r/Cotswolds

I promised to share a little more about my visit to Diddly Squat Farm Shop and The Farmer’s Dog during my Cotswolds trip, so here it is.

I’ve wanted to visit since I started watching Clarkson’s Farm, and I really enjoyed finally seeing both places for myself.

Diddly Squat Farm Shop is much more than a small farm shop. There’s a large outdoor area with food and drinks, and I was pleasantly surprised by the burgers and especially the coffee.

We visited on a Tuesday in early July and the queue for the shop was already huge — around 200–300 people. As it was very hot, we decided not to wait and went straight for lunch. Honestly, I’m glad we did.

The Farmer’s Dog was another surprise. It’s much bigger than I expected and is more of a whole visitor experience than just a pub, with outdoor seating, food options and a large shop.

We didn’t have a reservation, but that didn’t stop us enjoying the place. We went inside the pub, had a look around, bought drinks and spent time outside. There are also food options that don’t require a table reservation.

A few practical tips:

1. If you want to visit the Farm Shop, arrive early — queues can be very long.
2. Don’t spend hours waiting if you’re also planning to visit The Farmer’s Dog; they have many of the same products in their shop.
3. If you want lunch or dinner at The Farmer’s Dog, book well in advance. Reservations open on the 1st of each month at 9am for the following month, and popular dates fill quickly.
4. If you can’t get a reservation at the pub, don’t skip the place. You can still enjoy the pub, outdoor area, shops, drinks and other food options.
5. Allow plenty of time for both places, they’re not quick stops.
6. The Hawkstone beer gift box makes a great souvenir or gift. You can choose different beers to put in the box.

The two locations are about 30 minutes apart by car, so it’s perfectly possible to visit both in one day.

Overall, I really enjoyed finally seeing these places in real life. Everything was very well organised, from the parking to the food areas and shops, and both the staff and visitors were incredibly friendly.

We’ve just come back from a five-day road trip around the Cotswolds, and I thought I’d share a few things that might help anyone planning a visit.

We hired a car and spent five days exploring villages, country roads and pubs. During the trip we visited Bourton-on-the-Water, Lower Slaughter, Stow-on-the-Wold, Chipping Campden, Broadway, Snowshill, Stanton, Broad Campden, Gretton, Bretforton, Broadway Tower, Cleeve Hill and even Stratford-upon-Avon.

A few things I’d recommend:

1. Hire a car if you can. It makes a huge difference and gives you the freedom to explore the smaller villages and beautiful countryside between them.

2. Don’t try to see everything in one day. The Cotswolds is much bigger than many people expect, and the roads are often slower than they look on the map.

3. If possible, stay for at least three days. We spent five days there and still left with places we’d like to come back to.

4. There’s no need to change accommodation every night. We stayed in one place and simply took day trips around the region, which made the whole trip much more relaxed.

5. Start your day early if you want to see the most popular villages before they get busy.

6. Don’t only visit the famous places. Some of our favourite stops were the smaller villages that many visitors simply drive past.

We also visited Diddly Squat Farm Shop and The Farmer’s Dog. I’ll share our experience, what surprised us and a few mistakes I’d avoid in a separate post.

And if you’re planning your own Cotswolds trip and have any questions, just ask. I’ll be happy to share what I learned.