Things to do in Oxfordshire this Half-Term

February half-term has positively raced into view! And yet, it feels like only yesterday that we were enjoying the festive season with our Christmas Light Bus weaving through the streets of Oxford. If you haven’t entirely recovered from the holiday season (like we have), fear not! Here are some suggestions for keeping both big and little people entertained, all within walking distance of a bus stop.

Tours and Trains

Whether you’re visiting the city for the first time or want to show off your home turf to guests, the City Sightseeing Oxford tour bus is an ideal way to see Oxford’s top landmarks in one go. It follows a route of 20 stops around the city centre, and you can hop off as often as you like, close to many of the Oxford-based attractions mentioned below. Four-legged friends are welcome! All bus tours include a Stepping Through Oxford Walking Tour with additional options available. Book your tickets here.

If trains are how you roll, then there’s a bit of a treat in store for children at Didcot Railway Station—the much-loved Wallace and Gromit will be making an appearance on 15th February! Money-saving tip: show your mobile bus ticket at Didcot Railway Centre and receive a 20% discount on entry.

Family Trails

If you’re planning to spend a day in the city, then the stately University Church of St Mary The Virgin is running a free half-term trail where children can help Thomas Cranmouse find his hat by solving riddles along the way.

Do you have any intrepid explorers in your family? Why not set them on an intriguing quest for relics at the eclectic Pitt Rivers Museum? During the half-term, families can participate in What’s in Our Drawers?, a fun family trail that will see you all rummage through fascinating artifacts, engage in object handling, and unleash your inner creativity with interactive craft activities.

For a lovely day out (and if the weather looks promising), you could take family or friends on a self-guided spy adventure in Oxford to save Christchurch Meadow from catastrophe. Printed maps can be purchased for £9.99 or downloaded for the same cost. Treasure hunt trails are also available for Jericho, Headington, Abingdon, Wallingford, and Thame.

If you’re looking to break up the walking, your children will enjoy City Sightseeing Oxford’s detective game, Mia Cloo’s Oxford Quest, which is free with every bus tour purchase and includes a special prize at the end.

Further afield, outdoor adventurers of all ages might enjoy Harcourt Arboretum’s Geocache Trail which runs until March 2025. What’s more, all 130 acres are packed with wildlife (from swooping birds of prey to showy peacocks), even during the winter months when the woods are at their most starkly captivating.

Animals

Interested in food, farming, nature or all the above? The community-led Oxford City Farm has planned some exciting half-term activities including hands-on farming sessions, family fun days, and goat milking tutorials. While advance booking is essential, most activities are free apart from the goat milking experience.

There’s plenty to see at Millets Farm without spending any money. The animal walkway has goats, sheep, chickens, pigs, rabbits, horses, a duck feeding area, and alpacas. Plus, there’s a playground, a nature trail, and plenty of picnic areas if you want to make a day of it. Entrance to other onsite attractions and events is chargeable.

If you like both alpacas and americanos in equal measure, then you could pay The Snug at Bishops Court Farm a visit. Here you’ll find over 60 adorable alpacas (available for walks for a fee), alongside horses, pigs, pygmy goats, and sheep. Coffee or tea lovers will appreciate the warm and inviting cafe, housed in a converted tractor shed, and overlooking the alpaca field.

For more woolly walks and a glass of local sparkling cider (not at the same time), you could head to Horspath’s Sunnyhill Vineyard, home to a lovely family-run vineyard and a herd of very friendly alpacas. Don’t miss their half-term special of 20% off alpaca walks from 17th to 21st February. Money-saving tip: Show a mobile bus ticket if you want a 10% discount off purchases in their shop.

And finally, here’s something a little different for the kids: Science Oxford is running a Creature Creations workshop where budding scientists aged 5-11 can dress up as their favorite animal and invent creatures with their own superpower survival skills. Tickets cost £10 and booking is required.

The Great Outdoors

It’s true! Green therapy is a “thing” so if you’re looking to escape the stresses of life, then we’d prescribe joining Oxford Botanic Gardens’s Wellbeing Outreach Officer for Winter Wonders for a short talk on a particular plant, feature or area of the garden. These 20-minute sessions are held every Tuesday, 28th January – 18th March, 12:30–12:50 and are free with entry.

Fancy a wander around some ruins? A short bus ride from Oxford (you can also walk along the Thames Path to Godstow Lock) leads you to the ruins of Godstow Abbey, where King Henry II’s renowned mistress, Rosamund Clifford, once lived. Although what’s left of the abbey isn’t large enough for a full-day visit, it’s an atmospheric pitstop for those walking The Thames Path between Port Meadow and Wolvercote.

For a further flung adventure, you could head over to Wallingford Castle grounds for a stroll. The adjacent meadows are home to diverse natural habitats as well as a Victorian grotto that’s surrounded by a display of snowdrops in early Spring. If you prefer a bit of structure to your wanderings, the nearby museum offers reasonably-priced guided walks, or you could download this self-guided walk.

For a walk that combines captivating views, historical interest and nature, try this circular route between Wittenham Clumps from Dorchester-on-Thames, featuring Dorchester Abbey, an Iron Age hill fort, a 15th-century chapel and a farm shop and café.

