Top Dog-Friendly Days Out in the Cotswolds
Broadway Tower’s deer park is one of several places where dog-friendly days out in the Cotswolds go beyond a countryside walk.
- October 8, 2026
You can explore an abbey together, ride a heritage train, or visit an animal park with your dog beside you. You can also stop for lunch in gardens, and find woodland with room for some time off the lead. These ten outings cover the wider Cotswolds area, including Tewkesbury and Bathampton on its fringes. We’ve included the parts dogs can’t enter, admission costs and practical details that could make a difference to your day.
Visiting the Cotswolds with Dogs
If you’re staying for a few days, explore dog-friendly stays in the Cotswolds and plan a couple of outings from your base.
Dog-Friendly Things to Do in the Cotswolds
01 — Visit Tewkesbury Abbey
You can take your dog inside Tewkesbury Abbey, so you won’t have to take turns while someone waits outside. The Norman church was consecrated in 1121, and its enormous crossing tower is worth a look before you’ve even gone through the door.
Have a look round, then head to the Abbey Garden Café for lunch with your dog. Tewkesbury is just beyond the Cotswolds’ north-western boundary, so this means a trip into the neighbouring town.
Admission is by voluntary donation. Paid parking is available nearby at The Vineyards and Gloucester Road, among other places. Services and events can change visiting hours, and the café has its own opening times.
02 — Enjoy Batsford Arboretum
At Batsford, you’ve got 60 acres of trees, paths and streams to explore near Moreton-in-Marsh. The National Collection of Japanese Flowering Cherries is here, along with Japanese maples and magnolias, so there’s more to look at than the trees you’d pass on your usual woodland walk.
Your dog can come into the garden centre and Garden Terrace Café afterwards. You can have lunch together without finding an outdoor table, but they’ll need a short, fixed lead throughout the visit. Extendable leads aren’t allowed, even in the arboretum.
You pay to enter the arboretum; parking and entry to the visitor-centre facilities are free. Bring a picnic if you like, but eat it in the designated areas outside the arboretum. If you come by bus, you’ll need to walk from the main road rather than be dropped off beside the entrance.
03 — Visit Broadway Tower’s Grounds
Head to Broadway Tower for a walk round the deer park and a look at the folly standing above the village on the Cotswold Way. Capability Brown came up with the idea, and architect James Wyatt designed it.
You can explore the grounds with your dog, but they can’t come into the Tower Museum. If you want to climb to the roof platform, someone will need to stay outside with them. That’s where the famous long-distance views are advertised, so don’t expect the same outlook from the paths below.
Keep your dog on a lead around the deer. The Grounds and Picnic ticket includes the park and circular walk, with parking charged separately. Afterwards, Morris & Brown and Tower Barn cafés both have designated seating where dogs can join you.
04 — Explore Cotswold Lakes from the Gateway
You don’t need a long walk to enjoy Cotswold Lakes. Formerly called Cotswold Water Park, the area has around 180 lakes spread across 42 square miles of Gloucestershire and Wiltshire.
For a shorter outing, start at the Gateway Centre and follow the one-mile version of the Cotswold Lakes Trust’s “Tow paths, train tracks and water meadows” route. It follows the old Thames & Severn Canal towpath, crosses a wooden bridge and brings you back through lakeside paths and hotel grounds. Gates and bridges line the way.
The Gateway Café advertises free parking. Dogs need to stay on leads and out of the lakes to avoid disturbing wildlife. The café welcomes them inside and out, although its homepage says “moderately sized” dogs, so don’t assume that includes every breed.
05— Explore Blenheim Palace’s Parkland
You can spend your visit walking round Blenheim’s parkland with your dog, with the Palace as the backdrop. Near Woodstock on the Cotswolds’ eastern fringe, this is the ancestral home of the Dukes of Marlborough and Winston Churchill’s birthplace.
