Our 2025 group gathered outside the gates of Christ Church, Oxford

Christmastime in the Cotswolds

December 9-17, 2025

For a second year in a row, we brought Go and Write! to England during the Christmas season on an adventure to awaken our creative souls, an intimate writing retreat that focused on writing in the peaceful Cotswolds: a perfect combination to be inspired by greatness and reconnect with our literary selves.

The gorgeous trees in the Broadway village square

For an entire week before Christmas in 2025, we inhabited the ancient halls and walls of a place that time—and the Vikings—forgot.

Abbots Grange was all decked out for the holidays, while the fire crackled and blazed to keep us warm as we wrote and shared stories beneath the giant tree.

We had exclusive use of this former monastery for the week-long retreat, and Broadway Village at Christmastime is a special place as lights gleam from every tree and shop along High Street.

Stratford-upon-Avon

We gathered at the Birmingham Airport in the morning and made our way to Stratford-upon-Avon. Gerard and Janie wanted to check out Anne Hathaway’s Cottage and several members of the group wished to as well, so those of us who were interested popped in for a quick visit before making our way to the city proper to meet up with the rest of the group.

And then we continued through the darkening surroundings to make our way to our venue for the week, Abbots Grange.

Abbots Grange

After arriving at Abbots Grange, we were shown to our rooms and then gathered for a homemade dinner onsite to make life easy. It was a great start to our retreat and set the tone for a relaxed adventure.

Day Trip

Landlord Nigel Smith shares the incredible history of the 15th century Fleece Inn

After a few days of group writing sessions and one-on-one chats, we ventured out for a day trip that included Oxford Christ Church, with time to explore Oxford, followed by a delightful trip to The Fleece Inn in Bretforton. There, we enjoyed a history tour of the inn by landlord Nigel Smith, who also roasted some chestnuts for us! Then we had our private literary readings in the Pewter Room followed by a delicious meal.

It was another great journey with a great group of kind and talented writers, and we were so pleased to host them all.

Join us on our next adventure.