Oxford City & University Walking PRIVATE GROUPS Tour
Overview
Available languages
Mobile ticket
Oxford & England's history will be brought alive on this private guided walking tour of the city and university traditions. Storytelling about student life, college traditions, Henry VIII, Bloody Mary, CS Lewis, Tolkien & even Harry Potter!
You may request any special interests for the tour eg sciences or arts or writers in Oxford etc. We generally always include entrance into at least one Harry Potter film site on this tour too (where and when possible).
Requests for a tour in your foreign language must be received at least 48 hours notice & are therefore also subject to whether a bilingual guide happens to be available or not. Requests for a tour in a foreign language also have a marginal additional cost to book.
Includes entry fees inside one or more colleges or the Divinity school at the Bodleian.
Additional Info
Wheelchair accessible
Infants and small children can ride in a pram or stroller
Service animals allowed
Transportation options are wheelchair accessible
Suitable for all physical fitness levels
Average duration 90-120 minutes and tour to cater to your special interests (let us know on the day or in advance).
Tours are in English but where possible and with at least 24 hours notice, we may be able to provide a tour in a foreign language.
Please note that as the university colleges are private institutions, we can't always guarantee entry to colleges but it is very rare that we cannot get entry into at least 1 or 2 colleges on the tour. Please take note of any advertised university graduation dates mentioned below, as those dates can have less options of colleges to visit.
What To Expect
Bodleian Library
We will introduce this venue but please note that the Bodleian library never permit guides to take tours inside the library.
St John's College
Which college we will see inside will vary from day to day, depending on what is open but generally we see inside one to two colleges and we pass by and introduce many other colleges too
Options
Uni private English
Uni private
Spanish private group tour
Spanish private tour: MINIMUM 48 HOURS NOTICE TO BOOK!
French private group tour
MINIMUM 48 HOURS NOTICE TO BOOK!
Mandarin or Cantonese private
Russian or Ukrainian private
Italian private group
MINIMUM 48 HOURS NOTICE TO BOOK!
Dutch private group tour
MINIMUM 48 HOURS NOTICE TO BOOK!
What‘s Included
If you book at least 2 days ahead & request a foreign language tour, sometimes this is possible.
Entry worth up to £5 per person is paid by the guide to enter at least one venue
Please see EXCLUSIONS section below for any dates with limited college entry eg graduations, Xmas
This tour includes entry to one college but option to pay for extra entry fees of extra colleges too
Christmas notice: colleges are usually all closed from approx Dec 21 to Jan 2nd
GRADUATION DATES: we cannot always guarantee entry inside any colleges or venues
2025 Graduation dates, there may be few or no colleges open includes....
Feb 28, March 7, May 15+ 16+ 23, July 18+ 28+ 31, Aug 1 + 8, Sep 25+ 26, Nov 6 + 7 + 13 + 14 of 2026
Tours are only offered in foreign languages, if adequate advance notice 2 days ahead & at £250 cost!
Cancellation Policy
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
Reviews
17 reviews
Total reviews and rating from Viator & Tripadvisor
Beyond Expectations
Samuel B,Jun 11, 2026
- Review from Tripadvisor
5.00Sophie Duncan, we rate highly as an Oxford Tour Guide. Her knowledge of the Oxford city history, literature, and other interesting facts were beyond expectations. I particularly liked her wit, energy, patience with rude Americans, and deep historical storytelling skills. Thank you for such a memorable experience.
Wonderful walking tour in Oxford
Adventure07737802108,Mar 6, 2026
- Review from Tripadvisor
5.00Peter was a fantastic guide with so much knowledge of Oxford, from the university and colleges to the history of the city, the literary figures and movies that have been made there. He told us so many interesting anecdotes and showed us much that we would never have read about in a book or discovered on our own. We thoroughly enjoyed every minute of our tour. If you are going to Oxford, try to book him!
Lovely
Guy P,Oct 18, 2025
- Review from Tripadvisor
5.00We had Peter and he was very knowledgable and engaging, spending a lot of time showing us round the city. Brilliant tour - would recommend
Enthusiastic
David B,Jun 30, 2024
- Review from Viator
5.00George was enthusiastic and gave lots of interesting information. He kept us entertained throughout and involved. Perfect tour of Oxford.
Oxford Insights: Inspiring tour with Joanna
tetianao887,May 26, 2024
- Review from Tripadvisor
5.00The city walking tour in Oxford is a fantastic way to explore the city! Our guide, Joanna, was incredibly knowledgeable and shared fascinating facts, insights, and stories that made the tour truly authentic, inspiring, and fulfilling. I took the morning slot to start the day, get the first understanding about the city’s life, history, and culture, and keep the rest of the time to enhance this experience by strolling and visiting other places. I highly appreciate Joanna’s energy and passion for making the day in Oxford so special.
Ok but nothing special.
carlapF6546QX,Aug 19, 2023
- Review from Tripadvisor
3.00Peter took as around he was late to the appointment. We were waiting over 20 minutes . Thought it was very interesting but didn’t see much as he had other tours. Felt very rushed. We had taken a private tour. He promised lots of things but didn’t do any.
What a brilliant tour.
gregory s,Jun 19, 2023
- Review from Tripadvisor
5.00What a brilliant tour. Renata is very knowledgeable and has a great personality. We learned a lot and enjoyed it. She worked at our pace.
Wonderful Tour and Expert Guide!!
Lisa A,Apr 26, 2023
- Review from Viator
5.00Peter was a wonderful tour guide!! Would highly recommend this tour! He was very witty and told great stories about the many Oxford Colleges and landmarks we saw on the tour. His personalized attention (and delicious chocolates) made for a wonderful afternoon. There are so many places to see in Oxford; we would definitely go again!!
Giro particolare della cittadina di Oxford
BarbaraGras73,Dec 18, 2022
- Review from Tripadvisor
5.00A very nice guy brought us around the Oxford village telling us many curious anecdotes of the village and Harry Potter's saga. He even made us dress up like wizards to take pictures in the divinity school. It was funny. I recommend this tour.
Great Day Trip from London
Ashley C,Nov 26, 2022
- Review from Viator
5.00This tour was our very favorite thing of our weeklong trip! It was an easy train ride from London and gave us a chance to see what life is like outside of the big city. Our guide, Murray, was a student at Oxford and was very knowledgeable about the history of the area as well as the university. He had many interesting stories that were entertaining for our teenagers. He gave us a really great feel for what life is like in the city and also as a student. He knew a lot about the architecture and history of individual buildings also. We did a two hour walking tour and felt like we got a really good overview of the city/university as a whole and he even gave us some ideas of things to do and places to eat after our tour was over. We would definitely recommend this tour and guide to anyone coming to the UK!
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Operated by Visit Oxford Tours