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Cotswolds & London
Milk Street on the Road: Baking Intensive in the Cotswolds & London
September 07 - September 14, 2025
Where
Cotswolds & London
Group Size
8-12 Travelers
Duration
8 Days, 7 Nights
When
Sept 7 - 14, 2025
Price
7,500 USD per person
We meet in the Cotswolds, a pre-Roman agricultural region famous for sheep farming, golden-stone architecture and beautiful landscapes. There we’ll immerse ourselves in regenerative wheat farming at a nonprofit farm education center and mill flour at an 8th-generation mill. We’ll also make our own pizzas, eat at lovely pubs, and walk around picturesque villages. Then we go from rural to urban, and from field to kitchen. In London – and at the country’s oldest professional baking school – we’ll roll up our sleeves for two all-day hands-on baking extravaganzas. We’ll make sourdough loaves, cookies, scones, focaccia and more, all with the same flours we learned about as seeds in the soil and grains under the stone in the Cotswolds. Milk Street friends will cook us private dinners and you’ll be set loose on a bakery scavenger hunt across the city.
On this exclusive-to-Milk Street trip, our guides and baking instructors are Elaine Boddy and Sophie Carey, both experts in their fields. On the first departure we’ll also be joined by Milk Street’s Director of Education, Rosemary Gill.
Farm
Mill
Bake
Explore
Eat
Your itinerary
Day 1
Arrive and meet your fellow travelers and guide
Step off the train and into Ascott-under-Wychwood, a honey-stone village in the Cotswolds. Just two hours from London, the Cotswolds enjoy a very different pace of life, one centered around agriculture, small towns, contemporary innovations and great food. Get settled in your room at The Prince of Burford, an 18th-century coaching inn situated at the top of the hill in the picturesque town of Burford we call home for three nights and then meet the group for our welcome dinner right in the pub below. We’ll walk through the week’s itinerary, answer your questions, and enjoy a hearty meal of local ingredients presented imaginatively. Our baking teacher Elaine Boddy as well as Matthews Cotswold Flour owner Bertie Matthews will join us.
Day 2
Soil: Immerse yourself in the genesis of all great baking
Enjoy a leisurely breakfast at The Prince of Burford before we learn about the genesis of all great sourdough bread: soil. During a full-day immersive experience at the nonprofit FarmEd, we’ll learn about wheat growing practices and their effects on your morning loaf. We’ll tour the farm, get our hands dirty in the fields, meet some lovely and important worms and compare wheat grown via different farming practices – all fueled by ample tea, coffee and a seasonal lunch of produce, meats, cheeses and baked goods from FarmED and the local area. At the end of our day, Scott Deley will give us a dough-to-pie wood-fired pizza lesson on the farm. Scott uses Matthews Cotswold Flour, some of the grain for which is grown at FarmEd. It is also the flour we’ll learn how to mill tomorrow and use all week in our baking projects. We’ll be full after our pizza party and the later evening is yours to enjoy as you like. We can recommend walks, pubs, shops and more.
Day 3
Stone: Turn grain into flour at an 8th-generation mill
Today is all about the stone. We’ll spend our morning at Matthews Cotswold Flour Mill, where eighth-generation owner Bertie Matthews will lead us in an interactive learning tour of the property. Bertie will teach us how flour is milled on traditional stones and via more modern technologies, demonstrate why farming techniques affect the milling process, and show us how different wheats produce different flours. We’ll also learn about the local and national grain economy, a system Matthews is actively working to support and improve. We’ll put your learning to the test during a hands-on flour fun quiz and evaluation. Our learning complete, we’ll drop you in a charming local village to find a late lunch on your own and spend some time walking through this picturesque Cotswolds setting. That evening we gather at Chequers in Churchill, a highly acclaimed gastro pub featuring local ingredients and, you guessed it, sourdough bread in another beautiful Cotswold village.
