The Pet Inspectors Take a Trip to The Cotswolds

PetsPyjamas’ canine explorers have taken a trip back to one of their favourite doggie destinations, the Cotswolds. This time, to check out the Fish Hotel on the Farncombe estate, just to find out how dog-friendly it really is…

Day 1: Time for an adventure!

Our Petweekending bags had been packed, alongside food and treats. We were all set for another trip away with our favourite humans, Denise and Rory, for a mid-week trip to the Fish hotel. The hotel is set on the Farncombe Estate, in acres of grounds. It has a newly installed doggie agility course, plus doggie afternoon tea both of which we were anxious to try.
We spun along the M40 and in just over two hours found ourselves travelling up a long drive. There were helpful signs like ‘keep going’ and ‘you are nearly there’, just to let us know we were on the right track.  The Estate with its hillside setting looked beautiful. There were stunning views over Broadway and a long line of poplar trees before we finally arrived at reception.  Almost immediately our reception manager, Grace rushed over to us to greet us. We felt like long lost friends. Whilst enjoying some tea, Grace gave us a map of the Estate and explained where everything was including the agility course. We couldn’t wait.

Our beautiful rooms:

We were staying in the Stables.  All the rooms are named after airforce squadrons and our room was the Maudsley. It turned out to be enormous with fabulous views and a great bathroom. We were thrilled to find lovely comfy beds for us and rope toys with our names on them! There were bowls and rabbit flavoured treats too. Our humans said they loved the room and immediately suggested a walk around the Estate, but first up a visit to the agility course.

Time for an agility course!

norfolk terrier enjoying obstacle course at dog-friendly hotel
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Heidi and I have recently lost a bit of weight through lots of extra walking in Hurlingham Park and along the river bank. We have also recently had our summer haircuts, which make us look slimmer and
makes us feel more energetic.  The course consists of a seesaw, a long tunnel, and a wooden climbing bench. Rory had very thoughtfully brought along some treats to encourage us, although really we didn’t need them as we were super keen to try everything out.  Heidi and I ran through the tunnel, climbed up the wooden bench, Heidi gave herself a bit of a shock when the see-saw bumped to the floor.  We had lots of fun and we think all hotels should have an agility course like this!

Exploring the estate…

norfolk terrier enjoying obstacle course at dog-friendly hotel
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Next up we decided on a full tour of the Estate. It’s very much back to nature with rolling hills and amazing views. We checked out the other buildings including the hilly huts and the shepherd’s huts dotted around the Estate. We also introduced ourselves to a few more furry friends. One of our favourite things were all the doggie touches including hydration stations, an outdoor shower, and even a bath!
The humans fancied a G&T and a beer in the bar where we were fussed over again. Heidi even joined another table – she is such an attention seeker!  Back to the room and Heidi and I decided on a snooze. Although we were more than welcome to join our humans for dinner, we were so tired and stayed in the room. Instead, Rory and Denise went on their own to the appropriately named Hook restaurant. Denise had their signature dish, the Bouillabaisse ‘Hook’ style which she said was absolutely delicious. There was apparently an open kitchen so you can see the chefs at work.

Day 2: There’s always time for one more walk…

Rory was taking an early train back to London, so he woke super early and decided to take us on an hour’s walk to Broadway and back. We were thrilled as we love to test out the local walks.  There are lots of walks you can take directly from the hotel.  The Broadway Tower is a great place to visit (we have been before) and there’s a lovely dog-friendly cafe up there too. After our walk, we trotted off to breakfast. Rory had a full English so we enjoyed a naughty sausage each. Soon we would have to leave but if we had had more time we could have walked to many other places. The Fish is near to Willersey and Chipping Campden, Burford, Blenheim Palace and the gorgeous village of Kingham.
It was nearing home time, first to drop off Rory at the station and then the drive back on the M40 to Fulham.  We loved our trip to the Fish and would definitely recommend it to all our other canine friends.
If you are planning to visit the Fish we suggest you check out our PetsPyjamas offer!