While JD Vance is probably going to be taken with the picturesque British countryside during his forthcoming trip to the Cotswolds, he might not get the friendliest reception from the residents. 

American expatriates residing in this scenic part of England have informed the Daily Mail that the Vice President doesn’t have much appeal here, largely due to the Trump administration’s conservative politics and its assertive stance on international affairs. 

In reality, many Americans who have relocated to the Cotswolds sought refuge from the political climate in the U.S., opting for this tranquil area with its charming stone cottages and mild-mannered population after Donald Trump secured a second term. 

Ellen DeGeneres is arguably one of the most notable figures to have made such a move, and local real estate agents previously shared with the Daily Mail that they have witnessed a significant increase in Americans settling in this British holiday destination in recent years. 

Vance, at forty, plans to visit Charlbury, a parish in the Cotswolds situated about 12 miles from Oxford, for his yearly vacation with his wife Usha and their children Ewan Blaine, Vivek, and Mirabel, this August. 

With a population of 91,000, the Cotswolds spans six southern counties in England and is administered from Gloucestershire, representing the largest continuation of protected natural beauty in the U.K.

Punctuated by quirky local businesses and cozy limestone cottages, its stunning green pastures have long presented an attractive escape just 90 minutes by train from London for those wealthy enough to afford a second home. 

Local councilor Sandra Smith (who requested we use a pseudonym to protect her identity due to concerns about traveling as a naturalized Brit under Donald Trump’s administration) moved to the beautiful spot in 1987 from Seattle, Washington. 

She said she gave up her American citizenship decades ago in exchange for a British passport. 

Smith told the Daily Mail that Vance’s comments about the UK and his politics mean many locals aren’t thrilled about his visit. 

Earlier this year Vance appeared to refer to the UK as a ‘random country’ in an attempt to downplay the importance of its voice on the international stage during the debate about how the new Trump administration would handle the war in Ukraine. 

His Oval Office meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Donald Trump also turned heads in the UK as the American heavyweights initially withheld weapons needed to defend Ukraine against Russia in the European war. 

‘JD Vance is not a popular figure here,’ Smith, who lives in the ‘Cotswolds capital’ of Cirencester told the Daily Mail. 

‘His brand of governance isn’t what they like in Britain. He’s what British people consider to be quite rude and outspoken. We all remember how he behaved toward Zelenskyy.

‘In Cirencester where I live, I think people just generally feel kind of a distaste and confusion, because, of course, he said all sorts of very offensive things about Britain when he first took over his role, and now he’s here on holiday, and Trump is here on holiday. Why did he criticize us and then choose to come here on holiday?’

Smith continued, saying she doesn’t think Vance ‘understands the British way of life’ or ‘how we behave toward one and other’, which she described as ‘a more measured way than he’s probably used to.’

Smith said that high-profile Americans who have been seen flocking to the Cotswolds, including Kourtney Kardashian, ‘don’t really interact with us’ and live in a ‘celebrity bubble’. 

Though, she guesses that if local people saw Vance in the street ‘they would probably just point, stare and laugh, but I don’t think they would actually go and speak to him.’

‘We have famous people around here all the time and everybody just leaves them alone,’ Smith said. 

‘We have various TV celebrities just walking through the town and they’re just living their lives here, and people don’t interact with them, usually.’

Fashion journalist and socialite Plum Sykes told BBC Radio 4’s PM show that the Vance family would be staying in a rented house in Oxfordshire. 

Sykes revealed this as Trump visited the UK this week to inaugurate his new golf course and held talks with Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer.

American expat Audrey Ann Masur, who has lived in the Cotswolds for five years, said she hails from a similar neck of the woods as Ohio-born and Kentucky-raised Vance. 

Masur, 37, told the Daily Mail she thinks he’ll be enthralled by the natural beauty of the land. 

‘I’m from Indiana, one of Kentucky and Ohio’s neighboring states, and I especially enjoy the rolling hills of the Cotswolds – the landscape of fields, hedgerows and trees,’ she said. ‘It’s a peaceful and beautiful view.’

The Cotswolds is also often frequented by the ‘Chipping Norton set’ – a group of media, political and show-business heavyweights who have homes close to the Cotswolds town of Chipping Norton.

They include former UK Prime Minister David Cameron, David and Victoria Beckham and Top Gear star Jeremy Clarkson, who owns the Diddly Squat farm tourist attraction. 

Speculation has been swirling that Vance will meet up with the right-wing elites who live in the Cotswolds during his visit. 

‘They’re probably going to show him a good time because it helps them with their political profiles,’ Smith told the Daily Mail. 

‘I think it’s very much the cozy right-wing Oxfordshire set that are inviting him over to groom him into being their supporters and so they can gain from it politically.

‘And it’s beautiful here, let’s be honest,’ she said, adding that the area is often featured in movies because of its charm.

‘I’ve had Americans come over here and they don’t know anything about the Cotswolds but they think it’s “really cute!”‘

Smith said she only planned on moving to the area for two years back in the 1980s, but she fell in love with the ‘tiny houses and cars’ and ‘sense of community’.

‘I just really like living in Britain,’ she said. ‘The American middle-class lifestyle is a big house and a big car – but it’s a bit soulless. 

‘You spend a lot of time driving around to shopping malls in the US and everything is so far apart. I love how you can do anything on foot around here.

‘Plus, my friends from America are always talking about gun crimes and shootings. Nothing like that happens here. It’s wonderfully boring and stable.’

Though celebrities and high-flying businessmen occasionally threaten the natural harmony of the area, Smith, who works in town planning, said the Cotswolds will retain its unique charm.

‘Much of the Cotswolds is a conservation area, which means developers can’t change much,’ she told the Daily Mail.

‘This is how it retains its character – it’s always going to be this way.’

Though, American expats do bring a host of new demands to the area while embracing quintessential English country life.

Cotswolds Council leader Joe Harris said Yankees are now ‘all over’ the area. ‘We have an American member on our council,’ he told the Daily Mail. ‘Most people in our area know an American or have an American neighbor.’ 

Private members clubs have proliferated in the Cotswolds in recent years, reflecting this influx of a new kind of wealth akin to the Hamptons elite – as opposed to the traditional agricultural landowning families who have lived in the area for centuries. 

English real estate experts Camilla Dell and Harry Gladwin told the Daily Mail that Americans have increasingly been looking to the UK for home purchases over the past five years.

‘Americans are a significant buying force for UK property,’ said Dell, the founder of Black Brick property consulting firm, where 25 percent of clients are from the US, bringing an average budget of $1 million to $10 million for a second home.

Dell, who has a holiday home in the Cotswolds, said Americans started flocking to the UK in greater numbers ‘five to six years ago’, when the dollar was comparatively strong against the pound in the aftermath of Brexit. 

‘When Americans think of the quintessential British countryside, the Cotswolds comes to mind,’ Dell said.