Top 10 Ridiculously Pretty Villages

As well as its colourful cities and towns, the Great West Way is remarkable for its array of adorable villages...  

Lacock 
You’ll find this National Trust village - a film set for Pride and Prejudice and Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince - just a few miles south of Chippenham. It’s been so beautifully preserved that it feels like a living museum. Its medieval streets are lined with charming stone cottages, and there’s a Tithe Barn and traditional bakery too. Stop and peer in the windows at 2 High Street. If you thought the UK’s buzzing coffee culture was something new, think again! Although the old shop window now replicates a local store at the beginning of the 20th-century, it was previously a busy coffee tavern. Other attractions in the village include Lacock Abbey and the Fox Talbot Museum - the birthplace of photography. 

Did you know? There’s a tiny hamlet just north of Chippenham called Tiddleywink! 

Avebury 
Museums, 16th century manor houses, megalithic stone circles, some villages have it all. As home to the largest stone circle in the world, some of Avebury village lies within the stones. Go on one of the National Trust’s regular guided tours to find out more about all the strange sarsens and burial mounds around you. Make sure you check out Avebury Manor, too, and the Alexander Keiller Museum, which shines a light on the many archaeological finds from the area. Follow up with a cream tea in one of the cafés, and maybe even stay the night in a cosy B&B so you can capture that misty, mysterious morning view on camera. 

Pewsey
Pewsey is the perfect place to base yourself when exploring the ancient landscape of the Great West Way. The characterful village even has its own chalky White Horse, just a mile or so south of the village. It’s also a lovely launchpad for some great walks, such as the Pewsey Vale Circular Way, as well as bike rides along the Kennet & Avon Canal. But don’t be fooled into thinking it’s all sleepy and rural here - the Pewsey Vale is known for its annual carnival in September and top pubs too. (In summer you can pitch your tent at The Woodbridge Inn.)

Bathampton 
Bathampton is a wonderful place for rest and contemplation, just an 11-minute drive from the high society of Bath. The almighty views from Bathampton Down offer perspective not just on the village but on the city, and the countryside beyond. With the Kennet & Avon Canal running through it, it’s also a great place to take a boat ride - aboard the Pulteney Princess perhaps - or just enjoy a stroll along the banks. Look out for herons and cormorants, both regular visitors to the waterways here. Fun Fact: Plasticine was invented here in 1897 by local art teacher William Harbutt.

Castle Combe  
No list of villages along the Great West Way could miss out Castle Combe, often referred to as the prettiest village in England. The quaint limestone cottages that feature in many a travel snap, however, were not built for their aesthetics but to house the weavers who made the villages distinctive red and gold cloth, often used for military uniforms. They lived and worked close to the Bybrook River as water was needed for ‘fulling’ or cleansing the wool. If you have your own wheels - bike, car or even chauffeur-driven classic car - don’t miss the chance to explore nearby Cotswolds villages such as Badminton, Bibury, Lower Slaughter and Bourton-on-the-Water. 

Blaise Hamlet 
For something a bit different, head four miles north of Bristol to see this attractive hamlet - built to provide housing for workers of Blaise Castle Estate in their retirement. The nine comfortable cottages now seem almost ornamental, with their tall chimneys and attractive thatched roofs. They were commissioned in the 19th century by John Scandrett Harford, a Bristol banker and prominent Quaker. See if you can read the sundial on the village green. 

The Cookhams 
Cookham, Cookham Rise and Cookham Dean are referred to locally as ‘The Cookhams’. Although Kenneth Grahame’s children’s classic, The Wind in the Willows, was mainly a product of the author’s imagination, the sleepy riverside village of Cookham Dean, where he lived as a boy, may well have inspired him. (Try the National Trust’s 3-mile Wind in the Willows walk.) In fact these well-heeled Berkshire villages by The Thames have attracted plenty of creative residents over the years, including artist Sir Stanley Spencer and actress Jessica Brown Findlay - Lady Sybil Crawley in Downton Abbey.

Eastbury 
This lesser-visited Berkshire village offers an authentic glimpse at rural English life. Weeping willows. Thatched houses. Duck races. It has everything you could hope for. Pop into the local pub, The Eastbury Plough, for one of their ‘Proper English Roasts’. You’ll have your pick of local produce: roast Berkshire venison, belly of Windsor Estate pork and rib of Marsh Farm beef have all featured on the menu recently. Eastbury also makes a fine place to stop off if you’re in Lambourn for the horse racing. 

Tisbury 
A little south of the Great West Way you’ll find Tisbury, one of Wiltshire’s prettiest villages. It’s worth the trip for a view onto the Nadder Valley - and both the Cranborne Chase and West Wiltshire Downs Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. It’s fantastic for walkers, but also caters to those who prefer to potter along a well-kept High Street, with its independent boutiques and tea rooms. Other highlights include a 4,000-year-old yew tree and possibly the largest Tithe Barn in existence in England. Oh, and it’s very close to Old Wardour Castle of Robin Hood Prince of Thieves fame. 

Ramsbury 
Historic Ramsbury is just a quick jaunt east from Marlborough. The Bell, a 300-year-old coaching inn, was awarded Pub of the Year 2017-18, with a restaurant that’s as well-regarded as its comfortable rooms. If you enjoy a tipple, take one of the Ramsbury Estate’s guided distillery or brewery tours - they make their own gin, vodka and beer with chalk-filtered water. Try Honey Bee Nectar, a golden pale ale produced in cooperation with North Wessex Downs Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty - except for the hops, all the beer's ingredients come from within the AONB. When you’ve had your fill of food and drink, explore the village’s rich heritage which goes all the way back to the Saxons. The magnificent mosaics at Littlecote Roman Villa are a must-see.
 

For some other ideas of things to do on your Great West Way journey, visit our See & Do and Explore pages.