Bucks &amp; Oxon


<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-why">WHY? </h2>



<p>Sitting equidistant between Oxford and Cheltenham (around 40 mins in either direction) Burford &#8211;  known locally as the &#8216;gateway to the Cotswolds&#8217; with its handsome sandstone architecture, AONB vistas and thriving high street with indie shops galore, is a headliner on any Oxfordshire bucket list.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-eat">EAT </h2>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img decoding="async" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2024/05/G14A0867.jpeg" alt="Bull Burford exterior with classic car parked outside" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Bull Burford</figcaption></figure>



<p> <a href="https://muddystilettos.co.uk/travel/uk/hotels-inns/review-bull-burford-oxfordshire-cotswolds/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Bull Burford</a> is all crittall doors, Dali and Banksy on the walls (yes, really) and an ex Nobu chef. Owned by PR guru and local resident Matthew Freud, it&#8217;s really upped the ante in this neck of the woods. Meanwhile, nestled down a pretty side street is the 500-year-old gastropub with rooms <a aria-label="The Angel at Burford (opens in a new tab)" href="https://theangelatburford.co.uk" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">The Angel at Burford</a> with its nooks, crannies, and exposed beams – and punches above its weight on the food front with an AA rosette. <a aria-label="The Lamb Inn (opens in a new tab)" href="https://www.cotswold-inns-hotels.co.uk/the-lamb-inn/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">The Lamb Inn</a>, set in a 15th century former weaver&#8217;s cottage, is also excellent for food with 2 AA Rosettes, and is equally cosy with flagstone floors, comfy armchairs and a pretty walled garden.</p>



<p><a aria-label="Burford House (opens in a new tab)" href="https://www.burford-house.co.uk" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Burford House</a>, in a charming 17th century coaching inn on High Street, features an Italian restaurant as well as six ensuite rooms and a self-contained cottage if you need to crash after overloading on pasta. <a href="https://www.cotswold-inns-hotels.co.uk/the-bay-tree-hotel/">The Bay Tree Hotel</a> is well-regarded for food &#8211; make sure you use the gorgeous secluded walled garden in summer. If it&#8217;s afternoon tea you&#8217;re after then quintessentially Cotswolds <a aria-label="Huffkins (opens in a new tab)" href="https://huffkins.com/pages/burford-cafe-bakery" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Huffkins</a> tea room and bakery (founded in Burford) is a dead cert, also in a beautiful listed building (be sure to try the signature Lardy Cake &#8211; fruity, sticky, delicious!). </p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-shop">SHOP</h2>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1500" height="1500" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2023/05/Burford-Garden-Centre.jpg" alt="Burford Garden Co" class="wp-image-145713" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2023/05/Burford-Garden-Centre.jpg 1500w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2023/05/Burford-Garden-Centre-800x800.jpg 800w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2023/05/Burford-Garden-Centre-1000x1000.jpg 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2023/05/Burford-Garden-Centre-400x400.jpg 400w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2023/05/Burford-Garden-Centre-525x525.jpg 525w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2023/05/Burford-Garden-Centre-500x500.jpg 500w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2023/05/Burford-Garden-Centre-1100x1100.jpg 1100w" sizes="(max-width: 1500px) 100vw, 1500px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Burford Garden Co</figcaption></figure>



<p>Sweeping downhill towards the River Windrush, elegant Burford High Street is flanked on both sides with a row of indie and family-run stores. Head to <a aria-label="Slate Clothing (opens in a new tab)" href="https://slateclothing.co.uk" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Slate Clothing</a> for the best womenswear, or <a aria-label="Antiques @ The George (opens in a new tab)" href="https://antiquesatthegeorge.com" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Antiques @ The George</a> to find something totally unique. Also worth the gander is Cotswold Contemporary art gallery, Hector &amp; Queen clothing and giftware, and <a href="https://www.athomewiththerudds.com/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">At Home With The Rudds</a> for stylish homewares. Local producers include <a aria-label="WJ Castle (opens in a new tab)" href="https://www.facebook.com/WJCastle/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">WJ Castle</a> farm shop, <a aria-label="Bakery on the Hill (opens in a new tab)" href="https://www.facebook.com/Bakeryonthehil/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Bakery on the Hill</a> and <a aria-label="The Cotswolds Cheese Company (opens in a new tab)" href="https://www.cotswoldcheese.com" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">The Cotswolds Cheese Company</a>. Running since 1976, <a aria-label="Burford Garden Centre (opens in a new tab)" href="https://www.burford.co.uk" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Burford Garden Co</a>, just outside the town centre, is a destination in itself with a drop-dead gorgeous curated mix of plants, home and garden decor.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-health-amp-wellbeing">HEALTH &amp; WELLBEING</h2>



<p><a href="https://www.instagram.com/thestudioburford/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">The Studio Beauty Salon</a> is a peachy spot for a bit of buffing and polishing, whether that means a mani and pedi or an Indian head massage. There&#8217;s hairdressers and barbers in town including the well regarded <a href="https://www.facebook.com/Emilees.hair/?locale=en_GB" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Emilee&#8217;s Hair</a> on the high street. When it comes to keeping the rest of you looking good, there&#8217;s oodles of options from <a href="https://www.cotswolds.com/plan-your-trip/towns-and-villages/burford/burford-walks" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">tramping the Cotswolds</a> to mountain biking and climbing at the nearby <a href="https://www.farpeak.co.uk/play" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Far Peak centre</a> in Northleach.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-community">COMMUNITY</h2>



