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Taking a dog to the Cotswolds used to mean compromising: a pub garden that tolerated you, a room that smelled faintly of previous guests, a walk that was more car park than countryside. But, it doesn’t have to be that way.
At Country Creatures, our pubs welcome dogs properly. Not as an afterthought, not with a slightly apologetic sign on the door, but as guests who happen to have four legs and a tendency to shake on arrival.
The Wild Duck sits in the village of Ewen, five minutes from Cirencester, in the kind of flat Gloucestershire countryside that makes for genuinely good walking. The Thames Path and the Ewen valley routes are close, dry underfoot in summer and largely quiet. An hour or two out, then back for something cold and a bowl of water waiting by the door.
The garden backs onto open countryside. Dogs are welcome in the bar and certain areas of the pub, it’s worth checking when you book which spaces are available on the day. The welcome is genuine rather than managed, which makes a difference.
The Wild Duck also has some dog-friendly rooms, which is the detail that changes the nature of the trip entirely. Nineteen bedrooms, none identical, put together with antiques, limewash walls and the kind of thought that usually gets applied to rooms for people rather than their companions. A handful open onto private terraces. Breakfast is worth getting up for.
The Wild Duck was named Best Pub with Rooms 2026 by The Times, the dog-friendliness is part of what earns that.
The Double Red Duke in Clanfield is about thirty minutes from Oxford and sits at the quieter end of Oxfordshire. Dog-friendly rooms are available here too, including roll-top baths, 100 Acres toiletries and enough space to feel like a proper stay rather than a grudging concession to the dog.
The terrace fills up early on summer evenings and dogs are a regular part of the picture. The open-fire kitchen produces the kind of food that makes a weekend away feel justified: aged beef, whole fish, proper puddings. The shepherd’s hut spa is available for the humans, which can be arranged while someone else handles the dog walk.
Clanfield itself is well-placed for Cotswold walking. The Oxfordshire Cotswolds countryside around the village is accessible, unhurried and largely free of the coach-party traffic that can make the honeypot villages less enjoyable in summer.
Both pubs welcome dogs, but a few practical notes are worth having before you arrive.
Dog-friendly rooms book up faster than you might expect, particularly at weekends and bank holidays If you’re planning a trip, a couple of months’ notice is sensible. Mid-week stays have more availability and the countryside is no less good for it.
Dogs are welcome in specific areas of both pubs. When you book, it’s worth mentioning you’re bringing a dog so we can point you to the right tables and let you know what’s available on the day. Neither pub makes a fuss about it, we just want to make sure the arrangements actually work for you.
Both pubs have outside space, which matters when the dog has been in a car. Water is available, just ask.
Near The Wild Duck: the Ewen valley routes along the Thames Path are well-marked, flat and good year-round. The loop through Kemble and back to Ewen takes about an hour and a half at a reasonable pace. The village is quiet and the fields are open.
Near The Double Red Duke: the countryside around Clanfield and Bampton is classic Oxfordshire; stone walls, open fields, the occasional slow tractor. A two-hour circular from the pub is easily put together with an OS map or a quick look at the Ordnance Survey app.
The Wild Duck is in Ewen, Gloucestershire, GL7 6BY. The Double Red Duke is in Clanfield, Oxfordshire, OX18 2RR. Both are accessible by road; neither is a long way from a motorway junction if you’re driving with a dog in the boot.
Tables can be booked online. Dog-friendly rooms are bookable at both venues, just mention your dog at the time of booking. Both pubs are happy to accommodate, and it’s easier for everyone if we know in advance.
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