Get an overview of the City of the Dreaming Spires on this guided, small-group walking tour. Pass by some of the key attractions around this historic university town, including Carfax Tower, Christ Church College, Queen’s College, The Bridge of Sighs, Radcliffe Camera, the Bodleian Library and more. Learn about the city’s long and rich history from your guide.

Soak up the city’s charm and ambience on a walking tour
Hear stories and insights you won’t discover on your own
Ideal for first time visitors and those with limited time
Small group size of 10 means a more personalized experience

What's Included

Guides are able to provide information pertaining to onward transport, accommodation houses etc.

Meeting And Pickup

Meeting point

Martyrs' Memorial
13 Magdalen St, Oxford OX1 3AE, UK
Opposite the Randolph Hotel and the Ashmolean Museum

End point

This activity ends back at the meeting point.

What To Expect

Carfax Tower

2 minutes • Admission Ticket Not Included

Christ Church (Pass By)

Magpie Lane (Pass By)

High Street (Pass By)

Queen's College (Pass By)

Bridge of Sighs (Pass By)

Radcliffe Camera

10 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Bodleian Library

5 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Sheldonian Theatre (Pass By)

History of Science Museum (Pass By)

Additional Info

Confirmation will be received at time of booking
Wheelchair accessible
Stroller accessible
Service animals allowed
Near public transportation

Transportation is wheelchair accessible
Surfaces are wheelchair accessible
Most travelers can participate
This tour/activity will have a maximum of 10 travelers

Cancellation Policy

You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.

For a full refund, you must cancel at least 24 hours before the experience’s start time.
If you cancel less than 24 hours before the experience’s start time, the amount you paid will not be refunded.

Any changes made less than 24 hours before the experience’s start time will not be accepted.
Cut-off times are based on the experience’s local time.

Traveler Photos

Reviews

5.0

69 reviews

Total review count and overall rating based on Viator and Tripadvisor reviews

Reviews by Viator travelers.

Showing 1-10 of 69 reviews

A delightfully informative introduction to Oxford with a personal touch.

Ronald_B, Sep 2023

Nick was a friendly, engaging, and thoroughly fascinating guide with an almost encyclopedic knowledge of Oxford and its 39 colleges. Had a wonderful time and very much appreciated the small group size that left time for questions, exploration, and surprises, all under Nick's more than capable guidance. A real treat!

Great...

Judy_S, Sep 2023

Great guide..knowledgeable and friendly. On time and interesting stories. Very helpful and adapted to our needs

Private walking tour

AnneSofie_L, Sep 2023

We where a party of 8 that had a private walkingtour in historisk Oxford . We had a very engaged and pleasent guide, Andrew. We dyrelyder would have apriciated to see a college or two from the inside, but unfortunatly they where closed. But instead we visited Bodkeuan Library wich also was amazing. Thank you for a nice tour.

All you need to know

Jackie_B, Aug 2023

Points of interest were delivered with interesting anecdotes and humour. All questions answered knowledgeably.

Brilliant tour. Highly recommended

Rosalind_T, Aug 2023

Absolutely brilliant. Andrew, our guide, was the perfect guide. He made the whole walk interesting and included a look around a college and it’s chapel and grounds. He gave us a perfectly balanced tour around the important historical buildings and the town of Oxford. Really to be recommended. Also we were lucky to be in a very small group of just 4. Andrew completed our tour by pointing out the perfect places to drink and eat.

Response from Host, Aug 2023

Thank you for taking the time to write such a positive review. Much appreciated.

No better way to start your visit to Oxford

Monique_D, Jul 2023

There's no better way to start your visit to Oxford than with such a professional guided tour! History and the rise of the university were mixed with nice stories and beautiful sights. You try and make plans what to see next, but we got so many tips along the way of the guided tour! So we did our planned museums, and: we ate at the Vaults, we visited the New College and enjoyed the peace and quiet, and found the oldest café near the city wall. We still have more days and we'll definetly use more of the insights in visits.

Response from Host, Jul 2023

Very pleased that you had such a lovely time in Oxford.