Day 4
Travel to London and feast at a private dinner
We’re city bound! After breakfast at The Prince of Burford, we say goodbye to the Cotswolds and travel to London via private transfer. We’ll check into the Hoxton Southwark, a chic urban hotel walking distance from Tate Modern, London Bridge, Borough Market and our baking school. We’ll have a few hours this afternoon to visit a museum or take a walk in a park. For the willing, we’ve designed a bakery scavenger hunt that will take you to some of the best bakeries in town. We’ll gather that evening at Uyen Luu’s private Supper Club in Hackney. We’re taking a break from sourdough to indulge in Uyen’s five-course Vietnamese feast. You won’t miss the bread.
Day 5
Sourdough & Sweet: Feed your starters, make cookies. Repeat
Our hands-on baking education begins today. We’ll meet Elaine and guest bakers at the National Bakery School, the UK’s oldest baking institute. From morning to evening we’ll move between sourdough and quick baking, taking advantage of the long resting and rising times sourdough demands to make quicker cookies and yeasted breads. Everything we make will use the same flours we saw start as grain at FarmEd and milled at Matthews, completing our field-to-oven education. To gild the lily, resident chocolatier Kieran Slator will also help us understand how to best incorporate chocolate into our bakes – sourdough and yeasted, savory and sweet. Lunch provided by NBS and the sweets you make will fuel our work throughout the day. After a long day on our feet, the evening is yours to enjoy as you like. Book tickets to a play, take an evening stroll or enjoy a glass of wine, cocktail or a pint at one of London’s many bars.
Day 6
Sourdough & Sweet: Turn yesterday’s starters into today’s loaves
Over morning tea, we’ll review the day’s plan, which includes learning several methods for shaping and baking the sourdough loaves we started yesterday as well as scone and hot-cross-bun tutorials. One of the advantages of being in a professional baking school is the variety of home and professional-grade equipment we’ll have to use, and we’ll take time to talk about and use it all. The scones we make early will become our mid-morning snack, served with fresh jam and cream and we’ll end our day with our hot crossed buns and a parade of our freshly baked sourdough loaves. This is another long day of baking and eating, so the evening is yours again to enjoy as you please. You may just want to put your feet up with a glass of wine at the stylish Hoxton.
Day 7
Get personalized instruction with Elaine
Curious about sprouted rye flour or building a 100% whole wheat starter? Need help with your scoring technique? What to know why loaves made with spelt flour need a lot of support? Sign up for a 1:1 tutorial with Elaine and get help with your personal baking projects. Before and after, the day is yours to explore London before we meet at Honey & Co Daily. Honey & Co founders Sarit and Itamar are great friends of Milk Street and we’ll get to tour their bakery where they make traditional and contemporary Middle Eastern cakes, pastries and breads for their four restaurants. We stay at Honey & Co to celebrate our week together with a big family-style multi-course dinner.
Day 8
Say Goodbyes and Depart
We wish you safe travels and continued adventures with sourdough and on the road.
Meet the Crew
We are firm believers in the power of local knowledge. Our guides and the culinary masters and other artisans who are part of our trips all deeply reflect that. Meet some of our local heroes:
Elaine Boddy
Bertie Matthews
Ian Wilkinson
Scott Deley
Uyen Luu
Sarit Packer and Itamar Srulovich
Where you'll stay
The Prince of Burford
This week’s focus on deeply local experiences and places is also well reflected in our choice of accommodation. We always select boutique and independent places, ones inspired by international standards while staying loyal to the area’s local heritage – that’s the balance we seek for more than a good night’s rest.
Situated at the top of the hill in the picturesque town of Burford, The Prince of Burford exudes quintessential English charm. This historic coaching inn offers cozy rooms adorned with traditional décor and modern comforts, providing a peaceful retreat in the Cotswolds countryside. Immerse yourself in the tranquility of the region while enjoying delicious meals crafted from locally sourced ingredients. Whether you’re exploring nearby attractions or simply unwinding in the charming surroundings, The Prince of Burford promises an unforgettable escape amidst rural serenity.
