ARCHIVED [04/06/25] Oxford’s Historic Pubs: A Walking Tour

(1 review)

Oxford audio tour: ARCHIVED [04/06/25] Oxford’s Historic Pubs: A Walking Tour

This is a 1.3mi walking tour.

It takes an average of 90 mins to complete.

Oxford

The United Kingdom

$11.99

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About the Tour

Oxford’s historical streets are full of interesting and unusual pubs, some of which have been providing refreshment for over 700 years. On this walking tour, you’ll visit a few of the oldest and quirkiest pubs the city has to offer.

Starting at the Head of the River pub near Folly Bridge, you’ll wind through cobbled lanes and hidden passages to discover ten of my favourite pubs, each with a story to tell. As a local Oxonian, I’ve been enjoying the fascinating history of these pubs for as long as I can remember. I’ll lead you through the ancient streets where students and townspeople have all enjoyed an ’Education in Intoxication’.

You’ll see where a Tuesday afternoon pub brawl took 600 years to be finally reconciled, and learn which pub had a camel. I’ll also show you a few historical landmarks like Hertford Bridge, Carfax Tower, and Radcliffe Square. By the end of the tour, in front of the Grapes on George Street, you’ll have learnt the differences between an alehouse, a tavern, and an inn.

Along the way, you’ll have a chance to:

Find out what the most common pub name in the UK is
Discover the Bear Inn’s collection of over 4,500 snipped neckties and its claim to being Oxford’s oldest pub, dating back to 1242
Stand where the deadliest town-versus-gown battle in Oxford history erupted, resulting in a 470-year penance by the city
Hear about the Crown’s connection to Shakespeare, and how the Bard befriended the landlord and became godfather to his son
Wind through the labyrinthine passages leading to the Turf Tavern, once notorious for cockfighting and now famous for celebrity drinking exploits
Learn about the King’s Arms’ reputation for having ”the highest IQ per square foot in the world” due to its close proximity to Oxford’s colleges
Visit the White Horse, Oxford’s smallest pub and a frequent fictional haunt of Inspector Morse

Join me for this 90-minute stroll through Oxford’s pub history – and if you happen to see me in any of the pubs, you’re more than welcome to buy me a pint!

Tour Producer

Paul Coyne

2 tours

I was born and raised in Oxford and it's a privilege to walk around the spectacular streets and hidden lanes of our wonderful city knowing that there will be another iconic building just around the next corner.

My tours are informative, accessible and thoroughly researched, I also like to introduce a bit of humour where I can. You won’t get a stream of dates and names, instead there will be unusual tales, interesting characters and hopefully something that you’ve never heard of before.

I have detailed knowledge and first-hand experience of the spectacular buildings and institutions of Oxford which I've used to good effect in the tours I've produced.

The Oxford Historic Pub tour was created to celebrate the great pubs we have in the city, all the pubs I've included have genuine character and a story to tell. I probably shouldn’t say this, but; I've had many happy, and sometimes slightly drunken evenings in all the pubs on the tour – my excuse is that it was all in the pursuit of authenticity and accuracy!

Lyra's Oxford tour was produced to celebrate the release of The Rose Field which is the final instalment of the 'His Dark Materials' and 'Dust' series of books by Philip Pullman. I loved reading the books with my daughter when they first came out and this tour includes all of the significant locations in Lyra Belaqua's world. The end of the tour includes a visit to Lyra and Will's bench that appears at the end of the Amber Spyglass - a must-see for any Philip Pullman fans.

My latest tour visits the darker side of Oxford through the centuries, Cursed, Burned and Hanged: Oxford’s History of Execution and Murder takes a journey through over a thousand years. The tales are told through the eyes of Bishops, Rogues, Villains and the innocent Oxford people who were there at the time.

I hope you enjoy the tours I’ve produced and which ever you choose to take, one thing is for certain you will love experiencing Oxford and it’s dreaming spires.
Paul

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Preview Location

Location 16

The Crown

Stop for a moment outside the entrance of The Crown. There has been a pub here since about 1364, but it was named The Crown when John Davenport became the landlord in 1660.

Oxford was on the coaching route from Stratford-upon-Avon to London, and William Shakespeare regular... Read More

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Major Landmarks

The Head of the River, Oxford
St Aldates Police Station
Alice's Shop
Tom Tower
OLD TOM PUB
The Bear Inn, Oxford
The Wheatsheaf
The Chequers
Carfax Tower
The Crown
Radcliffe Square
The Hertford Bridge
Turf Tavern
King's Arms, Oxford
White Horse
The Grapes

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Getting There

Route Overview

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Start location
Folly Brg, St Aldate's, Oxford OX1 4LB, UK
Total distance

2km
Final location
7 George St, Oxford OX1 2AT, UK
Distance back to start location

830.14m

Directions to Starting Point

The tour starts at The Head of the River pub, Folly Brg, St Aldate's, Oxford OX1 4LB

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Tips

Places to stop along the way

Any of the pubs would be worth stopping at, some do food & coffee/tea.

Best time of day

The tour can be completed at any time, but when the pubs are open would be best.

Precautions

Some busy roads to cross & the pavements can be busy.

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“Great app. walk around at your own pace, stop where you want, move on or speed up when you want. Read the script before you go or during the commentary, speed it up or replay it. Repeat the tour whenever you like.”