Barb, there's so much to see and do in the Cotswolds and the surrounding area. I'd also encourage you to have some unstructured time and not have all your time focused on admission-oriented places. Walking is a great way to explore, or just go for a drive on tiny lanes.
Although things are close on the map, the driving can be slow. I'd check times on Google maps and always expect that it will take longer. You never know when you'll get behind a big, slow-moving farm vehicle. And some places do attract tourist buses between 10 am and 3 pm and might be better to visit in the late afternoon or for dinner.
My list is similar to Pauline's, though I don't know the southern Cotswolds all that well. You might get some ideas from the
itinerary we have posted for our Cotswold Experience week. This past year we made a couple of changes; we didn't go to the cheese dairy or visit the Slaughters. (I love the Slaughters and there's a pretty and easy walk between the two, but we decided it was just too far to go.) Instead we spent more time around Broadway and Chipping Campden, and some of the group walked back to Chipping Campden from Broadway Tower. We also were able to take our groups to Giffords Circus this year... just wonderful! (Pauline and Steve introduced us to Giffords last year.) I'd definitely check the schedule next year to see if it's nearby during the time you're in the Cotswolds.
Chipping Campden is a great place to see the thatched houses. (There is an area of beautiful homes just before you enter the village from the A44.) About a mile away is the much smaller village of Broad Campden, which also has several thatched cottages.
In all the time I've spent the Cotswolds, I've never been to Warwick Castle. I think it's about 45 minutes north of Chipping Campden, past Stratford. We enjoy Sudeley Castle and Blenheim Palace, both with beautiful gardens/grounds and very different from each other.
The gardens are wonderful and there are many of them in the Cotswolds. You could visit both Kiftsgate and Hidcote at the same time, since they're neighbors. Kiftsgate is much smaller and doesn't have as many visitors. In the southern Cotswolds we enjoyed Abbey Court Gardens.
If you're there at the right time of year, I'd definitely drive by the Snowshill Lavendar farm. And it's been a long time since I've been there, but many people enjoy Snowshill Manor.
We like Stow-in-the-Wold, but it's very busy and gets a lot of tourists (and traffic). I'd go in the late afternoon or for dinner. Same thing for Bourton-in-the-Water.
If you end up staying near Chipping Campden, I highly recommend you go on one of their "town walks" with a voluntary warden. They offer these one or two times a week... you could get info at the Tourist Office. It's a great way to learn more about this interesting village. (This is the only village I know that offers a walk like this... they just ask for a small donation.)
Sheep... you'll see lots of sheep. (Watch your step, as you can actually walk through the fields of sheep on many of the footpaths.) The area is very very rural and the fields of crops are beautiful. I haven't seen many orchards... there's a well-known apple farm (Hayles Fruit Farm) just up the road from Hailes Abbey.
The tourist offices are great resources. Wherever you end up staying, I'd stop in at the closest tourist office the day you arrive. These are good places to get maps of nearby walking routes as well.
You might get some ideas from my blog of our
week in the Cotswolds in 2004 (Blockley). We didn't have anything planned before we arrived and just let that week evolve. Some of our best moments were spontaneous.
Enjoy your planning!
(What? No sheep smilie??)