10 Things to do in Cheltenham in just one day

Cheltenham is well known for horse racing, but this gateway to the Cotswolds is also a spa town, a festival town and has some of the best preserved Georgian architecture in England. I discovered an unexpected side of Cheltenham, with street art, great shopping and stylish boutique hotels that make the perfect base for a weekend in Cheltenham. Here are some of the things to do in Cheltenham that we enjoyed when visiting for the day, as we cycled and walked around the town.

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Explore Cheltenham by bike

Getting on your bike is a great way to explore Cheltenham if you are there just for the day. You can see so much more on two wheels than on foot. We tried out the Regency Cycle Trail, which starts at The Bicycle Hub, close to the station, where we were kitted out with bikes and helmets.

As part of the package I’d downloaded the Regency Cycle Trail Mobile App that allows you to make a self-guided trail around Cheltenham. The 6 mile route is an easy cycle ride on mostly flat trails, with about half of the cycle paths being traffic-free.

Cycling on the Honeybourne Line

Shortly after leaving The Bicycle Hub, we joined the Honeybourne line, an old railway line that has been made into a walking and cycling path. As we passed the old railway bridges and tunnels, I admired street art murals from the Cheltenham Paint Fest held in September. The trail took us through Pittville Park where we stopped for photos at the ornamental lakes and then arrived at the Pittville Pump rooms.

Our cycle ride ended here although the trail continues through the heart of Regency Cheltenham, so it’s a great way to see the town if you only have a limited time. Those wondering what to do in Cheltenham with younger children may prefer to follow the traffic free trails along the Honeybourne Line as far as Pittville Pump Rooms and then return the same way to drop off your bikes, if you don’t want to cycle through traffic with the family.

The Bicycle Hub in Cheltenham | Bike Hire £25 including helmets, mobile mount and the Regency trail app. There are also children’s bikes, tandems and tag-along bikes for hire. 

Street Art on the Honeybourne Line

As we cycled along the Honeybourne Line, I’d noticed that some of the bridges we crossed had small murals. As we reached the two tunnels, it was time to stop for a closer look. This is one of the painting sites used by the Cheltenham Paint Fest that takes place in September, with a grassy area between the tunnel entrances to park the bikes while you look around.

There’s a big figure by Silent Hobo at the entrance to the tunnel and striking women looking back at you from Koe1 and Buber Nebz. If you like street art, it may be worth timing your visit to Cheltenham for the Cheltenham Paint Fest to see more murals being created at the sites around Cheltenham.

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Row your boat in Pittville Park

After the Honeybourne line, the cycle trail continued through Pittville Park. This large ornamental park opened in 1825 when Cheltenham was becoming popular as a spa town. We cycled through the open grassy spaces in the western side of the park which has a couple of ornamental lakes, stopping at The Boat House Cafe. It’s a pretty spot to sit on the deck when the weather is fine, overlooking the rowing boats on the small lake.

This part of the park is relaxing place to stroll for nature lovers, with wildflowers and native plants under the trees. A bridge spans the lake where you can watch for kingfishers dipping into the water. The Boathouse Cafe has a kiosk serving ice cream, coffee and home made cakes. I could imagine a beau in the 1920’s bringing his sweetheart here to impress her with his rowing skills.

Rowing boats can be hired at The Boat House from £11 for an hour with life jackets provided.

Spa waters at the Pittville Pump Room

We cycled on through the park towards the Pittville Pump Room, which is one of the landmarks of Regency Cheltenham. The area of Pittville on the outskirts of Cheltenham was developed by lawyer, MP and property developer Joseph Pitt in the 1820’s. His aim was to create a rival spa town to Cheltenham, which had been popularised by King George III as a place for fashionable society to come and take the spa waters.

The vision for Pittville was never fully realised, but the Pittville Pump Room was opened in 1830. It’s a fine example of Regency style with its colonnade of Ionic columns and classical figures of Greek goddesses. Inside there’s a large assembly room, which is still used for weddings, concerts and events as well as a pump to supply the mineral waters that were considered so healthy.

