Hotels in Oxford

For budget travellers, look no further than Oxford Backpackers, a colourful hostel on Hythe Bridge St which is only a 5-minute walk from Oxford train station. For as little as £16 a night in simple 4 to 18-person dorms, it offers the cheapest rates in town. Another wallet-friendly option is to stay on the outskirts of Oxford and travel into the city by bus – booking in advance usually yields a cheaper rate as well.

All in all, there are 38 colleges in Oxford and quite a few of them have the ‘dreaming spires’ made famous by poet Matthew Arnold. The best-known among these include Christ Church, Magdalen, All Souls, Trinity and the oldest of all, University College, which opened around 1249. Most (but not all) colleges are open to the public – opening hours vary and most charge an admission fee.

Other historic gems you shouldn’t miss include the Bodleian Library and the Ashmolean Museum, both of which are in the city centre and within easy walking distance of each other. While visiting Oxford, it is best to wear your most comfortable shoes as you’re likely to spend a good part of the day walking around.

Oxford has the best of both worlds – world-class concerts and a thriving alternative cultural scene. This mix of culture reflects Oxford’s “Town and Gown” divide, which has existed for as long as the colleges themselves.

Many colleges have evensong choral concerts that are free and open to everyone; the Cathedral Choir of Christ Church, for instance, is incredible, with angelic voices in a heavenly setting. You can also choose from a huge programme of excellent live orchestral, operatic, theatre and dance performances all year-round.

Alternatively, Oxford also has a buzzing nightlife scene, with clubs, pubs and bars hosting every kind of musical genre imaginable, in addition to stand-up comedy and slam poetry contests.

As you might expect from a university city, there are hundreds of cheap and tasty cafés, snack bars and fast-food joints to keep the world’s top brains well-fed. At the other end of the price scale, you can dine on fine cuisine at a range of spectacular gourmet restaurants. In between the two extremes, there are many good-value restaurants serving up both traditional English dishes and global cuisine within the city centre.