Tour Details
- Duration
- 7 hours
- Product Type
- Tour
- Venues
- Oxford University
Photos & Highlights
- See Oxford behind its beautiful facades: take a stroll through a college and find out what life is like for students and non-university residents
- Take home unique memories: your Expert will craft the day around your interests
Select a date
Tour Description
Perhaps the world’s most famous student city, Oxford is a place bursting with history. The university and its colleges have been incubators for talent in a huge variety of fields for almost a millennium. Spend some time exploring it with a historical expert and imagine what it would be like to study here yourself….or for your kids. This Oxford day tour will give you ample time to see all the most famous sights but also to go beyond them and get under the skin of this most fascinating of cities.
You will spend time in the morning exploring the central part of the city. Your Expert will take you into a college to show you these curious institutions where - for centuries - undergraduates lived, studied and socialized alongside their professors (and to some extent still do). In addition, there will be time to see the Bodleian Library, one of the world’s most iconic centers of learning with its copy of every book published in English.
After lunch, your Expert will make plans with you based on your specific interests. You may want to spend time exploring the city’s literary heritage, its diverse architecture or the history of some of its alumni. If the weather and timings allow, it may even be possible to go for a spot of punting on the Thames. Your day in Oxford could be rounded off by your Expert leaving at you at a college to hear a beautifully sung evensong service as the sun goes down.
A day to remember
See beyond the facades
"Almost every single building has a story to tell" William, Context Expert
- You want to get the most out of limited time in Oxford
- You are interested in seeing beyond the city’s external beauty and want to both understand its history and present
- You feel inspired by the university and want to know what life is like for those connected to it
You will meet your Expert - a graduate of the university or a local historical expert - in the city center opposite the imposing Sheldonian Theatre. From here you will wander through the city’s central area, taking in famous sights such as the Radcliffe Camera and Divinity Schools.
As you begin to get your bearings (not always easily in Oxford’s narrow, occasionally cobbled streets) your Expert will talk to you about the history of the university, its complex structure and the ways in which it has shaped the city of Oxford. To illustrate this further, they will take you into at least one college explaining how life there works for the students and professors.
Almost all the colleges have grand halls - indeed one was used to film the Harry Potter films -, chapels and beautiful gardens. But each of them also has a sense of independence and its own character. Your Expert will be able to help you understand how much of this is true and how much is mythology.
At some point after some hard exploring, you will pause for lunch. If you wish, your Expert will happily join you to keep the conversation going, but they can also give you some space to dwell and dine.
The afternoon will give you an opportunity to delve deeper into any aspects of the history that have particularly struck you. You may want to see more colleges or learn about the city’s architecture which demonstrates work from Christopher Wren to Norman Foster and many more. Or you might want to explore the literary history or the Ashmolean Museum. If the weather is good, and the timings work, you might even want to be taken punting for that most quintessentially Oxford of experiences.
As the day comes to an end (and so long as the weather is accommodating) you will see how beautifully Oxford’s traditional stone reflects the evening light as the students dash to dinner in their gowns. You can get a glimpse of this evening world by asking your Expert to leave you at a choral evensong service, or indeed a pub. Oxford is after all always a city with many facets.
- Sheldonian Theatre and Bodleian Libraries - the heart of the university institutions
- A college - each has its own identity and you may well be able to go into a few to see the differences … and similarities
Tickets
You are prepaid for this tour.
Lunch
Lunch is not included in the price. Your Expert will be delighted to recommend a spot depending on your budget/dietary needs.
We understand that some of our valued guests may have mobility concerns, and we want to ensure you have a comfortable and enjoyable experience throughout your tour. If there are any accessibility concerns that your tour guide will need to be aware of, please let our team know at the time of booking.
Wheelchair accessibility
Oxford is an ancient city and it has cobbled streets. Some older buildings also have steps to get in (generally no more than 1-2). Your Expert will be delighted to accommodate people in wheelchairs.
Service dog accommodations
Service dogs are welcome across the UK.
Is lunch included in the price?
No. As people's budgets and tastes vary wildly, we do not include lunch in the price as standard.
Will we visit an Oxford college?
Yes. You will get the chance to go into at least one Oxford College during this tour.
Book with confidence — see Context's flexible cancellation policy here.
Where You'll Start