The pump rooms were closed when we passed by on our bike ride, but you can visit Wednesday to Sunday 10 am -4 pm when there’s not a function taking place there and taste the spa waters. More info on visiting Pittville Pump Rooms

Where to stay in Cheltenham – Cotswold Grange Hotel

Having spent the morning cycling along the Honeybourne Line and through Pittville Park, we had worked up quite an appetite and were pleased to arrive at the Cotswold Grange Hotel in Cheltenham, where our group was having lunch.

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This pretty boutique hotel in Cheltenham was built in the 1840’s as the country residence of a wealthy London businessman and was originally surrounded by a large walled garden. Most of the grounds have now been built on, but you can still see the original garden wall as you look out from the back of the hotel. The small terraced garden has been landscaped to make a pretty outdoor retreat for guests.

The Cotswold Grange Hotel is just a short walk from Cheltenham town centre, on the road to the race course, making it one of the Cheltenham hotels that’s an excellent choice if you are coming for the Cheltenham Festival.

Rooms at Cotswold Grange Hotel

Before lunch we were able to have a look around some of the 20 bedrooms, which are individually designed in elegant contemporary style, using hardwood furniture and antiques with a hint of Asian influences. Look out for the original cantilevered staircase which is a work of real craftsmanship and seems to hang in mid air.

On the ground floor of the Cotswold Grange Hotel is a bar for guests and a large dining room where we had a delicious lunch of wraps, salads, and spring rolls with some excellent options for vegetarians. The Brasserie is open in the evenings for dinner and also offers a popular Sunday lunch.

Cotswold Grange Hotel is also able to cater for small celebration events. Although we were just there for lunch, the hotel would make a beautiful place to stay for couples looking for a luxury hotel in Cheltenham with the benefit of parking if you are touring the Cotswolds.

Street art from the Cheltenham Paint Fest 

After lunch at the Cotswold Grange Hotel, we walked into town and spotted more street art around the William’s Cycles location at Albion Street. This was one of the key locations from the Cheltenham Paint Fest where the back and sides of the warehouse had been painted with full height murals. We enjoyed this mean looking girl in her wellies by Dice 67 as well as pieces by Roo Art, Nol, Snub23 and My Dog Sighs.

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I imagine that this location would be a good one to see lots of artists working together when the Cheltenham Paint Fest next takes place in September. There are lots of other locations too so the best way to find all the artwork outside the festival dates is to download the map that you’ll find on the Cheltenham Paint Fest website.

Regency Cheltenham – admire the Georgian architecture

While the street art was an unexpected find in Cheltenham, the pretty Georgian buildings are perhaps more what you’d expect of Regency Cheltenham. The so called Regency period stretched from 1811 to 1820 when King George III was taken ill and his son George IV took control of the monarchy as Prince Regent.

Cheltenham’s pastel and cream flat fronted buildings are typical of the early decades of the 19th century, although the dates are a bit loose and many of Cheltenham’s Regency townhouses may have been built after the Regency technically ended.

Cheltenham became especially fashionable after mineral springs were found in the fields around the town and a spa developed. In 1788 George III visited to drink the curative spa waters on the advice of his doctor.

Where Royalty went, the rest of fashionable society followed and Cheltenham was soon booming. Parks, assembly halls, houses and shops were developed in the early 19th century to cater for the multitudes who came to take the spa waters.

Cheltenham is known as the most complete Regency town in England, a showcase for the typical style of tall terraced houses decorated with classical columns and wrought iron balconies. You’ll find these all around the centre of Cheltenham, especially in the streets close to the leafy Promenade. The gardens nearby were developed around 1818, lined with elegant houses in the Regency style.

The Imperial Gardens

My wanderings around the centre of Cheltenham, photographing all the pretty Regency buildings brought me to the Imperial Gardens, a park with pretty floral beds behind the town hall. Where the nearby Queens Hotel now stands was once the Sherborne Spa and these gardens were laid out for the exclusive use of its guests. Now the park is a place to relax on the open lawns and admire the colourful bedding displays that change with the seasons.

The impressive town hall is not quite as old as you might think, being built in 1901 in a classical style that blends with the Regency architecture of buildings nearby and is used for concerts, exhibitions and festivals.

The Cheltenham Literature Festival

The Cheltenham Literature Festival happened to be taking place on the weekend I was there, one of the many festivals held in Cheltenham throughout the year. I wandered around the festival village in Montpelier Gardens, where there were plenty of free activities, especially aimed at children and families.

