Oxford Activities for a Day or a Weekend
Oxford activities for a day or a weekend
The easiest way to plan Oxford is by the time you have, because the centre is small and most of what visitors do sits within a short walk of Carfax. Prices are in pounds sterling, and contactless cards work almost everywhere. Magdalen and New College take cards only.
If you have two hours
Climb a tower. The University Church of St Mary the Virgin charges £7 for 127 steps, takes visitors aged 8 and over, and lets the last people up at 16:30. Carfax Tower is cheaper at £4 for adults and £3 for children, with 99 steps and no entry for under-5s. In winter, from November to February, Carfax opens 10:00 to 15:00. The Sheldonian Theatre’s Cupola is included in the £8.25 Sheldonian Experience ticket, or £5.25 for the Cupola alone on event days. The Sheldonian shuts for ceremonies, so look at its opening hours first.
If you have half a day
Hire a punt. Magdalen Bridge Boathouse rents punts for about £35 an hour, up to five people, and runs a chauffeured punt at about £50 for 30 minutes for up to four. It opens daily from 1 February to 30 November, 09:30 to 21:00 or an hour before sunset. Cherwell Boathouse on Bardwell Road is about £25 an hour on weekdays and £27 at weekends, with up to six in a punt, but it closed for the season on 18 October and reopens in spring. Nobody under 16 can hire there.
A punt has no rudder and no brakes, so you steer with the pole the whole time. Oxford punters traditionally stand inside the boat. Going from Magdalen Bridge to Cherwell Boathouse means lifting the punt over the rollers. Stay out of the water: the weirs and locks on the Thames and the Cherwell are drowning hazards, and neither river is suitable for swimming or paddling.
If you want to be outdoors for free
Port Meadow is a flat common, grazed by horses and cattle, and it floods in winter. Wear boots from late autumn to spring. Many people walk across it to The Perch, a thatched pub at Binsey with a garden.
If it is raining
The Oxford Covered Market is under cover and opens Monday to Saturday 08:00 to 17:00 and Sunday 10:00 to 16:00. Some traders stay open on Thursday, Friday and Saturday evenings. It is shut on Christmas Day, Boxing Day, New Year’s Day and Easter Sunday. The Oxford Castle and Prison guided tour also works in bad weather: it lasts 50 to 60 minutes, covers the tower, the crypt and the Castle Mound, and is followed by the exhibitions. Online tickets start at about £16 for an adult, and the site is open 10:00 to 17:30 in standard hours.
A rough cost guide
- Free: Port Meadow, Christ Church Meadow, the Covered Market and the big university museums.
- Under £10: Carfax Tower, University Church tower, Sheldonian Experience, Magdalen College.
- About £16 to £35: the Castle and Prison tour online, or a punt for an hour (£25 to £35 a punt, split between the group).
Planning notes
Colleges and the Sheldonian can close without warning for exams and ceremonies, mostly between late April and June. Look at the closures page of anything you have set your heart on during the week you travel. The punt boathouses publish their own prices and dates at the Magdalen Bridge Boathouse site and the Cherwell Boathouse punting page . For tower times see the University Church tower page .
Read more: Oxford attraction tours , the Oxford guide and family activities in Oxford .
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