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Best Pubs in Cheltenham: Real Ale, Gardens and Food

Twelve Cheltenham pubs for real ale and craft beer, beer gardens and food, with cask and keg line counts, menus, quiz nights, live sport and dog-friendly picks.

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Best Pubs in Cheltenham: Real Ale, Gardens and Food

In short: the best pubs in Cheltenham are Sandford Park Alehouse on the High Street for real ale (10 cask and 16 keg lines) and a big garden, The Merryfellow in Charlton Kings for food (award-winning pies, £19) and Planet Caravan on Bath Street for craft beer. For a pub crawl, head to Bath Road, where four more share one stretch.

🍺Real aleSandford Park Alehouse10 cask, 16 keg lines 🍻Craft beerPlanet Caravan16 taps, pints from £4.50 🌳Beer gardenHewlett ArmsSouth-facing, Harp Hill 🥧Pub foodThe MerryfellowBig Boy pies £19

Twelve Cheltenham pubs for real ale, gardens, food, sport and quizzes, with beer lines, menus and dates checked on each pub's own website (or its brewery's pub page) on 19 October 2026.

What are the best pubs in Cheltenham?

Sandford Park Alehouse for beer, the Hewlett Arms for a garden and The Merryfellow for food. Here is what each one does best.

PubBest forFoodArea
Sandford Park AlehouseAle, gardenYesTown Centre
Planet CaravanCraft beer, foodYesTown Centre
Bath Road BeersCraft beerNo (pop-ups)The Suffolks
The Suffolk ArmsAle, sport, musicYesThe Suffolks
Hewlett ArmsGardenYesBattledown
The WheatsheafGarden, musicYesLeckhampton
Norwood ArmsGardenYesLeckhampton Road
The MerryfellowFood, musicYesCharlton Kings
The Five AllsFoodYesThe Suffolks
The Brown JugFood, sportYesThe Suffolks
The Exmouth ArmsAle, gardenYesThe Suffolks
Somerset ArmsMusicNot statedMoorend Street

Where are the best real ale and craft beer pubs in Cheltenham?

Three pints of ale and stout on a polished wooden bar, with brass hand pumps behind

Sandford Park Alehouse for cask ale and Planet Caravan for craft beer, both in the town centre.

Sandford Park Alehouse

Drinkers at picnic tables under yellow and grey bunting in the beer garden at Sandford Park Alehouse, Cheltenham

CAMRA's national Pub of the Year in 2015 and Cheltenham's in 2023. Its south-facing garden by the River Chelt stays open all winter under a heated marquee.

  • 🍺 10 cask and 16 keg lines
  • 🥧 Pie and a pint £15 on Wednesdays
  • 📍 High Street, Town Centre

Planet Caravan

A row of numbered beer taps under stacked cans at Planet Caravan, Cheltenham

A craft beer bar pouring everything from a house lager to imperial stouts, with a cask line in winter and regular brewery tap takeovers. Open Wednesday to Sunday.

  • 🍺 16 craft taps, pints from £4.50
  • 🌮 Birria tacos £12
  • 📍 Bath Street, Town Centre

Bath Road Beers

Chalkboards outside Bath Road Beers in Cheltenham advertising street food and local beers

A bottle shop of around 450 drinks that you can also drink in, named Independent Beer and Cider Retailer of the Year 2026 at the Drinks Retailing Awards.

  • 🍺 4 keg lines and a cask line
  • 🎲 Games night Mondays, 6pm
  • 📍 Bath Road, The Suffolks

The Suffolk Arms

The white front of The Suffolk Arms on Suffolk Road, Cheltenham, with hanging baskets

A coaching inn built in 1824, now independently run, with hand-pulled Timothy Taylor Boltmaker and Goff's Cheltenham Gold. The food is fried chicken from The Chicken Coop.

  • 🍺 Two hand-pulled ales
  • 🍗 Chicken burgers from £12
  • 📺 Sky Sports and TNT
  • 📍 Suffolk Road, The Suffolks

Which pubs have the best beer gardens?

A pub beer garden at golden hour in autumn, with picnic tables, festoon lights and a countryside view

The Hewlett Arms, Sandford Park Alehouse and The Wheatsheaf have the gardens worth planning an afternoon around. More in our beer gardens guide.

Hewlett Arms

A burger and cocktails on a table at the Hewlett Arms, Cheltenham, in front of a brick wall

A south-facing garden at the foot of Harp Hill, which the pub says was voted Cheltenham's best beer garden for 2026. It pours rotating real ales, and Jollofness runs a West African kitchen.

