Winchcombe and Sudeley Castle

Recommended by

Our view

"A rewarding walk above a thriving Cotswold market town and the burial place of Henry's sixth queen – Catherine Parr."

Walk directions

From the corner of the car park follow the town centre sign along Cowl Lane. At the end turn left, then right before The White Hart Inn, down Castle Street. Where it levels out, cross a river bridge, and after about 50yds (46m) bear right to leave the road near Sudeley Castle Country Cottages and ascend to a kissing gate. Follow the path through the middle of a long field to another kissing gate. At a track, with the castle visitor centre ahead, turn right for 50 paces, then left through a gate.

Walk between fences, under a bridge of a children’s play fort, to a kissing gate. Follow the left fence past Sudeley Castle, then follow guide posts across its parkland. Go through a kissing gate in the very far corner, turn left, and after 25 paces go through another gate and walk alongside the left-hand field boundary, then right at the corner alongside a fence. In 100yds (91m), go left through a gate and walk uphill beside hedging towards a cottage.

Through a gate turn left onto a lane and follow this to a junction. Turn left and, after about 50 paces, just before Sudeley Hill Farm, turn right and go through a gate. Head slightly left uphill and through a kissing gate. Cross the middle of the next field, then bear to the left of a cottage to another gate.

Beyond this you will see a small church-like building in a fenced enclosure, which houses St Kenelm’s Well. Pass to the left of this along a track. Cross a stream and go through a gate, and climb slightly right towards a gate at the right end of woodland.

At a woodland fence corner turn left through a kissing gate, just short of the field gate, and go alongside a small fenced field. Beyond this the path drops fairly close to the woods on your right, and then curves left near the end to two kissing gates. Continue alongside the wood, then a line of trees, to a gate in the far corner.

Descend slightly right towards Winchcombe, heading to the furthest corner. Via a gate descend, with a fence on your right. At the fence corner continue slightly right across the field. Walk through the hedge into the next field and continue slightly left towards a gate. Cross the field corner to a stile and a footbridge. Go slightly left in the next field, heading for the gate to the right of a cottage. Through the gate turn right onto a lane, passing a heavily buttressed kitchen garden wall on your left.

After about 100yds (91m), turn left through a kissing gate and head across the field towards Winchcombe church tower. Then veer left before the river valley bottom to a kissing gate by a stone cottage. Follow this path to Castle Street and turn right over the river bridge and back into the town centre.

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Location

Nearest postcode:

Additional information

Terrain - Fields and lanes, many stiles

Landscape - Woodland, hills and town

Dog friendliness - On lead throughout due to livestock

Parking - Back Lane pay-and-display car park

Toilets en route - At car park

Walks in Gloucestershire Dog-friendly walks in Gloucestershire

About the walk

At the end of a long drive just outside Winchcombe is a largely 16th-century mansion called Sudeley Castle. The first castle was built here in 1140, and fragments dating from its earlier days are still much in evidence. Originally little more than a fortified manor house, by the mid-15th century it...

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Been on this walk?

Send us photos or a comment about this route. Or recommend a route of your own.

Find out more

Walking in Safety

Read our tips to look after yourself and the environment when following this walk.

Learn more

Get an AA guide

Explore our range of ‘50 Walks in’ guides - they’re the ideal companion for a ramble.

Learn more

About the area

Gloucestershire is home to a variety of landscapes, including the Cotswolds, a region of gentle hills, valleys and gem-like villages that roll through the county. To their west is the Severn Plain, watered by Britain’s longest river and characterised by orchards and farms marked out by hedgerows that blaze with mayflower in the spring; beyond the Severn are the Forest of Dean and the Wye Valley.