Oxford & Cambridge, United Kingdom

Think of Oxford and Cambridge and inevitably you think of their universities; great academic institutions inhabiting honey-coloured stone buildings set around ivy-clad quadrangles. Both cities are internationally renowned centres for teaching and research, attracting students and scholars from across the globe. Not only do they feature some of England’s finest architecture, they also boast excellent museums, bars and restaurants.

Getting to and around Oxford & Cambridge

Oxford

Oxford is well served by national road and rail links. Frequent 24-hour direct train services connect Oxford with London (peak times every 10-20 minutes). From Oxford train station, it's a ten-minute walk east to the centre.

Long-distance and countywide buses terminate at the Gloucester Green Coach Station. The Oxford Express service from London includes stops in Victoria Coach Station, Grosvenor Gardens, Marble Arch, Baker Street/Gloucester Place and Hillingdon.

London Heathrow and Gatwick airports are linked to Oxford by a direct 24-hour coach service. London Stansted airport is linked to Oxford by National Express coaches.

Much of Oxford's historic city centre is now closed to private traffic, but all city centre attractions can be comfortably reached on foot or by bicycle. The lack of convenient downtown parking makes the city's Park-and-Ride scheme very attractive. There are Park-and-Ride car parks on all the main access routes into the city. The tourist office is very close to the Gloucester Green bus station.

Cambridge

If you are coming from London, the best way is to arrive is by train. The train station is a mile or so southeast of the city centre and there are frequent buses that connect the train station to downtown Emmanuel Road.

If you are arriving by air, Stansted (London's third airport), is just thirty miles south of Cambridge on the M11. There are hourly trains from the airport to the city, in addition to regular bus services. Good coach services also link London’s other airports with Cambridge.

Much of the city centre is closed to traffic and on street parking is often difficult to find. If you are coming for a day-trip, the best option is a Park-and-Ride car park. They are signposted on all major approaches to the city.

The city centre is small enough to walk round comfortably. Cycling is an enjoyable way of getting around and has long been popular with locals and students alike. Bike rental outlets can be found all over town.

Oxford Highlights

Oxford is famous the world over for its University and place in history. For more than 800 years it has been a home to royalty and scholars, and since the 9th century an established town. Although the university dominates central Oxford both physically and mentally, it is nowadays a bustling cosmopolitan town and home to a growing hi-tech community.

The origins of the university are obscure, but it appears that the reputation of Henry I (the so-called "Scholar King") helped attract students in the early 12th century. The first colleges, founded mostly by rich bishops, were ecclesiastical institutions. This was reflected in collegiate rules and regulations – until 1877 lecturers were not allowed to marry and women were not granted degrees until 1920.

Oxford can keep you occupied for several days. The university buildings (including thirty-nine official colleges) feature some of England's finest architecture. The compact centre of Oxford lies between the Thames and the Cherwell rivers. Many of the oldest colleges face onto the High Street or the sidestreets adjoining it, their mellow stonework combining to create one of the most beautiful parts of Oxford.

Magdalen College is one of the most beautiful to visit. The college is entered via a grand Victorian gateway, beyond which is the Chapel. The adjacent cloisters (arguably the finest in Oxford) are adorned by standing figures from the bible and folklore. Magdalen also boasts better grounds than most other colleges. The bridge (behind the cloisters) spans the River Cherwell to join Addison's Walk, a pathway following the river to a water meadow where rare wild fritillaries flower in spring.

Christ Church College is Oxford's largest, most prestigious college. Albert Einstein, William Gladstone and no fewer than twelve other British Prime Ministers were educated here. The chapel of Christ Church College is also Oxford’s Cathedral. The present structure is essentially Norman. The Norman legacy is most apparent in the choir, where massive columns rise to delicate 15th century stone vaulting. Fine medieval carving and several impressive tombs have also survived here, most notably the shrine of St Frideswide.

The university's principal museums grew up around the collections of John Tradescant, gardener to Charles I and an energetic traveller. During his wanderings, Tradescant built up a huge collection of artifacts and natural specimens, which were eventually split up between the Ashmolean and the Pitt-Rivers museums.

