The Best Things To Do In Castle Combe Village, Cotswolds

Last Updated on 30th September 2023

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Best things to do in Castle Combe, Wiltshire

It’s not very often that I write travel guides on my blog in the form of photo diary posts; the only exceptions are the travel photo diary I did for Hoi An and my annual round-up of my year in travel photos.

However, Castle Combe, AKA the prettiest village in England (and perhaps the whole of the UK!) is so small that it doesn’t really have an awful lot to “do” there, but it’s so undeniably pretty that I didn’t want to not include it on my blog.

Enter – a Castle Combe photo guide full of beautiful pictures of the most gorgeous village in the UK.

Below, I’ve added some of my favourite pictures that I took on our visit to Castle Combe back in October as it really is one of the most picturesque villages in England. Enjoy!

I’d seen dozens of pictures of Castle Combe all over Instagram and Pinterest over the years and every single photo looked like a picture-perfect postcard that I was sure the photographer must have edited them beyond belief as surely there was no way a village in England could look like that?!

The iconic pictures on the bridge with the village houses in the background looked so unbelievably beautiful that I couldn’t imagine they were real.

However, when Matt and I paid a visit to Castle Combe back in October 2021 on our way down to Wales, I was so delighted to discover that this dreamy English countryside village was in fact as perfect as everyone’s pictures made it out to be.

The only thing I didn’t realise about Castle Combe before visiting was just how teeny tiny it is. The walk from the free visitor car park to the actual village is less than 10 minutes (although it is a little steep, so just be warned!) and once you’re in the village itself, you can practically see everything there is to see and do in Castle Combe; it’s very small!

Almost every single house and building in Castle Combe is hundreds of years old and no new buildings have been built here since the 17th century, making it a truly quintessential British countryside village! The Market Cross even dates all the way back to the 14th century!

You can also stay in some of the cottages in Castle Combe so if you fancy living out your fantasy of moving to the quiet, British countryside, this adorable village in the Cotswolds is the perfect place to do so!

Although it was quite accidental, we timed our visit to this gorgeous Cotswolds village during England’s autumn season so many of the leaves on the village’s trees and bushes had turned into stunning shades of red, orange and yellow. Autumn is my favourite season anyway, but seeing Castle Combe coated in a kaleidoscope of autumnal colours was truly breathtaking.

One thing I didn’t realise about Castle Combe is that it’s gained quite a reputation amongst Hollywood film producers and has made appearances in the likes of Steven Spielberg’s War Horse, the 1967 Dr Dolittle film and Stardust, despite it being a really tiny village.

There are also no overhead wires or cables running through the village as everything is kept underground to give it an even more olde worlde feel and so that it feels like you’ve literally stepped back in time to the 1600s.

Despite its size, Castle Combe is home to numerous pubs such as the White Hart and The Castle Inn, plus The Old Stables coffee shop, The Little Picnic Shop and The Manor House where you can enjoy an indulgent afternoon tea.

If you only plan to spend a couple of hours in this adorable village, you’re truly spoiled for choice when it comes to places to eat and drink as these local village pubs and cafes come highly recommended by both locals and visitors to the village.