Welcome To the e-travelguide to Hotels, guest houses and attractions in Gloucestershire

Make the most of your time in Gloucestershire, use the information provided on this web site by clicking on the links above to plan your visit.

Gloucestershire is a county in the South West of England, and stands astride the River Severn. To the west of the county lies the Forest of Dean, a royal hunting forest used by English monarchs for centuries for sport, and declared a National Forest Park in 1938. At over 27,000 acres it is one of England’s largest forests, and is home to some of the country’s most treasured ancient trees. The western edges of Gloucestershire, like the county of Monmouthshire in Wales with which Gloucestershire shares a border, established its wealth during the 19 th Century through the mining of coal and iron ore, although these industries have sadly now declined. The northwestern edges of Gloucestershire border with Herefordshire and Worcestershire; this part of the county is largely agricultural and is interspersed with historic market towns such as Tewkesbury and Newent.

As the River Severn makes its tortuous way through Gloucestershire it is lined with many small ports, but Gloucester itself was historically the most important of these. Gloucester was the UK’s largest inland port, and for over 200 years it thrived as vessels unable to navigate the notoriously difficult tides downstream at Bristol loaded and unloaded their wares in Gloucestershire’s county town. Gloucester Docks fell into disrepair, but were revived in the 1980s and now offer vibrant retail, commercial and leisure facilities. Just 6 miles inland from Gloucester is the handsome town of Cheltenham, one of England’s most beautifully preserved Regency towns, with distinctive architecture from the period. Cheltenham has a sophisticated, cosmopolitan ambience, and is one of the South West’s wealthiest towns, due in part to its history of horseracing – most notably the Cheltenham Festival and Gold Cup. The eastern half of Gloucestershire rolls into the delightful gentle hills of the Cotswolds, an area of outstanding natural beauty characterised by its pleasant scenery, its picturesque villages hewn from honey gold limestone, and its unmistakeably English feel. The Cotswolds spill over into the neighbouring counties of Oxfordshire and Wiltshire.

The area to the south west of Gloucestershire has been renamed many times over the years; traditionally the boundaries of Gloucestershire and Somerset met continuously, but then the county known as Avon was designated in 1974, incorporating the cities of Bristol and Bath and the town of Weston-Super-Mare. More recently Avon has become largely a redundant county, and has been divided into the unitary regions of North Somerset, Bath and North East Somerset, Bristol, and South Gloucestershire. E-travelguide continues to use the Avon designation for simplicity.

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