Highway, Burford

Highway is a small, quirky four-star inn on Burford High Street, and it is an easy place to bring a dog for a Cotswolds weekend. Dogs stay in selected dog-friendly rooms rather than anywhere in the building, so the one thing to get right is telling the inn a dog is coming at the time of booking. A charge of £25 per dog is settled on departure.

Beyond that the arrangement is refreshingly uncomplicated. Guests travelling with a dog describe staff who are genuinely dog-friendly rather than merely willing to make an exception, which matches the tone of the wider feedback: an attentive, small team, cosy rooms, and food and breakfasts that draw consistent praise. Dog-specific feedback is limited to a single stay so far, so read it as an encouraging early signal rather than a settled picture.

The location does the heavy lifting for anyone with a dog. Burford's High Street drops down to the River Windrush, and the lanes and footpaths at the edge of town put a proper walk within a few minutes of the door, so the morning outing does not need the car. The Cotswold Wildlife Park, Bibury and the wider Windrush valley are all short drives away for the days you do want one.

The caveats are the usual ones for an old High Street building: rooms are snug rather than spacious, some are on the dark side, and the roof can be noisy in heavy rain. None of that troubles a dog much, but a large breed and its bedding will fill a small room, so ask which of the dog-friendly rooms you are being given. With a 4.4/5 paw rating, it suits couples with one well-settled dog who want somewhere characterful in the middle of a Cotswolds town, with walks starting at the door.