Hoxton Southwark
The Hoxton Southwark offers a vibrant urban oasis in the heart of London’s cultural scene. This stylish hotel features chic rooms with contemporary designs and thoughtful amenities. Guests can enjoy delectable dining options at the trendy onsite restaurants or unwind with craft cocktails at the lively bar. With its prime location near iconic landmarks and trendy neighborhoods, The Hoxton Southwark provides the perfect base for exploring the dynamic pulse of the city.
Hear what travelers are saying
I'm actually a pastry chef for a living but when I got on the sourdough band wagon I didn't feel confident. I found Elaine's book and... it was the best thing I ever did! Since then I've baked dozens of loaves and feel confident and proud!
Sam G.
I had a fantastic Vietnamese meal last night. Thank you Uyen! The sea bass congee with kale and ginger - wow! Great noodles, amazing exciting shredded salads with lovely spicy vinegar and nut dressings and Saigon summer rolls to name but a few!
Jamie Oliver
Elaine doesn't try to make sourdough sound complicated. She does the opposite. She makes sourdough accessible.
Jane J.
Know before you go
PRICING AND ACCOMMODATION
The total cost of this trip is $7,500. For travelers wishing to have single accommodations during the trip, an additional $1,250 supplement will be due at the time of the final payment. A $500 non-refundable deposit per traveler is required to secure space on the trip. The balance is due 90 days prior to the start of the trip.
ACTIVITY LEVEL
Travelers should feel comfortable walking two to four miles each day and remaining on their feet for periods of time. Be prepared to roll up your sleeves and get hands-on during a couple cooking workshops.
ARRIVAL AND DEPARTURE
You are responsible for getting to Cotswolds (an easy train ride from London) by 3 p.m. on Day 1 and departing anytime on Day 8 from central London. We’ll provide the option of booking additional nights at our group hotel before and/or after the tour, and are more than happy to provide suggestions for things to do and see on your own.
INCLUSIONS
• All accommodation throughout the trip in stylish, boutique hotels. • Professional team throughout the entire experience. • All meals and drinks included in the above activities. • Admission to all proposed activities, locations, and events. • Private coach for visits inside and outside the center city • A hungry group of Culinary Backstreets and Milk Street travelers, excited to explore and bake!
EXCLUSIONS
• Private individual arrival & departure airport and rail to Cotswolds (transfer back to London in coach is included) • Airfare and transportation to/from the start and end destination • Meals beyond those specified in the itinerary above • Alcoholic beverages other than those served at the table • Accommodations outside those noted, including pre- or post-trip hotel nights • Activities, tours & entry fees not included above • Personal purchases and incidentals at hotels
DIETARY RESTRICTIONS
We encourage an adventurous palate! We try our best to accommodate dietary restrictions, though ingredients cannot always be substituted or omitted from particular dishes. This trip is centered around baking and may be challenging if you adhere to a gluten-free diet. If you have other food allergies or intolerances, please contact us to find out if this is the right trip for you.
NOTES ON ITINERARY
Itineraries and daily schedules are subject to change. We expect to do everything listed in the itinerary, though the order may be rearranged based on weather or other local conditions.
SAFETY AND SUSTAINABILITY
We have reinforced our commitment to sustainability and safety with new guidelines to assure maximum safety of our guests on our trips while maintaining the quality of the experience. All of our experiences are designed to have minimal impact on the community and environment. For more details on our precautions, read here.
CANCELLATION POLICY
You may cancel 90 days before the start of the trip and receive a full refund minus a $500 per-person service fee. If you cancel on or after 60 days before the start of the trip there is a 50% cancellation fee. On or after 30 days there is a 100% cancellation fee. We highly recommend purchasing travel insurance as we are not able to make exceptions to this policy in cases of family/medical emergency or cases of the trip being canceled (see our Terms and Conditions for full details).
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