is horrific!

You could try Bath or Cheltenham. Cirencester is a smaller version of Cheltenham.

I completely agree with the comments on Stroud. In theory and on paper it should be perfect- good schools and colleges, fantastic surrounding countryside, great surrounding villages, central train station going to London, close to M5 etc.

But in reality it's absolutely not and really quite run down. I have never quite understood why.

I would look at Cheltenham. It's not too big. Has a train station, good cultural opportunities, shopping, Hospital etc.

I have family in the Evesham area, they are uniformly uncomplimentary about Evesham, which used to be a very pleasant market town. Nearby Pershore, where my grandmother lived for a time, had the highest proportion of over-60s in the UK at the time. It was a great little place with all the necessary amenities. Nearby Broadway is gorgeous but very touristy in summer.

My brother lives in Witney and is happy there but there is a LOT of peripheral new build housing going up which may affect local services.

North/West Wilts is full of quaint, scenic market towns and on the edge of the Cotswolds - also close enough to Bath/Bristol for shopping, theatre etc.

Cheltenham is also an excellent place to be, I love the festivals they have there.

@ZittiEBuoni I do think people are hard on Evesham locally tbh. Sure, Port Street is a bit tatty but there are lots of good points - the Regal, the Henrician, very active sports clubs, the leisure centre, a surprising number of little independent shops in the side bits. I spend a lot of time walking by the river there while ds is training and it is lovely

I agree about Pershore, lovely little place, but maybe prone to flooding I suspect. OP would have to be careful about that. And yes Wiltshire is definitely worth considering.
Cheltenham is very nice to live in but £££ and I don’t just mean the properties, everything seems to be more expensive.

A friend moved to Pershore (well away from the river). She’s really happy there. I’ve visited her. It struck me as a lovely little market town.

Nowhere floods in Pershore now - after 2007 they put in good flood defences, and the wetlands were changed to help as well. Theres some flats right by the river, but they were built for the ground floor garage to flood through.
The worst that happens is that the bridge closes which is a PITA as if the river is high enough for that to happen, the next nearest bridges over the Avon are also closed which can make diversions long. Its all very routine though

@mumma Marlborough and Malmsbury are West. Both Wiltshire I think. Banbury is North Cotswolds but huge now. Chipping Norton retains its local atmosphere but there is the “Chipping Norton Set” and Daylesford Organic if you need to look at upmarket CN! Charlbury is worth looking at. Has a station. Do you need buses? Definitely look at Woodstock. Close to Oxford.

Cirencester is great in my view. I have a relative in Bourton on the Water. Best co-op anywhere. Everything you want. You can live away from tourists. Also Cheltenham is great. Busy for the races but has a good theatre and the best restaurants.

I forgot. Moreton in Marsh is great. One of my favourite places. Has a station. Lots of lovely villages nearby and plenty going on. Blockley is a big village and also very pleasant. Not as touristy as Stow on the Wold. Budget might dictate where you go.

I like Evesham @CMOTDibbler , especially the riverside - last time I saw these relatives there had been some kind of robbery at the Regal so it led to a long 'Evesham's gone to the dogs' type conversation. It always seems fine when I go there though.

We have friends just a little older than you that moved from country to Cheltenham and LOVE it. I also am a bit envious

And while it might not be strictly Cotswolds, I love Leamington Spa

I would concentrate your search around Witney in West Oxfordshire. Charlbury is nice and has a mainline station to London or Malvern. Easy access to A44 and Oxford too. I wouldn't live in Stow, Bourton on the water or Moreton. In summer it's an absolute nightmare to get about and most houses are air bnb, so distinctly lacking a community feel.

Fairford is lovely

I live in Tewkesbury which is right next to Cheltenham. Although Cheltenham is great, it’s not at all what you describe in your OP. It’s large, busy, and there’s no sense of community at all. It’s great to live near Cheltenham so you can pop over but it’s like a mini-London.

Cirencester is nice (but expensive). Not a fan of Tetbury- overpriced and touristy.

Lots of other areas mentioned here are good too - Fairfield, Gotherington, Bishops Cleeve is lovely too and a stones throw from Cheltenham.

I love where I live and it has a wonderful community BUT you have to be scrupulously careful where you buy because of the water. Across our whole region we have lots of rivers and flooding so it’s a big consideration.

Also worth mentioning, a huge outlet village is being built (opens next year) - going to be the largest in the south west. So if you’re over my side of Tewkesbury - places like Bredon, Pershore, Evesham or Tewkesbury - also Bushops Cleeve and Gotherington - you’ll not be far away.

All of this will also be determined by your budget. Some of the places mentioned are ferociously expensive to buy.

Another vote for Marlborough. Newbury and Hungerford are nice too and a bit bigger depending on what you're looking for- but none of them are in the Cotswolds.

Cheltenham is unfriendly and not a nice place to live at all. It's not large but it's busy and the traffic issues are awful at rush hour. Agree that you should also avoid Stroud.

I know a lot of the places mentioned well. Tetbury overpriced and touristy. Cheltenham unfriendly and soulless.
Pershore is lovely and has a train station . I don’t trust that the flood defenses will be reliable in the future though.
Tewksbury has a weird vibe, floods badly and isn’t friendly.
Morton in Marsh and Broadway full of tourists in the summer.
stroud is full of Londoner’s and very run down with no public transport though it does have a train station.
Bredon is lovely but hard to buy as everything is snapped up quickly .
Lots of outlying villages etc to explore but public transport is non existent.

Top tip - join the local Facebook groups for any towns/ villages you are considering. Gives you a really good indication of the culture/ vibe. We were considering Marlborough until we did this - hilarious but wouldn't want to live there... wild!

I think you will struggle to get all your requirements in one place. For going out in the evening, I would go for Bath or Cheltenham. Wotton under edge fulfils your community, independent shops criteria, although transport not great. Bradford on Avon is right on the edge of the Cotswolds, but might be a good compromise.

If this move is where you will settle for your retirement years, I would also factor in where your nearest hospital is, what services it has, ease of access to/from your home to your nearest shops, availability of delivery services (groceries etc) and so on

This! Councils are on the verge of bankruptcy all over the UK, and services (care services, transport, all these kinds of things) in villages and small towns are inherently expensive to provide per-person because of low population density. They are the first things getting cut. Don't rely on things like rural buses existing a decade from now.

Not Stroud, as above.
Cheltenham - lots going on, and has public transport. Might be a bit too big for your community feel.
Tetbury - too many brash unpleasant people. Evenings out can be unpleasant- so much anger! Too many empty shops now - bit of a ghost town. No functioning public transport.
Whitney - pricey, but plenty going on and buses to Oxford are not bad.
Cirencester - stuff going on, nice theatre, local events. No cinema. Traffic around town getting sticky. Buses are a joke, train is 15 minutes drive away with no connecting bus and taxis are hard to come by. So you’ve got to drive. Internet is awful if you are wfh. But it is a good size.
If you are resigned to no public transport and driving elsewhere for theatre/cinema etc., then Burford, Lechlade, Stow or Malmesbury could be worth a look.