Top Oxford Outdoor Activities

The Best Way to Discover Oxford: Scavenger Hunt & Self-Guided Tour. Play, learn, and walk! Explore at your own pace with a 100% self-guided activity. Start anytime (24/7) with no guides or schedules. Pause for a photo at the History of Science Museum or a visit to The Story Museum and resume whenever you're ready—even the next day. This unique team-building activity is perfect for couples, families, and groups. The "Complete City" Package - Everything you need in one app: Interactive Game: Solve puzzles and discover 10+ major attractions, plus hidden gems revealed along the way. Learn the history/legends of each site. Insider Tips: Access hand-picked local restaurant and shop recommendations. What you will visit: Oxford Castle & Prison, The Covered Market, Ashmolean Museum, History of Science Museum, University of Oxford, Bodleian Library, Radcliffe Camera, The Story Museum, Christ Church, and Christ Church Meadow.

Explore Oxford University’s famous regatta course on this Thames River sightseeing cruise. Hop aboard your sightseeing boat in the heart of Oxford and cruise out onto the famous waterway. Learn more about the city’s rich history from your guide, and discover local landmarks such as Folly Bridge, Christchurch College, the Oxford University boathouses and the Meadows.

Admire Oxford from the water on this cruise, and see a side to the city that many travelers miss. Float along the tranquil Thames River as your skipper points out places of interest such as Christchurch College, the Meadows, Port Meadow, and Folly Bridge—which you can enjoy without having to jostle the land-based crowds. A picnic lunch midway keeps you fueled throughout.

Enjoy the iconic Oxford experience of punting on the River Cherwell without doing the hard work on this private tour led by an Oxford University student. Relax and take in views of key landmarks, colleges, and literary inspirations as you glide along the river with your student guide directing the punt.

The TouringBee audio guide serves as a handy mobile companion for a self-guided tour in Oxford. This tour is specifically designed for those looking to explore the city in a short span of time (1.5-2 hours). Simply follow the route on the app's map, which takes you from Oxford Castle to University Park, passing by colleges and other notable landmarks. You're guaranteed to see: Carfax Tower, Tom Tower, Alice's Shop, Christ Church College, St. Mary's University Church, Radcliffe Camera, Bridge of Sighs, The favourite pubs and a bench of J.R.R. Tolkien. Once you've downloaded the tour, the app runs offline. The audio guide can always be heard clearly through your headphones. Enjoy captivating stories and legends at your own pace, without the need to keep up with a tour group. Feel free to pause for a break in a café, or explore a scenic alleyway before resuming your tour. If you only have a few hours to explore Oxford, make the most of it with the TouringBee audio guide.

Walk the halls of one of the world’s oldest and most famous universities on this walking tour of Oxford University. Get a glimpse of student life as you peek inside the famous Bodleian Library and see landmarks like the University Church of St. Mary, Radcliffe Camera, and Trinity College. Learn about the prestigious university’s famous alumni, hear fascinating stories and anecdotes about its history, and see on-campus locations used in the Harry Potter films.

Enjoy a different way to explore the sights of scholarly Oxford—and pair your sightseeing with a cocktail of your choice—on this evening cruise. Board your boat before the sun sets, and head out onto the calm waters with just your guide and a small group for company. Sip a cocktail or a soft drink as you soak up the views, and spot attractions including Christ Church Meadow.

Turning the streets of Oxford Into an Adventure Playground! Get a unique perspective of the city centre on this self-guided, interactive treasure hunt. It's the best way to explore the city! On your adventure, unlock a hidden trail by finding clues, solving puzzles and completing challenges, earning points along the way. During your Quest, not only discover the city's highlights but explore hidden gems, learn some fun facts about the places you visit and see things that most people just pass by. As the activity is all self-guided through the app, you can start your Quest when you want (must be played during daylight hours), there are no set starting/ending times. No groups to follow. You can go at your own pace, stopping for longer in one location, taking a break or having a snack in one of the many cafes and pubs along the trail OR you can make it a race and try to get to the top of the city leaderboard! Instant acess with nothing to print from home. Will you conquer the Quest?

Punting is a great leisure activity, a great tradition amongst the people in summer. An experienced punter will guide you down the Idilic river Cherwell whilst you enjoy the beautiful scenery and if you so choose you can bring along a picnic. Feeding the waterfowl (swans, ducks, moorhens and geese) is allowed but please refrain from touching the waterbirds are some are protected species.

Explore Cheltenham in a different way with this private, interactive Operation City Quest scavenger hunt. Download the app to your phone, grab your team, and start the game. You'll find 120 items in 13 categories to earn points, with chances to gain more by completing challenges. Compete against other teams around the country and see who tops the leaderboard.

Zombie Scavengers tests your ability to survive after a Zombie Apocalypse. The game leads you through the city, where you will have 60 minutes to collect survival items for your colony. The Setting: Small colonies of the living are doing all they can to survive. You and your team have been tasked with scavenging for survival supplies for your colony. You’ll only have 60 minutes to figure out which items you'll need and find as many items on the list as you can. Your Mission: With 1 hour and your team of up to 10 people, you will use your smartphone to search the area for much needed food, supplies, and shelter. Along the way, you will be asked to do some challenges or answer some trivia questions. The goal is to score at least 4000 points in 1 hour in order to survive the zombie apocalypse! PS. Our game is family friendly, no actual zombies are involved in the scavenger hunt.