  • 🌳 South-facing garden
  • 🍲 Jollof rice and jerk chicken £12.50
  • 📍 Harp Hill, Battledown

The Wheatsheaf

A family-run Wadworth pub with a huge garden behind it, a heated patio for cooler evenings and regular jazz and blues nights.

  • 🌳 Huge garden, heated patio
  • 🚗 Free parking
  • 📍 Old Bath Road, Leckhampton

Norwood Arms

The white front of the Norwood Arms on Leckhampton Road, Cheltenham, with its terrace and Greene King sign

A Greene King pub dating from 1891, with a beer garden and a car park, and a welcome for families and dogs.

  • 🌳 Beer garden
  • ⏰ Food until 9pm daily
  • 📍 Leckhampton Road

Where are the best pubs for food?

The Merryfellow for a proper pub meal, The Five Alls for small plates and The Brown Jug for seasonal menus. For Sunday lunch, see our Sunday roast guide.

The Merryfellow

The bar at The Merryfellow in Charlton Kings, with beer taps and green shelves of wine

A Charlton Kings inn serving food from 12pm to 9pm every day. Its Big Boy Breakfast Pie won bronze in the pub pie category at the British Pie Awards.

  • 🥧 Big Boy pies £19
  • 🍔 Burgers £17
  • 📍 School Road, Charlton Kings

The Five Alls

The pale blue corner front of The Five Alls on Bath Road, Cheltenham

Small plates instead of mains, from crab rarebit to gochujang ribs, with real and craft ales. It calls its menus samples, so dishes change.

  • 🍽️ Small plates £7.75 to £12.75
  • 🌮 Butter chicken tacos £11.75
  • 📍 Bath Road, The Suffolks

The Brown Jug

A community pub cooking seasonal menus from local suppliers, with weekday brunch, a beer garden, a fire, darts and pool.

  • 🍽️ Confit duck leg £16.95
  • ⏰ Dinner Wed to Fri, 6pm to 8.30pm
  • 📍 Bath Road, The Suffolks

Which are the best traditional pubs in the town centre?

Sandford Park Alehouse on the High Street is the classic pub in the centre itself. For more traditional locals, walk south to Bath Road, where Bath Road Beers, The Exmouth Arms, The Five Alls and The Brown Jug share one stretch, and the Norwood Arms is further on at Leckhampton Road. The directory lists every traditional pub in town.

The Exmouth Arms

An Arkell's pub opposite the Co-op, with food at lunch and dinner every day and a car park behind. Garden tables cannot be booked.

  • 🍺 Arkell's ales
  • 🥧 Pie of the day £16.50
  • 📍 Bath Road, The Suffolks

Somerset Arms

The dark blue front of the Somerset Arms on Moorend Street, Cheltenham, with hanging baskets and a Union flag

A neighbourhood local with real ales and ciders on tap, skittles and darts. Children and dogs are welcome.

  • 🎳 Skittles and darts
  • ⏰ From 3pm Mon to Thu, 12pm Fri to Sun
  • 📍 Moorend Street

Which pubs show live sport?

The Brown Jug and The Suffolk Arms both show Sky Sports and TNT.

Which pubs have live music or a quiz?

Thursday is quiz night at three of them. Days and times are from each pub's own website.

Which pubs are dog friendly?

Sandford Park Alehouse, The Suffolk Arms, The Brown Jug, the Norwood Arms, The Wheatsheaf, the Somerset Arms and the Hewlett Arms, which has a canine menu. See our dog-friendly Cheltenham guide.

Best pubs in Cheltenham: questions

What is the best pub in Cheltenham?

Sandford Park Alehouse on the High Street, for its 10 cask and 16 keg lines and big garden. For food, The Merryfellow in Charlton Kings.

Which Cheltenham pubs have the most real ale?

Sandford Park Alehouse, with 10 cask lines. Planet Caravan has 16 craft taps and adds a cask line in winter.

Where is the best area for a pub crawl in Cheltenham?

Bath Road, where Bath Road Beers, The Exmouth Arms, The Five Alls and The Brown Jug share one stretch, with the Norwood Arms further on at Leckhampton Road.

Which Cheltenham pubs have a quiz night?

Sandford Park Alehouse on Sundays at 7.30pm, The Brown Jug and the Norwood Arms every Thursday, and Bath Road Beers every other Thursday.

Which pubs in Cheltenham show live sport?

The Brown Jug, with Sky Sports and TNT on 8 screens, and The Suffolk Arms, which also shows Cheltenham race meetings.

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