Stow's a winner, but our new summer bolthole eludes us

We matched Longborough's Coronation of Poppea with two nights at The Porch House in Stow-on-the-Wold. Like the opera, much of this place's appeal lies with its antiquity. It claims to be the oldest inn in England, in operation since 947. It has abundant architectural charm and a prime location in one of the Cotswold's most picturesque market towns.

While the walls may be ancient, the decoration is modern and up to a standard (neutral colours, designer fabrics, luxury linens, mid-century repro fixtures and fittings) that earns the coveted boutique hotel designation. It allows dogs (saving us more than £100 in kennel fees for the weekend) and its dog-friendly rooms lead directly out onto a courtyard for fast and easy walks. Unfortunately those rooms are almost claustrophobically tiny, with minuscule windows that allow little air flow, thus creating a room temperature several degrees hotter than outside. Unsurprising in an ancient building, but deeply uncomfortable in the middle of what may become England's hottest summer on record.

This was the last of three options we tried this summer in a search for a new regular accommodation for the two or three weekends we attend the Longborough Festival Opera each summer. (A search that started when the owner of our long-time favourite, Windy Ridge, decided to stop doing B&B.)

The Porch House came in last in this summer's contest, not so much for the size and temperature of its rooms but for its somewhat soulless atmosphere and the haphazard approach of its genial but often absent staff. They tend to ignore email, are hard to get on the phone and are rarely present at the front desk. One of them insisted they didn't take American Express, even though I'd successfully pre-paid for the room on that card. The place feels less like an inn and more like a pub and restaurant with a few rooms up top; the staff are clearly more focused on serving diners than lodgers. Though they do a bustling business for lunch and dinner, guests have to cross the street to eat breakfast at their sister hotel, The Sheep. (Which we may try for lodgings next summer.) Despite the fact that their gorgeous hall with two enormous fireplaces on both sides, standing empty all weekend, would be a lovely breakfast room. There's little effort or incentive to entice hotel guests to lounge here, or in the cozy snug beside it, missing the communal living room element that's also essential to that boutique categorisation. What's the point paying to stay in an historic inn when they don't use ... and thus you don't spend time in ... the historic rooms?

In second place came the Old School in Little Compton, to which we returned after a pleasant stay last year. And probably would have, lazily, occupied for all three of this year's weekends had they been able to accommodate us. But being forced to try other options was a good thing, exposing the Old School's three flaws: they don't allow dogs, there's not much in walking distance and they're a 15-20 minute drive to Longborough.

Otherwise, it's pretty much perfect. And if my objective were a leisurely stay in the heart of the Cotswolds, rather than the opera, this would be my first choice. Luxurious bedrooms, wonderfully comfortable sitting rooms you're encouraged to make your own and owners who are hosts rather than staff. Add home-made cakes at tea time and generous breakfasts with eggs provided by the chickens at the bottom of the garden.

Meaning, much to my surprise, the winner of this summer's showdown was the Cotswold Cottage. This former bed and breakfast has gone down the AirB&B route: they have no web site or customer-facing front end, let their rooms and manage their finances through 3rd party booking sites, and provide no service on site ... just the room. As a guest, you pre-pay, have a narrow arrival window to pick up the key, and never see the owner again. It certainly doesn't sound welcoming.

But the room was gorgeous; the most spacious and beautifully decorated of the three with an expansive view over one of Stow's main streets enjoyed from a cushioned window seat. We never failed to grab an overnight parking space (free) just outside for the evening. Dogs were welcomed. Best of all, the elimination of effort and service on the owner's part translated to prices more than 30% below the other two options. The absence of an included breakfast isn't a bother thanks to an excellent cafe around the corner called Speedwells, which provides more variety than you'd get at a B&B anyway.

The only major drawback: no relationship with your host means no ability to refrigerate your opera picnic. Thus a return to this place ... or a stay at any of the other "boutique rooms" establishments hanging their shingles out along Stow's golden stone streets ... demands assembling your picnic on the day (as we did) or buying in to one of Longborough's dining options. So despite its first place position, the Cotswold Cottage is not a sure thing for next summer.

The undeniable winner of the experiment was Stow-on-the-Wold itself. At just 2.6 miles from the opera ... a straight shot down a single main road ... it's quick, an inexpensive taxi ride or an easy journey for even the most hesitant driver. (It's one of the rich ironies of the wine-loving Bencard clan that the only member who doesn't really drink, absolutely hates to get behind the wheel, especially at night.) Given the proximity, a quick dash out of the opera and a speedy change out of formal wear can put you in one of Stow's numerous picturesque pubs for more than an hour or two of post-performance analysis before bed.

Stow is one of the most picturesque towns in the Cotswolds, anchored around a large, arrowhead-shaped market square surrounded by picturesque buildings built from the region's characteristic golden limestone. There's a grand town hall in the centre that looks Medieval, but I'm guessing is Victorian revival.

The town's position atop an 800 metre-high hill, at the intersection of several stone age paths that became Roman roads, has made Stow an important and affluent market town for most of British history. Today the locals trade in tourists rather than sheep, but Stow's legacy gives it a rare density of pubs, inns and restaurants. The tourist trade contributes to an unusual percentage of independent boutiques rather than chain stores, and this is one of the few towns in England that still has a thriving number of antique shops. Yet there's still a slightly sleepy feel about the place, particularly at night after the day trippers have left. Perhaps it's because there's no mainline rail station here. Moreton-in-the-Marsh just up the Roman road claims that amenity, and it has an altogether more bustling, crowded feel to it.

So many hotels and B&Bs welcome dogs because this is also a popular centre for walking. On Saturday morning I set off on an idyllic three mile loop down the Tewkesbury Road towards Upper Swell, followed the Cotswold Way path over fields to Lower Swell, then back up the B4068 to Stow. Once off the main road, civilisation disappeared. There was only calm, and landscape. Though walking between two fairly busy roads, once I was in the fields the folds of the hills screened out the traffic noise. I spent an hour hearing only the wind through the trees, the panting of the dogs and the rhythmic clacking of a harvester bringing in the wheat a few fields over. Even when joined back to the road, the local Council has cut a path into the woodland about 10 feet above the road surface to keep things both safe and picturesque. You do, however, feel every one of those 800 metres as you ascend.

Fuel yourself for the climb at the Golden Ball in in Lower Swell. This tiny 3-room pub is resolutely local and obviously dog friendly; I think I was the only tourist, and my dogs were two of nine in the place. And in that way of small world coincidences that tends to happen in the Cotswolds, I knew two of the locals. One had been a favourite exec at the job that originally brought me to the UK. The other was Nick, the owner of Windy Ridge whose retirement had kicked off the summer's experiment in the first place. It was great to see him. We miss him. Wonder if he might consider "boutique rooms"?