Guidebook for Finstock
Essentials
Parking on the road or on the wide verge opposite my house is safe. I also have a log cabin behind my house that cyclists use to store their bikes. (My driveway is very steep with narrow access and not recommended.)
Walking: You can find beautiful cross-country walks in any direction from my house. I have various routes printed and stored in the guest rooms.
The Village shop is open every except Sundays, but at weekends the hours are shorter - mornings only. The shop sells food, newspapers, milk, wine and beer, and on Monday to Friday up till noon it also is a fully-functioning Post Office (of which we are very proud, as so many rural areas have lost their Post Offices). This means you can access banking services, draw cash etc. as well as post letters and parcels.
Finstock Village Shop
The Village shop is open every except Sundays, but at weekends the hours are shorter - mornings only. The shop sells food, newspapers, milk, wine and beer, and on Monday to Friday up till noon it also is a fully-functioning Post Office (of which we are very proud, as so many rural areas have lost their Post Offices). This means you can access banking services, draw cash etc. as well as post letters and parcels.
The Plough Inn, Finstock.
A very friendly pub which serves good food on most days of the week. Please phone them or check their website for details. The Plough Inn, Finstock, OX7 3BY
http://theplough-inn.co.uk/
Finstock
The Plough Inn, Finstock.
A very friendly pub which serves good food on most days of the week. Please phone them or check their website for details. The Plough Inn, Finstock, OX7 3BY
http://theplough-inn.co.uk/
Parks & Nature
Beautiful country estate with a number of permitted walks. It is the site of the Wilderness Festival, which usually takes place over the first weekend of August. Look up walks on this website:
http://www.wychwoodproject.org/cms/content/walks-cycle-rides-leisure
Cornbury and Wychwood
Beautiful country estate with a number of permitted walks. It is the site of the Wilderness Festival, which usually takes place over the first weekend of August. Look up walks on this website:
http://www.wychwoodproject.org/cms/content/walks-cycle-rides-leisure
Take a picnic, or just wander the beautiful grounds. If you want to see a fine stately home without lots of tourists, this is an excellent alternative to Blenheim. The house itself is not open to visitors, but you can wander where you like in the grounds. I often picnic with a good food and a book by the side of the little river. Does not accept children, though, so check their website for rules.
Rousham House
Take a picnic, or just wander the beautiful grounds. If you want to see a fine stately home without lots of tourists, this is an excellent alternative to Blenheim. The house itself is not open to visitors, but you can wander where you like in the grounds. I often picnic with a good food and a book by the side of the little river. Does not accept children, though, so check their website for rules.
Sightseeing
Famous home of the Churchill family. Set in a beautiful park. Quite expensive to visit. Check their website for details.
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Blenheim Palace
Famous home of the Churchill family. Set in a beautiful park. Quite expensive to visit. Check their website for details.
Need I say any more? The historic colleges, the Ashmolean Museum, the Museum of Modern Art, the two theatres, the Bodleian Library, punting on the Cherwell, the multi-cultural buzz of the Cowley and Iffley Roads in East Oxford... and so on. However, you are advised to use the Park and Ride option. Parking in Oxford is expensive and the car parks are often full.
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Oxford
Need I say any more? The historic colleges, the Ashmolean Museum, the Museum of Modern Art, the two theatres, the Bodleian Library, punting on the Cherwell, the multi-cultural buzz of the Cowley and Iffley Roads in East Oxford... and so on. However, you are advised to use the Park and Ride option. Parking in Oxford is expensive and the car parks are often full.
The poet T.S. Eliot was baptised into the Anglican church here. Also the novelist Barbara Pym, who lived in the village, is at rest here.
Finstock, Finstock: Holy Trinity
The poet T.S. Eliot was baptised into the Anglican church here. Also the novelist Barbara Pym, who lived in the village, is at rest here.
Getting Around
It is a pretty Cotswold small town. There is a good branch of the Co-op there, open from 7.00am to 10.00pm every day. There are also good pubs which serve food and also a delicatessen and cafe. The Railway Station takes you to Oxford (20mins) or Paddington, London (just over an hour); or to Hereford and Worcester if journeying West.
Various taxi services and car hire places available here - check online.
Some good pubs, which serve food, are based here.
Charlbury station
It is a pretty Cotswold small town. There is a good branch of the Co-op there, open from 7.00am to 10.00pm every day. There are also good pubs which serve food and also a delicatessen and cafe. The Railway Station takes you to Oxford (20mins) or Paddington, London (just over an hour); or to Hereford and Worcester if journeying West.
Various taxi services and car hire places available here - check online.
Some good pubs, which serve food, are based here.
Shopping
Lively Cotswold market town, where there is an open air market on Thursdays and Saturdays. Parking in the town is free and there is a pretty tree-lined High Street. It is about a 10 minute drive from Finstock. There is a fine church on a green in the town centre; also a historic blanket factory with museum.
On the edge of the town the Cogges Farm museum has much to offer. There are farm animals, information about historic farming, excellent child play area and a cafe/restaurant. Was the location for the farm in the Downton Abbey tv series.
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Witney
Lively Cotswold market town, where there is an open air market on Thursdays and Saturdays. Parking in the town is free and there is a pretty tree-lined High Street. It is about a 10 minute drive from Finstock. There is a fine church on a green in the town centre; also a historic blanket factory with museum.
On the edge of the town the Cogges Farm museum has much to offer. There are farm animals, information about historic farming, excellent child play area and a cafe/restaurant. Was the location for the farm in the Downton Abbey tv series.
http://theplough-inn.co.uk
Highly recommended. The Plough is a friendly Cotswold pub with excellent food. Open every day, but they do not serve food on Sunday or Monday evenings. Check their website for further details:
The Plough Inn, Finstock, OX7 3BY
http://theplough-inn.co.uk/
Open through the summer months and at times during the winter. There are farm animals, various exhibitions and craft activities. There is also a cafe. It is a traditional Cotswold farmhouse and grounds situated in a scenic river environment. The buildings were the location for the rural farm house in the tv series Downton Abbey.
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Cogges Manor Farm
Church LaneOpen through the summer months and at times during the winter. There are farm animals, various exhibitions and craft activities. There is also a cafe. It is a traditional Cotswold farmhouse and grounds situated in a scenic river environment. The buildings were the location for the rural farm house in the tv series Downton Abbey.