London Day Trip: Oxford

Poet Matthew Arnold didn't call Oxford the "City of Dreaming Spires" for nothing! Photo: Codiferous.

Oxford is the prototypical university town, the grand dame against which other university towns are judged. And what grandeur! Almost 40 colleges make their home in Oxford. The colleges cluster together, in between parks, fields, meadows, and cute streets. The effect is incredibly charming, though the busloads of tourists passing in and out during peak months does diminish the appeal somewhat. Several of Oxford's colleges are worth visiting, including Christ Church College and Magdalen College.

To see

Oxford boasts an outstanding collection of museums, including the Ashmolean Museum, England's oldest museum. It holds a collection of extraordinary artworks and objects. Oxford also claims two kid-friendly museums: the Oxford University Museum of Natural History and the spooky Pitt Rivers Museum, a veritable treasure chest of archaeological and ethnographic objects. Rounding out the selection is an amazing contemporary arts museum, Modern Art Oxford.

Oxford is also chockablock full of little pubs and restaurants, many quite charming. So when museum feet have caught up with you, rest assured that you can find a place to relax and enjoy the university town vibe.

For more information about Oxford, see Oxford City's official Travel & Tourism site.

Getting there

A roundtrip train journey between London and Oxford costs £8 for a Cheap Day Return fare. Such fares apply for weekday travel at non-peak times.

Bus travel between London and Oxford is more reliably cheaper than train travel. Megabus is the best value, with one way journeys for as little as £2.50. Catch Oxford-bound buses at the corner of Buckingham Palace Road and Elizabeth Bridge, diagonally across from Victoria Coach Station.

More day trips

Looking for more getaways from London? Check out this article on London day trips, including a jaunt to a medieval castle at Arundel and some fun in the sun in Brighton.