Cheltenham Guide
Cheltenham is a former grand spa town on the edge of the Cotswolds that once rivalled Bath as a resort for the rich and famous in its heyday in the 18th century. It is now more widely known for its various festivals than healing waters.
The wider borough of Cheltenham has a population of around 116,000 inhabitants.
Cheltenham History
Cheltenham's fame and grandeur can be traced back to the discovery of a spa in this once-sleepy Cotswolds town in 1716.
Cheltenham developed rapidly over the next century as the rich and famous, from Kings and Queens to artists and admirals flocked to take the curative waters, which were thought effective for a wide range of ailments.
Nowadays Cheltenham is considered to have some of the best preserved Regency architecture in Britain. The town abounds in elegant architecture with Regency terraces and swirling wrought-iron flourishes along Suffolk Square and Queen's Parade on Parabola Road.
Cheltenham Attractions
Cheltenham's many attractions include the Pittville Pump Room, built by Joseph Pitt to the north of the town centre before he went bankrupt in the 1820's and the Neptune Fountain, designed by Joseph Hall, the town's borough surveyor at the time. It is modelled on the magnificent Trevi Fountain in Rome. It depicts Neptune in a shell-chariot, pulled by four sea-horses with a conch-blowing merman in attendance. The Neptune Fountain is just outside the Municipal Buildings on The Promenade and is the major meeting-point in the town.
The Promenade is the town's main shopping and dining area and also includes the Municipal Offices, a fine example of Regency architecture.
The nearby Town Hall dates from the early 20th century. Unlike most town halls in the UK, it is a public venue and not the seat of the borough council, which is housed in the Municipal Offices.
The Town Hall opened 1902 to commemorate the coronation of Edward VII and Queen Alexandra after the death of Queen Victoria.
Gustav Holst, the composer of The Planets, was born in Cheltenham in 1874. His life-size bronze statue and fountain in which it stands is in the pleasant Imperial Gardens, near the Queen's Hotel. The Holst Birthplace Museum at 4 Clarence Road celebrates the composer's life and music.
The Wilson (formerly the Cheltenham Art Gallery & Museum) is the town's best museum. It is named after Edward Wilson, who was born in the town and who died in 1912 on Scott's Antarctic expedition. The permanent collection includes a renowned exhibition on the Arts and Crafts movement.
The Everyman is Cheltenham's finest theatre and presents a range of performances ranging from contemporary stand-up comedy to cabaret, musicals and drama. Other theatres are the Bacon, the Playhouse, and the Parabola Arts Centre.
Cheltenham also boasts some lovely parks and gardens: the large Pittville Park, Montpellier Gardens, Imperial Gardens and Sandford Park with its open-air 1930s lido.
As for churches Cheltenham Minster, St Mary's dates from Medieval times and All Saints', Pittville, was where Gustav Holst's father was the organist. St Gregory's Roman Catholic Church and Trinity Church are also both of architectural interest.
Festivals
The Cheltenham Festival in March is a highlight of the National Hunt horse racing calendar and brings visitors from all over the country to this four-day event. The Gold Cup is the most important race.
Other major festivals are organized by the registered charity Cheltenham Festivals.
These include the Cheltenham Jazz Festival and The Times and The Sunday Times Cheltenham Literature Festival held in October. The Jazz Festival is part of the larger music festival held in the summer. Cheltenham Science Festival is the latest addition and began life in 2002.
Shopping
Regent Shopping Arcade is the town's solitary under cover shopping area with over 60 stores. It boasts the world's largest mechanical clock - Kit William's Wishing Fish Clock. Cheltenham's other shopping districts can be found on The Promenade, Montpellier, the High Street, Bath Road, The Suffolks and Tivoli. In fashionable Montpellier look out for the 32 caryatids that support the 1840s period shops. They are based on those in the Acropolis in Athens.
The Brewery Quarter includes a Premier Inn hotel, shops, restaurants and leisure facilities.
Pubs & Dining
Two good traditional pubs in town include the Sudeley Arms on Prestbury Road and The Hare & Hounds on Cheltenham Road.
John Gordons overlooking Montpellier Gardens has been serving up gin, rum, whiskey and wine in convivial surroundings since 2006.
To eat try L'Artisan on Clarence Street for fine French fare.
Around Cheltenham
The Cotswolds is around 40 km across and 145 km long. The Cotswolds stretches from Stratford-upon-Avon to Bath.