A very rainy day

Jennifer_S, Jul 2023

Thanks to my guide for not canceling the tour when it turned out to be just me! Despite the rain the tour was great. I learned a lot about the history of Oxford and some of the different colleges. As a Tolkien fan I appreciated my guide pointing out somethings I wouldn’t have noticed on my own. He was also great at giving suggestions on other sites to see

Response from Host, Jul 2023

Hi Jennifer, We will never a cancel a tour because of the weather. Part of the joy of living on an island. Thank you for being such a great sport and getting involved with the tour in spite of the rain! Glad you enjoyed yourself. I hope you enjoyed the rest of your Oxford sojourn.Take care

Discover Oxford properly

Sulaiman_A, Jul 2023

The great welcoming from the tour guide. Also the amazing depth of knowledge he has about the city. With out that, my visit to Oxford would be a waste. We managed to learn about the past and present of the great city Oxford.

Response from Host, Jul 2023

I am so glad you enjoyed the tour. Thank you for your kind words.

Great tour!

Mara_F, Jun 2023

Wonderful walk, fun and full of knowledge. Would recommend! Got the best of the Oxford university area :)

Response from Host, Jun 2023

Thank you for joining Escape to Oxford! I hope you enjoyed the rest of your time in our magical city.

Oxford is steeped in...

Andrew_L, Jun 2023

Oxford is steeped in history and our tour guide was very friendly and knowledgeable about the town of colleges. It was a perfect way to walk around in a small group tour

Response from Host, Jun 2023

I'm pleased you enjoyed the tour

An enjoyable walk

Susan_P, Apr 2023

Our guide, Andrew, was personable and tailored the walk to our interests. The tour was a terrific orientation to Oxford and useful at the beginning of our stay.

Response from Host, Apr 2023

Thank you.

Oxford walking tour

Elizabeth_J, Jan 2023

Informative and well-paced. Very knowledgeable guide. Would definitely recommend it to friends and family

Response from Host, Jan 2023

Dear Elizabeth - Thank you for your comments - it was a pleasure to show you around Oxford. Best wishes Nick Woods

Lovely morning

Emily_M, Dec 2022

Really interesting and informative. Would recommend to anyone wanting to learn about the history and experience the beauty of Oxford

Response from Host, Jan 2023

Dear Emily - thank you for your comments and very pleased that you enjoyed the tour with Escape to Oxford. Best wishes Nick Woods

Loved it!

Peter_S, Dec 2022

Lovely experience with quirky and knowledgeable individual insights which we really enjoyed. Thank you so much for booking us in to see the Divinity Hall!

Response from Host, Jan 2023

Pleased to hear that your enjoyed the tour with Escape to Oxford. Best wishes Nick Woods

Lovely Oxfordian Walkabout

Howard_R, Nov 2022

Knowledgeable walkabout with an experienced guide in a beautiful city! Nick was terrific and entertaining!

Response from Host, Nov 2022

A pleasure to meet you Howard and to be able to show you around Oxford - glad you enjoyed your visit. Best wishes Nick Woods

Personalized introduction to Oxford!

Rachel_P, Jul 2022

We very much appreciated the tour being limited to a small group. Also our guide's willingness to modify the tour to meet our interests, including a walk by Teddy Hall! While it was sometimes hard to hear him, our guide's historical insight and tips on places to eat and follow up with later made this a great introduction to Oxford!

Response from Host, Jul 2022

Thank you for your positive comments.

Nice, small group tour.

Steve_W, Jul 2022

knowledgeable guide. Much better than the student guides reading off of their iPads that we saw around us. He knew were to take us before certain things closed. Was a small group of 8, which was good because the guide was very soft spoken and it was hard to hear a lot of the time, but otherwise generally a good guide.

Response from Host, Jul 2022

Thank you for your positive comments and the gentle nudge to 'speak up!'

Could show us more

Elisabetta_M, Apr 2022

We were expecting to see more and enter at least some of the colleges and buildings that were mentioned but only seen from the outside and briefly explained.

Response from Host, Apr 2022

Thank you for taking the time to post your review. We note your disappointment on certain aspects of the tour. As it stands at present, entry into the colleges can range from £3.00 to £8.00 per person, additionally, visits to college and university are usually prearranged prior to the start of the tour.

Relaxed and entertaining walk

Jennifer_M, Apr 2022

Relaxed informative and entertaining walk around Oxford when you only have a short stay. Interesting stories behind the facades.

Response from Host, Apr 2022

Thank you for your positive comments

Great tour, highly recommend!

sheridan_o, Jan 2022

We had a great time with Andrew. He was very friendly, knowledgable, and entertaining. My sister and I went to Oxford for the day from London, and this was the perfect tour to introduce us to the city and university. Lots of fun facts and stories!

Response from Host, Jan 2022

Thank you for your kind words. Please come again, there's loads more!