Discover the Harry Potter movie locations of Oxford on this walking tour. Visit the famous Bodleian Library to see the hall used as Hogwarts’ Infirmary in many movies, and view other locations in one or two of Oxford’s oldest colleges. As you walk, enjoy a fun Harry Potter quiz, and learn about Oxford University and other famous children’s books written in the city. Entrance fees to the Bodleian and select colleges are included.

Begin in Oxford’s historic heart, cycling past iconic landmarks like the Radcliffe Camera, Bodleian Library, and Bridge of Sighs. Hear stories of the city’s famous figures, from world leaders to writers like C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien. Leave the center for peaceful riverside paths along the Thames, where rowing boats and tree-lined banks reveal a quieter side of Oxford. Continue to the charming village of Iffley, home to stone cottages and a beautiful Norman church. Ride onward to Port Meadow, an ancient landscape of grazing horses and open skies. With the ease of an e-bike, explore far beyond a walking tour at a relaxed pace. All sites are viewed externally.

Solve cryptic clues, uncover stories, and enjoy the excitement of following a treasure map with this private self-guided adventure around Oxford. No need to pick up any equipment—simply access the game via a link on your smartphone and you’re ready to begin. The treasure hunt is all outdoors, which is the perfect way to avoid crowds, and it’s a great way to learn lesser-known facts about Oxford too.

Eight centuries of scholarship, hidden doors, and medieval bridges — Oxford has it all, and this hunt takes you right through it. This app-led scavenger hunt takes you through Oxford on foot, using phone-based riddles to guide you from one landmark to the next. No guide, no fixed start time. • Stand before the Radcliffe Camera, Oxford's most iconic dome and the beating heart of its ancient library system • Find the legendary Narnia Door and uncover the literary secrets hidden in plain sight around the city • Cross the Bridge of Sighs, Oxford's answer to Venice, connecting two centuries of academic tradition Available in 24 languages including English, French, German, Spanish, Italian — see the full list when booking and choose yours when you start the game in the app. Around 2 hours - any group size. Oxford is a city of layers — and this tour peels them back one riddle at a time.

Follow in the footsteps of famous former residents like J.R.R. Tolkien and C.S. Lewis—and discover many of Oxford’s top landmarks in just a couple hours—on this introductory walking tour. Meet your group in central Oxford, and set off on foot. You’ll see key attractions like the Bodleian Library and Sheldonian Theatre, will explore the university area, and you will see many of the elegant colleges from the outside. Note: book an afternoon tour to tour inside the colleges (subject to availability).

Explore Oxford’s historic town center and ivy-strewn university buildings on this bike tour. Cycle through the City of Dreaming Spires alongside a guide, and learn about the city’s history as you take in University of Oxford buildings where the likes of Oscar Wilde, J. R. R. Tolkien, and several British prime ministers have studied. This bike tour allows you to cover more ground than you would on a walking tour, as well as access pedestrianized areas inaccessible to tour buses.

Pair the freedom of independent travel with the challenge of solving quizzes, clues, and puzzles when you download this fun GPS explorer app for Blenheim Palace, Oxfordshire's landmark stately home. Choose whether to tour the map pins displayed on your screen or enjoy the journey at your own pace. Your price includes 1-day access to the app for one device (which can be shared): Blenheim Palace tickets are not included.

Enjoy a relaxed, hassle-free evening in Oxford with this river cruise and dinner combination that takes care of both sightseeing and dining in one seamless experience. Cruise along the River Thames while sipping chilled prosecco and taking in peaceful views of Christchurch Meadows and the university boathouses. Afterward, head to a highly regarded city-center restaurant for a delicious three-course meal—perfect for making the most of your time without juggling separate bookings.

Walk around Oxford while trying to survive the zombie apocalypse with Zombie Scavengers! On an app, you'll be given a list of items to find (in any order you choose) to help you survive a zombie apocalypse. You'll get points for finding these items, as well as completing some zombie themed challenges. Figure out the best game plan to get the most points in order to survive. A remote host will chat with you during the game if you have any questions. Prove you can survive the zombie apocalypse in Oxford for bragging rights with all your friends!

This is highly engaging experience run by activity instructors with years of instructional experience who will give you hands on experience of learning how to throw axes. At Fat Squirrel Outdoor our throwing axes are lightweight making them easy for most people to throw. Being outdoors its a great tension reliever that is uniquely mediative and exciting at the same time.

Get off the tourist track and onto quiet country lanes on this unusual e-bike guided tour. Savor stone cottages and quaint gardens in villages like Wilcote, Crawley, and Swinbrook; admire the ruins of the North Leigh Roman Villa and medieval Minster Lovell Hall & Dovecote; and capture signature photos in popular Burford. This is a private tour, meaning you choose where to stop to buy lunch, a drink, or afternoon tea.

Test your skills and see if you can survive the zombie apocalypse and experience Reading in a different way with this private, interactive scavenger hunt. Download the app to your phone, and gain points as you find survival items around the city or perform zombie-themed challenges. Includes access to a remote host for assistance during your 1-hour adventure.