Dogs can join you on leads in the parkland, the first part of the Walled Garden and the Pantry Café. They can’t enter the Palace, Formal Gardens, the rest of the Walled Gardens or the Adventure Playground. The Stables Café and Orangery Restaurant are off limits too, so head to the Pantry Café if you want to stop together.
An adult Park & Gardens Day Ticket currently costs £31 online or £34 on site. You’re paying for some areas your dog can’t visit, which is worth knowing before booking. Assistance dogs have different access arrangements.
06— Visit Cotswold Wildlife Park and Gardens
At Cotswold Wildlife Park near Burford, your dog can come with you to see animals you certainly won’t meet on a normal walk. You can explore much of the outdoor grounds together and bring a picnic to eat on lawns overlooking some of the enclosures.
You won’t be able to visit every part together. Dogs can’t enter the Giraffe House or raised walkway, indoor attractions, the Children’s Farmyard or areas with free-ranging animals. They’re also excluded from the restaurant and gift shop.
Your dog must stay on a lead under an adult’s control and can’t be left unattended. If unfamiliar animals set them barking or pulling, this might be worth a miss. You pay for admission, with advance e-tickets available, but parking is free.
07— Follow the Canal between Bathampton and Bath
Follow the Kennet & Avon Canal from Bathampton, and you’ve got a walk into Bath with the George Inn waiting back in the village. Bathampton sits on the southern fringe of the Cotswolds, and you can join the towpath at Mill Lane.
The Canal & River Trust puts the walk into Bath at three miles one way. Walking back makes it roughly six miles, though you can turn round sooner if you’d rather have a shorter outing. You’ll share the path with cyclists and other walkers, so keep your dog close, use a short lead around busy bridges and locks, and don’t let them swim in the canal.
The George Inn welcomes dogs in its beer garden and designated indoor areas, with water and biscuits available. Its car park is for pub customers, not general walking parking.
08— Ride the Gloucestershire Warwickshire Steam Railway
Take a seat on the Gloucestershire Warwickshire Steam Railway and watch the countryside go past between Cheltenham Race Course and Broadway. Regular services also stop at Toddington and Winchcombe, with return tickets and rovers available depending on how much travelling you want to do.
Your dog can ride in the standard-class areas that allow pets for a £5 fare. They must stay on a lead and on the floor. First Class, carpeted carriage areas and catering vehicles are off limits to pet dogs, and some special-event trains exclude them too.
Pick a departure from the regular timetable, remembering that not every train is steam-hauled. If whistles, steam and train movement spook your dog, this is probably one to leave out.
09— Explore Silk Wood at Westonbirt Arboretum
Silk Wood at Westonbirt is the place to head if your dog enjoys exploring off lead. They’re allowed to do that here as long as they stay under effective control and come back when called.
Westonbirt is near Tetbury, and there’s more you can see together once the lead goes back on. Dogs can cross the Treetop Walkway, walk over The Downs and accompany you at the central facilities, including the restaurant and shop.
The Old Arboretum is closed to pet dogs, so part of the collection will be out of bounds. Forest Live concerts and Christmas trails also exclude pets. Normal daytime admission is paid, with prices changing by season and day; booking ahead is strongly advised during peak autumn.
10 — Visit Painswick Rococo Garden
Painswick Rococo Garden has a maze, unusual follies and an 18th-century garden tucked into a valley. There’s plenty to look round with your dog, including the snowdrop displays when they’re in flower. Their timing depends on the weather, rather than a fixed date.
Dogs need to stay on leads, but they can come into the café and shop with you. There’s water outside the café and designated picnic areas if you’d rather bring your own lunch.
Be prepared for steep, uneven paths. The garden isn’t recommended for wheelchairs or mobility scooters, and it could be hard going if you or your dog struggle with slopes. Admission is paid, and parking is free. During snowdrop season, you’ll need to book ahead.
You can mix a train journey or an abbey visit with a day outdoors, without leaving the dog behind. Our Cotswolds dog walks give you more routes to try between attractions. Keep the lead handy for gardens and animal enclosures; Silk Wood allows more freedom if your dog comes back when called.