Occupying a mammoth Neoclassical building, the Ashmolean is the oldest museum in the country. Highlights include the Egyptian rooms (with well-preserved mummies and sarcophagi), unusual frescoes, rare textiles from the Roman and Byzantine periods and several fine examples of relief carving, such as on the shrine of Taharqa. The Islamic Art, Chinese Art and European Painting sections are all remarkable.

Cambridge Highlights

Cambridge was founded in 43AD by the Roman emperor Cantabrigensis, but remained an insignificant market town until the foundation of the university. Cambridge was founded in the late 1220s, supposedly by students fleeing Oxford after one of their number was lynched by hostile townsfolk. Rivalry has existed between the two institutions ever since – epitomized by the annual Boat Race on the River Thames.

Cambridge is a quiet and picturesque town and what sets it apart from Oxford is "the Backs" – the green swathe of land that straddles the River Cam, providing beautiful views over the backs of the old colleges. The façades of these same colleges dominate the layout of the town centre, lining up along the main streets (most of the older ones date back to the late 13th and 14th centuries). There are thirty-one university colleges in total, each an independent, self-governing body, proud of its achievements and attracting a close loyalty from its students.

The most famous is King's College, founded by Henry VI in 1441. Disappointed with his initial efforts, he cleared away half of medieval Cambridge four years later to make room for a much grander foundation. The present complex is largely neo-Gothic, built in the 1820s to a design by William Wilkins.

However, Henry's workmen did start on the college's finest building, the much-celebrated late Gothic King's College Chapel. Committed to canvas by Turner and Canaletto, and eulogized in three sonnets by Wordsworth, it's now best known for its boys' choir. The choir derives its world-wide fame from the annual broadcast of the Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols (heard by millions all over the world), together with its many recordings and international touring programme.

During the 19th century the curriculum broadened with new subjects such as natural science and history being introduced. The number of students increased dramatically, however it was only in 1947 that women were awarded degrees. In the meantime, the city and university had been acquiring a reputation as a vanguard of scientific research. Its alumni have been awarded with more than ninety Nobel prizes and it has become a major international player in the lucrative electronic communications industry.

Cambridge is an extremely compact place, and you can walk round the centre (visiting the most interesting colleges) in an afternoon. If time permits, a visit to the Fitzwilliam Museum is recommended. Built in the mid-19th century, the beautiful Neoclassic building houses a string of private collections. The Lower Galleries contain a wealth of antiquities including Egyptian sarcophagi and mummies, in addition to a bewildering display of European ceramics, Far Eastern applied arts and Korean ceramics.

The Upper Galleries concentrate on 19th and 20th century European painting and sculpture including works by Picasso, Matisse, Monet, Renoir, Delacroix, Cézanne and Degas. British painters featured include Blake, Constable, Turner, Hogarth, Reynolds, Gainsborough and Stubbs. There are important Italian and Flemish sections and the post-1945 gallery includes pieces by the likes of Lucian Freud, David Hockney and Henry Moore.

Punting is the quintessential summer pastime in both Cambridge and Oxford. Handling a punt (a flat-bottomed boat ideal for the shallow waters of the Thames and Cherwell rivers) is not as easy as it looks, but it is a lot of fun. In Cambridge, punt rental is available at the boatyard at Mill Lane, at Magdalene Bridge and at the Rat & Parrot pub on Jesus Green. In Oxford, try the Magdalen Bridge boathouse or the Cherwell boathouse by Wolfson College. Five people make the ideal group (four sitting and one punting). If you find it all too daunting you can always hire a chauffeur punt from any of the rental places.

If possible avoid visiting either university town in summer, when the students are replaced by hordes of tourists and foreign-language students. Due to summer crowds, the more popular colleges restrict their opening times and several have introduced admission charges. Bear in mind, too, that during the exam period (late April to early June), most colleges close their doors to the public at least some of the time.