A romantic Tudor manor in a wooded combe near Uley, with terraced gardens and historic yews - a lived-in Mander family home beside the Cotswold Way, visited mainly by pre-booked tour.
Owlpen Manor sits in a wooded combe near Uley, tucked under the Cotswold escarpment a short way east of the National Trail. The house is one of the most romantic Tudor manors in southern England: Cotswold stone and lime wash, steep gables, mullioned windows, and a Great Hall of 1523, with later Jacobean and early Georgian rooms. Terraced gardens climb the hillside on seven hanging terraces of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, framed by magnificent yews. After years of Victorian dereliction the Cotswold Arts and Crafts architect Norman Jewson repaired the house in 1926; the Mander family have lived here since 1974, and the interiors still hold painted cloth hangings, family collections, and Arts and Crafts furniture.
The manor house, gardens, and grounds are not generally open to casual walk-up visitors. Access is typically by exclusive, pre-booked private group tours (often 15 people or more) from May to September, subject to availability, with bookings often taken a year ahead. Limited public tours are sometimes offered through Historic Houses. Always confirm current dates, booking rules, and any seasonal changes on the Owlpen Manor house page or via Historic Houses before you plan a visit. Contact the estate office on 01453 860261 or hello@owlpen.com.
Estate footpaths link with the Cotswold Way around Uley and Dursley on Stage 10 (King's Stanley to Dursley), so through-walkers can enjoy the valley setting and woodland approaches without assuming house entry. The estate also offers holiday cottages on site if you want to stay in the combe - details are on the Owlpen website. Treat the manor as a booked side trip rather than a day-ticket stop, and leave time to rejoin the trail toward Coaley Peak, Cam Long Down, or Dursley.
