Every so often you stumble upon a hotel that feels less like a hotel and more like a beautifully kept secret, and Thyme in the Cotswolds is exactly that. Tucked away in the honey-stoned village of Southrop, it’s the kind of place where you arrive on a Friday afternoon, kick off your shoes and don’t think about the outside world again until Sunday. I recently checked in for a three night stay at Thyme, and I can see why it’s become one of England’s most talked-about country hotels. Here’s everything you need to know.
Thyme at a glance
Location: Southrop, near Lechlade, in the southern Cotswolds | Price: $$$$ | Best for: Couples, food lovers and long country weekends (over-12s only)
Rooms: 31 rooms and cottages | Rates: From about £400–450 a night, including breakfast | Best time to go: Late spring to early autumn, when the gardens and springwater pool are at their best
Why we love it: A family-run “village within a village” of restored 17th-century buildings on a 150-acre estate, with two MICHELIN Keys, a farm-to-table restaurant in the Ox Barn and rooms dressed in the founder’s own prints.
Good to know: Over-12s only, except in the two-bedroom Old Walls cottage. Dogs are welcome in the cottage suites for £50 a night. The nearest station is Swindon, about 40 minutes by car.
Insider detail: Book spa treatments before you arrive, as they fill up fast, and give the hotel two days’ notice for a picnic hamper to take out into the meadows.
My stay at Thyme
A village within a village
Thyme began life as a cookery school before growing into the hotel it is today, and it’s still run by the family who started it all. Founder Caryn Hibbert restored a cluster of 17th-century farm buildings on a 150-acre estate, her son Charlie heads up the kitchen, daughter Camilla runs the hotel and even the prints on the walls are family designs. That personal touch is everywhere, and it’s what makes the place feel so warm. Rather than one grand house, the hotel is spread across the estate: the old Tithe Barn, the Ox Barn, the former lambing sheds (now the bar) and a handful of cottages, all linked by gravel paths, topiary and wildflower meadows.
The rooms
There are 31 rooms and no two are alike. Each is dressed in Caryn’s own prints and wallpapers, and many come with rolltop baths, beamed ceilings and views over the gardens or the water meadows. If you want more space and privacy, book one of the cottages: the Gardener’s Cottage and the two-bedroom Old Walls both have wood-burning stoves, perfect for cooler months. Each room is unique, adding to the charm of this hotel, and when I arrived I truly had no idea what my stay would entail!
Dining: the Ox Barn and The Swan
Food is at the heart of Thyme, which makes sense given its cookery-school roots. The Ox Barn, a restored 19th-century farm building with soaring ceilings and exposed beams, is the main restaurant, where chef Charlie Hibbert (formerly of London’s Quo Vadis) cooks a modern British menu built around the estate’s two-acre kitchen garden and farm. Breakfast is included in the room rate. For something more relaxed, the village pub, The Swan, is a short stroll away and does a proper Sunday lunch (book ahead and ask for a table by the fire). I chose the Swan for the nights of my stay as I have an affinity for English pub food and I must say, it didn’t disappoint!
Baa bar, the spa and the pool
Before dinner, head to Baa, the residents-only bar set in the old lambing sheds, for one of the botanical cocktails made with herbs from the garden. By day, the Meadow Spa offers treatments using Thyme’s own Bertioli products, and next door is a heated, spring-fed outdoor pool, with drinks served poolside from the Orchid House. Spa treatments book up quickly, so reserve before you arrive.
Things to do
Honestly, the best thing to do at Thyme is very little at all, but if you want to fill your days there’s plenty on the estate. Book a class at the cookery school (anything from bread and pasta to afternoon tea), wander the Bunny Guinness-designed gardens, meet the rare-breed sheep, or pack a picnic for the meadows along the River Leach. Bring wellies for the farm walks. Further afield, Cirencester’s weekly market is on Fridays, and the rest of the Cotswolds is an easy drive away.
Is Thyme worth it?
Thyme isn’t cheap, but it delivers a Cotswolds weekend that feels genuinely special: great food, gorgeous rooms, a spa and pool, and the kind of warm, family-run hospitality that big luxury hotels rarely manage. It holds two MICHELIN Keys, and it’s the hotel I’d book for a slow, food-focused escape from London. Just note that it’s over-12s only unless you book Old Walls, and the car park is a walk from some of the cottages, so pack light or ask for help with your bags.
I stayed at Thyme as a paying guest, all opinions are my own.
Thyme: frequently asked questions
Where is Thyme?
In the village of Southrop, near Lechlade in Gloucestershire, in the southern Cotswolds. It’s about 90 minutes’ drive from London, or an hour by train from London Paddington to Swindon followed by a 40-minute drive.
Is Thyme child-friendly?
The hotel is for guests aged 12 and over. Families with younger children can stay in the two-bedroom Old Walls cottage, and children are welcome for lunch at the Ox Barn and at The Swan.
Is Thyme dog-friendly?
Yes, in the cottage suites and Old Walls, for £50 per dog per night. Dogs on leads are welcome in the pub, the bar, the Tithe Barn and the grounds.
Does Thyme have a spa and pool?
Yes. The Meadow Spa offers treatments, and there’s a heated, spring-fed outdoor pool next door.
Brooke is a Tasmanian-born writer and professional baker who started World of Wanderlust in 2013 and has since travelled to 86 countries. These days her guides focus on what she knows best: the bakeries, hotels and places worth crossing the world for.
