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Tour of Oxford Highlights

England's Must-See City
From£358.00

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2350
  • 3 Hours
  • Private tour for groups up to 8
  • Perfect for children
  • Fun quiz available
  • Avoid long lines with pre-purchased tickets
  • Certified Blue Badge Guide

Join us for this 3-hour Oxford guided tour. This is England’s must-see city, home for over 800 years to both Royalty and Scholars.

Your private Blue Badge Guide will lead you on an unforgettable journey around one of the 38 colleges that make up Oxford University. You can marvel at the amazing architecture, learn what it’s like to study here, and discover the most famous alumni. 

We will then wind our way through the city learning about the foundation of the University, as well as more modern history in the shape of Harry Potter. Your guide is full of facts and stories to engage and entertain you during the tour, making for a terrific experience.

Start Your Oxford Day Tour at Carfax Tower

Starting right in the centre of Oxford at Carfax Tower, this is the only remaining structure of St Martin’s church. The tower is just over 23m/74ft high and it’s a point of reference for architects, as no building is allowed to be taller than this. Look for the quarter boys and listen to them hammering into the bells every 15 minutes. Carfax is an unusual name, let your guide explain what it actually means.

Walking down Saint Aldate Street, you will pass many shops and the Town Hall before arriving at Tom Tower. This is a great chance to look into the Tom Quad of Christ Church College.

Admire the structure built by famous architect Christopher Wren in the late Gothic style, even though at that point it was many centuries out of date. Find out who or what Great Tom is, as well as the difference between Oxford time and Greenwich time.

Learn About Alice in Wonderland in Oxford

If you like shopping, now’s your chance to grab some souvenirs in the fantastic Alice in Wonderland shop. It occupies the same spot where Alice Liddell, inspiration for the famous C S Lewis character Alice, used to buy sweets as a child.

Let’s not abandon Alice just yet…your guide will tell the hidden story about this world-famous character, her creator Lewis Carrol is one of many famous alumni of Christ Church College. This is our first example of a college, it’s also the largest with some impressive royal connections. 

Fans of Harry Potter will recognise the dining hall. See if you can spot where JK Rowling might have taken her inspiration. We will explore the quads, the dining hall, and the Cathedral of this spectacular College.

Continuing Your Highlights Tour of Oxford

Next, we pass another of Oxford’s 38 Colleges: Merton. Staking a claim as one of the oldest, it is also one of the smallest. Don’t let the size fool you though: this prestigious institution was once home to famous Nobel Laureates TS Eliot and JRR Tolkien.

Heading back towards the busier part of Oxford, we snake through narrow lanes towards a magnificent view of St Mary’s University Church. Let’s wander through the church, soaking up the atmosphere as your guide explains how this church formed the very beginning of Oxford University. 

Our next stop is the Radcliffe Camera. This impressive building dominates Radcliffe Square. Featured in all guide books and on many postcards, it is perhaps one of the most iconic sights in Oxford.

Today it serves as a reading room for the Bodleian Library, home to hundreds of thousands of books. Where do they all fit, you might wonder. Your guide will explain where they are hidden.

We have one more college en route, this time with a very unusual name. Find out the history of the name Brasenose College and its meaning from your guide.

More on the Bodleian Library & Beyond

In a University town like Oxford, you are surrounded by sources of knowledge, but this is perhaps the most impressive. Remember the reading room we saw earlier? Well, over the years, the Bodleian Library expanded and, today, you will find various library buildings around the city. But this is the original.

It is open only to its members, who must sign a formal declaration on the first admission. It serves mainly as a reference library and members are not allowed to remove books. This rule was even upheld in the 17th century when King Charles I wanted to borrow a book!

Next up, we’ll visit the Divinity School. Look up and admire the beautiful vaulted ceiling. In the past it was home to the study of theology, these days it’s used in a ceremonial role.

This is where the students don their gowns and get ready before they cross the yard to The Sheldonian Theatre for their graduation ceremony.

We now make our way to look at the Bridge of Sighs, named after its famous counterpart in Venice. It forms part of Hereford College, famous as one of the first colleges to accept women as students.

Wrapping Up Our Oxford Guided Tours

We’ll head to the beautiful, classical Sheldonian Theatre next. This is the second building we visit designed by Christopher Wren and it’s also where students celebrate the start and the end of their academic life with matriculations and graduations.

Once inside you can admire the spectacular painted ceiling offering the illusion of an open sky.

We have spent our Oxford tour surrounded by beautiful architecture, listened to stories of various colleges, and we learnt about famous alumni. We will finish here at the Weston Library to give you an idea of how the University works and looks today. 

