Bourton-on-the-Water and its miniature village

What it is and what you see

Bourton-on-the-Water is the most visited village in the Cotswolds: it has about 3,300 residents and receives some 300,000 visitors a year. The River Windrush runs through the centre, shallow, and is crossed by five low arched stone bridges built between 1654 and 1953. Hence the nickname "Venice of the Cotswolds". A good part of the centre is a conservation area, with 114 listed buildings. In summer a medieval-style football match is played in the river.

Besides the walk beside the water, the village has three paid attractions a few minutes' walk from each other: the Model Village, Birdland and the Cotswold Motoring Museum.

The Model Village

It is a replica of the village itself at 1:9 scale. It was built in 1936 by the owner of The Old New Inn in the garden of his pub, to attract visitors, and opened in 1937.

• Opening hours: 10:00 to 17:30 on British Summer Time, and 10:00 to 15:30 in winter. Closed on 25 and 26 December, and on snow days.
• Price: £4.95 adults, £4 ages 3 to 13, £4.50 over 60s; under 3s free.
• Payment: card only, at the gate. No booking.
• Accessibility: many paths are too narrow for wheelchairs; people with disabilities enter free through a side gate. Pushchairs are not allowed: there is a place to leave them at the entrance. Assistance dogs only.

You can see it in half an hour.

Birdland

A bird park with nine acres of gardens and woodland, with the only breeding group of king penguins in England and Humboldt penguins.

• Opening hours: every day 10:00 to 16:00, last entry at 15:00. Closed on 24 and 25 December.
• Price at the ticket office: £14.95 adults, £11.50 ages 3 to 15, £13.95 over 60s and students; under 3s free. Online, £1 less per ticket, with a booking fee of £1.50.
• Dogs: welcome on a short lead.

Check the penguin feeding times on their website before you go.

Getting there and parking

By car. There are paid car parks on Rissington Road, a minute from Birdland, and on Station Road, about five minutes from Birdland. On some weekends extra paid parking opens at Bourton Vale cricket club, at Manor Fields and at The Cotswold School. At weekends and on holidays they fill up early: arrive early.

Without a car. The 801 bus links Bourton with Stow-on-the-Wold, Moreton-in-Marsh and Cheltenham, also on Sundays with less frequency. Moreton has a direct train from London. From Bibury, the 855 bus.

With children

This is the Cotswold village for going with small children. In summer they paddle barefoot in the Windrush, which is shallow in the centre: keep an eye on them all the same. They love the Model Village, although you cannot go in with a pushchair. Birdland, with the penguins, is good for a morning.

When to go

Early, or late in the afternoon in summer. At weekends and during school holidays the village and its car parks fill up. In winter it is quiet, but the attractions close earlier.

Combine it

Stow-on-the-Wold is close, on the same 801 bus. The Cotswold Farm Park is nearby, for another morning with children. For a meal in the area, The Porch House, in Stow.