<p>The annual <a href="https://burfordfestival.org/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Burford Festival</a> is a big event in June that sees the town awash with walks, literary talks, performances, an open gardens event and more. There&#8217;s clubs for everything from <a href="https://www.burfordgolfclub.co.uk/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Burford Golf Club</a> to community theatre so it isn&#8217;t hard to meet people and get stuck in.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-nearby-attractions">NEARBY ATTRACTIONS</h2>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1000" height="569" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/10/photo-1614513183219-68799fea1696.jpeg" alt="Cotswold Wildlife Park rhino roaming the grounds" class="wp-image-138187" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/10/photo-1614513183219-68799fea1696.jpeg 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/10/photo-1614513183219-68799fea1696-800x455.jpeg 800w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/10/photo-1614513183219-68799fea1696-400x228.jpeg 400w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/10/photo-1614513183219-68799fea1696-900x512.jpeg 900w" sizes="(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Cotswold Wildlife Park </figcaption></figure>



<p>The Cotswolds AONB is on your doorstep here with its rolling hills and pretty stone architecture, plus the National Trust <a rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label="Lodge Park and Sherborne Park Estate (opens in a new tab)" href="https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/lodge-park-and-sherborne-park-estate" target="_blank">Lodge Park and Sherborne Park Estate</a> is just a short drive over the Glos border where you&#8217;ll find wildlife aplenty in the 18th-century water meadows (home to otters, water voles and dragonflies) as well as England&#8217;s only surviving 17th-century grandstand. Muddy Award-winning Family Attraction <a rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label="Cotswold Wildlife Park (opens in a new tab)" href="https://www.cotswoldwildlifepark.co.uk" target="_blank">Cotswold Wildlife Park</a>, set in a&nbsp;Georgian Gothic Revival manor, is just a seven minute drive from the centre of Burford (go eye-to-eye with a giraffe or see the newly born baby Tamarin monkeys), as is <a href="https://www.crocodilesoftheworld.co.uk">Crocodiles of the World</a> for beasts of the scalier variety. </p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-culture">CULTURE</h2>



<p>A speedy 21 min drive through the beautiful Cotswolds and you can make it for curtain up at <a href="https://www.chippingnortontheatre.com/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">The Theatre in Chipping Norton</a>, for theatre, comedy and screenings. The same distance away there is <a href="https://lfo.org.uk/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Longborough Festival Opera</a> that runs through out the summer months. A 30 min drive away, Cirencester&#8217;s <a href="https://coriniummuseum.org/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Corinium Museum</a> shows the history of the Cotswolds, from its prehistoric landscape to the modern day.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-average-house-prices">AVERAGE HOUSE PRICES</h2>



<p>In a word: expensive, but that&#8217;s what you get for living in quintessential Cotswolds territory. On average over the last year houses sold for £901,675  The majority of sales in Burford during the last year were detached properties, selling for an average price of £1,122,850. Terraced properties sold for an average of £555,500, with semi-detached properties fetching £1,193,500.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-hot-property">HOT PROPERTY</h2>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1024" height="683" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2024/07/burford1.jpeg" alt="Grade II Listed 4 bed property, with private rear garden backing on to parkland. On the market for 995,000." class="wp-image-167305" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2024/07/burford1.jpeg 1024w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2024/07/burford1-800x534.jpeg 800w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2024/07/burford1-1000x667.jpeg 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2024/07/burford1-400x267.jpeg 400w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Grade II Listed 4 bed property, with private rear garden backing on to parkland. <a href="https://www.butlersherborn.co.uk/property/donnington-house-182-the-hill-burford-33191120" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">On the market for £995,000</a>.</figcaption></figure>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-nurseries">NURSERIES </h2>



<p><a href="http://www.burford-preschool.org.uk/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Burford Pre-school</a> is rated Ofsted Outstanding and is right around the corner from Burford School. There are not any other nurseries closer than 3.6 miles, but <a href="https://brizenortonpreschool.co.uk/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">RAF Brize Norton&#8217;s preschool</a> rated &#8216;Good&#8217; has 50 places (though is often full) and is only an 11 min drive out of Burford.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-schools">SCHOOLS </h2>



<p><a aria-label="Burford School (opens in a new tab)" href="https://www.burford.oxon.sch.uk/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Burford School</a> – one of the few state schools in the UK with the option to board, is rated Good by Ofsted, as is the local primary school. Independent schools nearby include Christian-led co-ed secondary&nbsp;<a href="https://bucksoxon.muddystilettos.co.uk/kids/school-reviews/kingham-hill-school/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Kingham Hill</a>, <a href="https://bucksoxon.muddystilettos.co.uk/kids/school-reviews/st-hughs-school-faringdon/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">St Hugh&#8217;s</a> non-selective co-ed prep school in Faringdon (both a 24 min drive) and co-ed prep <a href="https://glosworcs.muddystilettos.co.uk/kids/school-reviews/hatherop-castle-cirencester-gloucestershire/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Hatherop Castle School</a> – all of which are surrounded by seriously stunning grounds. </p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-best-kept-secret">BEST KEPT SECRET </h2>



<p>Fancy a dip? Stroll 20 mins along the River Windrush at the foot of Burford High Street towards Swinbrook and you&#8217;ll find a spot perfect for wild swimming with stretches for a longer swim as well as shallow parts for kids to paddle. Also, 10th century Burford Church is one of the 10 most visited churches in the UK – though William Morris was aghast at the addition of Victorian floor tiles! </p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-commute">COMMUTE </h2>



<p>It&#8217;s 74 miles to central London which will take just under two hours to drive. There&#8217;s no train station in Burford, but you can either head to Oxford (40 min drive) where you can get a train from 52 mins (season tickets from £6096), or Charlbury (20 min drive) where you can get a train from 1 hr 13 mins (season ticket from £8,000), although they are less regular here. You can also drive to Cheltenham in just under 40 mins.</p>



<p><em>View the full <a href="https://muddystilettos.co.uk/best-places-to-live">Top 300 Best Places to Live</a>.</em></p>


Burford

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