Your guide will happily direct you to gift shops, restaurants, and other sites which you may like to visit.

Our guided tour of Oxford covers all the main sites in the city centre. It includes a visit to one college. We have chosen Christchurch, however from time to time there are last-minute closures for events and we will adjust the itinerary. Your guide will confirm the itinerary at the start of the tour, aiming to give you the best possible experience on the day.

Oxford Highlights Tour

  • Christchurch College
  • Radcliffe Camera
  • Sheldonian Theatre
  • University Church of St Mary the Virgin
  • Bodleian Library

Pricing

All tours are for private groups only and start from £358. Groups can be up to 8 people. Your entrance tickets to one Oxford College are included. If you have any questions, feel free to contact us!

 

Departure Point

Carfax Tower 

Queen St, Oxford OX1 1ET

 

Departure Time

Mon – Sun 9:30am, 2:00pm

Directions

Your Guide will meet you outside Carfax Tower. Your Guide will be holding a sign showing the lead customer name.

Why should you book a tour with our Blue Badge Guides?

  • All of our Guides are Blue Badge holders, this is Britain’s highest professional tourist-guiding qualification, they are the only external guides able to show you around the most famous attractions.
  • Blue Badge guides are carefully selected for an intensive 2 year course culminating in an extensive series of exams in all aspects of History, Art, Architecture, Contemporary Britain and much more
  • Your time on holiday is precious, let our expert team make it memorable for all the right reasons
  • We pride ourselves on being able to tailor tours to your interest, our guides strive to bring your tour to life, making it enjoyable for all ages

Pick Up Point

5-Star Rated on Tripadvisor

Imad B
Imad B
6. February, 2023.
Felice Sono felice di tutto ben organizzato e molto semplice da usare vi ringrazio per il servizio alla prossima a
Paul T
Paul T
31. January, 2023.
Amazing day The information that Lucy had brilliant and interesting,the best tour yet Paul Taylor I could go on and on the facts are Lucy is the best is that ok
LPB627
LPB627
11. November, 2022.
Walking your with Fantastic Phil The experience was great. Phil is an outstanding guide. Would highly recommend.Saw details you would never see otherwise.
SanDiegoW_traveler
SanDiegoW_traveler
20. October, 2022.
Highly recommend. Great for both adults and children Fantastic tour with Denisa. We had 3 adults and our 7 year old grandson, and she did a great job of engaging and educating all of us. She customized the tour for our interests/ages, and we visited the Tower of London, Tower Bridge and HMS Belfast.We couldn't have been more happy with our experience
Travel O
Travel O
25. September, 2022.
DO IT Wow wow wow. This was a great tour. Everything was perfect. I don't often take tours - usually want to explore on my own. This was a short trip and we wanted to pack as much in as possible so we decided to book a tour. I've now become a fan of tours. Marina waited for us at the meeting point ahead of schedule. She was pleasant and extremely knowledgeable, even in answering our questions that were not directly related to the tour. She was prepared and kept us all engaged - adults and teens. It was clear she was prepared to engage any age. I was worried that I'd feel "trapped" in a long tour but it was the exact opposite - the day went by so easily and comfortably and I can't believe how much we saw and learned. I could not recommend the tour any more strongly.
Laura T
Laura T
25. August, 2022.
Terrific Tower of London tour My family loved this private tour! We learned so much from our guide and loved being her sole focus. My girls could ask lots of questions and feel comfortable doing so!
NoWorriesTravel
NoWorriesTravel
17. August, 2022.
Best Way to Tour the Tower Where to begin? These ladies run a top-notch operation. Their service levels are unparalled. Their knowledge base is incredible, which is only matched by their excellent communication before the tour, and follow up after with little tidbits of information. Book with them, and you will not be disappointed.
Sandra C
Sandra C
2. July, 2022.
Tower of London Excellent tour guide, very informative and entertaining. The Tower of London was excellent and I highly recommended it!
Jennifer S
Jennifer S
19. June, 2022.
Amazing tour for families! An excellent tour! We brought our family of six (4 teen kids) and learned so much! Denisa was so knowledgeable and made it very interesting for kids and adults. So much exciting history packed in these walls! Bring good walking shoes and a water.
James madai
James madai
7. June, 2022.
You need a professional blue badge guide like Galina! Galina was our tour guide and extremely knowledgeable! This was a deep dive into history and you need a professional to help simplify what your looking at. There's so much history in London that I never thought I'd ever be educated on. I'm happy we got Galina and my wife and I can't thank her enough for such a great experience.