Not every great drive needs a mountain pass. The Cotswolds have none, and do not need one. They have a web of narrow lanes between honey coloured villages, long views from the edge of the hills, and some of the finest country house hotels in England. The club's weekend there, Soho in the Sticks, is built around one of them, with two drives from its door for anyone who wants them and dinner every night with the same good company.
Saturday: Broadway and Chipping Campden
The Saturday drive heads for the northern edge of the Cotswolds, where the hills fall away to the Vale of Evesham. Broadway sits at the foot of Fish Hill, and the climb out of it is one of the few Cotswold roads with any real gradient. At the top stands Broadway Tower, with a view on a clear day as far as the Malverns.
From there the lanes run along the top of the escarpment to Chipping Campden, whose long High Street of golden stone is among the finest in England, with the seventeenth century Market Hall at its heart. Lunch is long, and the afternoon is your own.
Sunday: Bourton, Bibury and Burford
The Sunday drive turns south into the valleys of the Windrush and the Coln. Bourton on the Water is at its best early, when the low stone bridges over the river have the morning to themselves. Bibury, which William Morris called the most beautiful village in England, has Arlington Row, a terrace of old weavers' cottages above the water meadow. Burford ends the day, its broad High Street running steeply down the hill to the Windrush, and supper is waiting back at the hotel.
Driving the lanes well
The Cotswold lanes are a different discipline from a mountain pass. They are narrow, hedged and often sunken, with a tractor, a horse or a family on bicycles round any bend.
- The Highway Code asks drivers to pass horses at no more than 10 mph and with at least two metres to spare, and cyclists with at least a metre and a half. Give both more where the lane allows.
- Where there is no pavement, expect walkers on the road and slow right down for them.
- Mud on the road after harvest or in the wet can be as slippery as ice.
- Parking in the villages is tight, and a low car will find every kerb. The roadbook names a place to leave the car in each.
More than the drives
Soho in the Sticks is the club weekend rather than a tour. Four days under one roof at a country house hotel: the fire lit on the Friday evening, a morning on the lanes, a private visit or two, the club dinner on the Saturday, and breakfast and away on the Monday, or stay for lunch. The drives are for those who want them, and the weekend is built for partners as much as drivers. Members may bring guests, which makes it a fine first taste of the club.
What the club takes care of
The lanes are driven before a member sees them, and the roadbook carries every turn. The hotel is slept in by us first and the dinners are eaten first, and the cars are parked securely every night. Breakfast and dinner are in the price. The club team is with you through the weekend, and if a car cannot go on, you and your passenger carry on while it is dealt with.
The weekend runs in 2027, with the dates to be announced, an easy drive from London and the Midlands. Members hear first when places open, and membership begins with an application, read personally by the team. If a long weekend on the lanes in good company sounds like your kind of driving, we would be delighted to hear from you.