It was fun to see characters like the Gruffalo strolling past, play hopscotch on a series of typewriter keys or have a selfie with the owl from The Owl and the Pussycat.

Visiting the Cheltenham Literature Festival

The park’s bandstand had been transformed into The Bookstand with Chinese lanterns and books to swap. A large marquee housed the Feast Cafe, serving cakes, coffee and lunches from local restaurants and food specialists. Of course a big draw of the Cheltenham Literature Festival is the talks from TV presenters like David Attenborough and Great British Bake Off winner Nadiya Hussain, comedians like Ruby Wax and authors such as Jacqueline Wilson, Philip Pullman and Anthony Horowitz.

Unfortunately I didn’t have tickets for any of the events, but if if you enjoy literature it’s well worth planning a weekend around the Cheltenham Literature Festival and making sure you book in advance for some of the talks. More info: Cheltenham Literature Festival website

More Cheltenham festivals

Other Cheltenham Festivals worth looking out for are;

Cheltenham Festival Horse Racing: The Cheltenham Festival in March is the highlight of the racing calendar, with four days of horse racing culminating in the Cheltenham Gold Cup. If you love horse racing this is an unmissable event that fills the town with visitors.

If you are not coming for the racing you may prefer to avoid visiting during Gold Cup weekend since accommodation in Cheltenham becomes scarce and expensive during the Cheltenham Festival and other major racing events.

Cheltenham Jazz Festival: with over 60 daytime and evening events taking place in April at different venues around Cheltenham. There are both free and ticketed gigs around the town, with lots happening around the main festival site in Montpelier gardens over the weekend.

Cheltenham Science Festival: Held in Imperial Square Cheltenham in June with free activities around the festival site and talks from some of the world’s greatest scientists and thinkers. Past speakers have included Brian Cox, Alice Roberts and Richard Dawkins.

Cheltenham Music Festival: established in 1945 the festival brings concerts in July to the Town Hall, Pittville Pump rooms and other venues around town. Expect world class performers, from contemporary music to the popular classics.

Shop in Montpelier

After visiting the Cheltenham Literature Festival in Montpelier Gardens, I crossed the road to look around the shops in the Montpelier neighbourhood. My eye was drawn by the unusual classical figures decorating the front of the shops, known as the Caryatids.

They date back to the 1840’s when Cheltenham was experiencing its boom. The Caryatids are loosely modelled on the figures on the Acropolis in Athens, a popular style of architectural decoration in Europe at the time. I suspect that just like today, businesses found that a scantily clad lady helped to advertise their shops, but of course it was fine if she came from classical mythology!

The Montpelier neighbourhood grew up around the Montpelier spa located in the rotunda which is now part of The Ivy restaurant. These shops served the fashionable society who visited the spa and promenaded in the Montpelier Gardens. Now as then, the area is full of independent boutiques and stylish cafes, so it’s a great place to shop for more unusual finds and meet friends for a coffee or a bite to eat. For somewhere to stay near Montpelier Gardens consider the hip No131 Promenade Hotel.

More shopping neighbourhoods in Cheltenham

Other areas to find interesting shops in Cheltenham include;

The Promenade: Further down the high street you’ll find The Promenade, which is opposite the Promenade Gardens. It offers a broad and semi-pedestrianised walkway with many upscale high street brands, as well as the House of Fraser department store.

The Suffolks: Beyond Montpelier is The Suffolks neighbourhood named after the Earl of Suffolk who owned this area in the early 19th century. This is the area to find smaller, quirky and artisan businesses with a bohemian atmosphere centred around the Victorian and Georgian properties of Suffolk Square. Look out for regular Sunday markets with crafts, antiques and vintage as well as the annual street market in May.

To plan your visit to Cheltenham

Looking for somewhere to stay? Check out these hotels in Cheltenham

Need a guide book? Check out the Rough Guide to the Cotswolds

For more information on all the things to do in Cheltenham, check out the Visit Cheltenham website 

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Thanks to Visit Cheltenham who hosted* my 1 day visit to Cheltenham and provided the experiences mentioned.

* More info on my policies page

This article is originally published at Heatheronhertravels.com – Read the original article here

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