Located eight miles north of Cheltenham, Sudeley Castle is a honey-colored stone edifice complete with banqueting hall. It was once owned by Katherine Parr, the last wife of Henry VIII.
Five miles west of Cheltenham, the Jet Age Museum is an aviation museum run by the Gloucestershire Aviation Collection. Located next to Gloucestershire Airport, the museum has a collection of aircraft, aero engines, cockpits, photographs and other items. In particular, aircraft produced by the Gloster Aircraft Company feature heavily with the Gloster Meteor F.8, Gloster Javelin FAW.9 and Gloster Gladiator II on show or under restoration.
26 miles south of Cheltenham, near Tetbury is the superb Westonbirt, The National Arboretum. It has over 15,000 trees and shrubs from 2,500 species. Established by the Holford family in the 19th century the 600-acre site is now run by Forestry England. Lovely to visit in any season, autumn, of course, is a favorite, especially for the red Japanese maples. Westonbirt also hosts various events including regular live music concerts, part of the nationwide Forest Live and Enchanted Christmas, when the trees are illuminated for a forest walk.
Lodge Park was built in 1634 by John 'Crump' Dutton, hunchback and Civil War era politician, as a grandstand for the then popular sport of deer coursing. The surrounding parkland was designed by the well-known garden designer Charles Bridgeman in the 18th century.
Typical Cotswold towns include Burford, Chipping Norton, Moreton-in-Marsh and Stow-on-the-Wold. One Cotswold town, Chipping Campden, is well-known for being the home of the Arts and Crafts movement, founded by William Morris at the end of the 19th century.
Four miles from Chipping Campden lies Hidcote Manor. It features one of the most inventive gardens of the 20th century.
The Slaughters are another Cotswold treat. The visitor should take the easy, mile-long stroll between the twin villages of Upper and Lower Slaughter. The path runs beside the River Eye past scenic cottages and around an old flour mill, now converted into a tea and craft shop and a museum. By the way, the name "Slaughter" has nothing to do with meat production but rather derives from the Anglo Saxon word for mud.
Lacock has featured atmospherically in numerous films, from Harry Potter to Cranford and Pride and Prejudice. Visitors shouldn't miss Lacock Abbey, a medieval dwelling turned country house that also celebrates the work of its former resident, Henry Fox Talbot, who invented the photographic negative.
Bourton-on-the-Water is a very popular town in the Cotswolds and draws hordes of visitors to its beautifully crafted Model Village, the Bourton Model Railway, and the Dragonfly Maze.
Cheltenham Hotels
There are several good places to stay in the town. Choose from the DoubleTree by Hilton Cheltenham on Cirencester Road, the Holiday Inn Express Cheltenham Town Centre on Duneally Street, or the Malmaison Cheltenham in the fashionable Montpellier district.
See here for a listing of places to stay in Cheltenham.
Cotswolds Access - Getting To The Cotswolds
Cheltenham Spa Station is 2 hours, 10 minutes from London Paddington, around 45 minutes to an hour to Bristol Temple Meads and also 10 to 15 minutes to Gloucester. The M5 motorway runs near to the town
By Rail: All rail service from London to the Cotswolds departs from Paddington Station, which has its own London Underground station.
To travel to the Cotswolds from London by train takes about 1 ½ hours and trains run every hour, 7 days a week. Although rail services do not cover the whole of the Cotswolds, it is possible to travel to and from Bath, Cheltenham, Stratford, Chippenham, Gloucester, Kemble, Moreton-in-Marsh Station, Kingham and Oxford.
By Car: Driving from London to the Cotswolds takes about 2 hours and utilizes well sign-posted major roads. The M4 motorway provides easy access to Bath, Castle Combe and the South Cotswolds. The M40 motorway provides access to Oxford and Stratford and the North Cotswolds.
By Coach: National Express offers coach service to the Cotswolds. The main route to the Cotswolds from London starts at Victoria Coach Station and takes about 3 - 4 hours. Coaches run regularly from London to the Cotswolds, although there is no service on Sundays. The main coach stops in and around the Cotswolds are at Bath, Bourton-on-the-Water, Cheltenham, Chippenham, Gloucester, Moreton-in-Marsh, Northleach, Oxford, Stow-on-the-Wold, Stratford-upon-Avon, and Stroud.
Cotswolds Maps
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