If you fancy rounding off a hearty walk with a brew (who doesn’t?), consider venturing to The Maker Space in Nuffield. This former derelict pub combines a café, haberdashery shop, and art space, offering magnificent cakes and bakes to replenish hungry walkers and cyclists. The Maker Space is located on the Ridgeway Nature Trail, and they’ve compiled a number of walking ideas of varying lengths right on their doorstep.

Taking the bus just two stops down from Nuffield will bring you to Nettlebed, home of Nettlebed Creamery and its renowned cheese toasties, the Nettlebed Estates, and the neighbouring Warburg Nature Reserve. You’ll find plenty of picturesque walks here too, a few of which you can download from the creamery’s website.

Family in tow? A little closer to Oxford, Sutton Courtenay Environmental Education Centre is running some nature-based activities for all ages including outdoor nature play for toddlers, community crafting bird box building, and nature rambles, while The Earth Trust is hosting a Winter Birds and Acorns on Tour seasonal activities as part of its programme of nature-based play experiences for pre-schoolers and early years kids.

If you’re looking to entice the gaming addicts out, then Laser Gaming Oxford are running some February adventure days where they can engage in some exciting laser tag battles and blow off some steam in a safe environment.

And finally, although it’s early days (and maybe a little chilly) for boating activities, Magdelen Bridge Boat House is kicking off punting season offering self-drive and chauffeured punts as well as rowing boats and pedalos hire.

Museums and Archaeology

As fortune would have it, Oxford is blessed with an abundance of museums such as The Ashmolean, The Pitt Rivers Museum, and the Museum of Natural History – are mostly free (except for special exhibitions and events) and are packed year round with treasures galore.

Additionally, The Story Museum is hosting a whole array of imaginative activities tailormade for children including a chance to train as a knight at King Arthur’s Knight School – quite the adventure! Tickets are from £10 per person. Money-saving tip: Show a mobile bus ticket if you want a 10% discount off in the café and shop.

Got a budding archaeologist in the family? Oxford Castle and Prison’s DIG! February Half-Term archaeological adventure offers youngsters the opportunity to dig for treasure, make their own relic replica, and explore historical finds from the castle site.

For digging of a different kind, you could take the little dinosaurs in your family to Oxford Natural History Museum’s Dino Discoveries workshop featuring hands-on activities, crafts and touchable specimens.

For a day out with unexpectedly broad appeal, try The River and Rowing Museum in Henley. There’s so much more to it than rows of rowing boats with plenty of things to do for all ages including an imaginative Wind in the Willows 3D experience and dress-up opportunities for children, and engaging pathways through the main galleries.

Theatre and Cinema

The history buffs among you might enjoy Martin Shaw’s (of Judge John Deed fame) interpretation of Sir Thomas More at The Playhouse’s A Man for all Seasons in an account of the relationship between Henry VIII and Sir Thomas More.

If you haven’t watched The Greatest Showman, or even if you have watched it, why not join in and head to New Theatre Oxford who are hosting a live sing-along on 18th February where audience participation is encouraged (as is fancy dress).

Meanwhile in Wallingford, The Corn Exchange will be showing live screenings of Les Miserables, The Importance of Being Earnest, and The Royal Ballet’s Swan Lake. Also families won’t want to miss the beautiful cinematography of Mufasa The Lion King, showing as both a matinee and evening performance during half-term.

Music

Classical music fans should visit Dorchester Abbey to hear Braimah Kanneh-Mason perform three magnificent Mendelssohn pieces, including the Hebrides Overture and Italian Symphony, while Baroque fans may enjoy Baroque Splendour at SJE Arts, which features works by J.S. Bach and Telemann with the Royal College of Music Baroque Orchestra and Chamber Choir.

Meanwhile, University Church of St Mary the Virgin will be hosting a free viola and piano lunchtime recital on 20th February and a piano recital featuring Katya Grabova on 27th February. St Peter’s College, Oxford will also be offering free lunchtime recitals every week until 13th March 2025, as well as opportunities to experience the tradition of Evensong.

If the blues are how you rock, then heading Wallingford Winter Blues and Jazz Festival might be just the ticket (and you won’t need one for most of their events). Running from 14th to 16th February, you’ll find brilliant live music, a lovely community spirit, and lots of opportunities to get involved.

Back at Bishops Court Farm, the Spring music season starts with a lovely Evening of Jazz and Soul Love Songs featuring Jo Harrop & Nigel Price on 15th February. If you’re a Frank Sinatra fan, then make it your way to Stephen Triffitt (one of the top tribute performers) making his snug session debut in To Be Frank.

Speaking of music, here’s something a bit different – the friendly, community-run Ultimate Picture Palace will be hosting the fascinating music documentary Score. You’ll discover how some of our most beloved film music was created, including themes from James Bond, Star Wars, Titanic, and more. Plus you can stay for a Q&A session with Dr. Matt Lawson, Senior Lecturer in Music at Oxford.

Crafts

In north Summertown, art-K offers children and adults alike opportunities to explore their creative side, with Sip & Paint art workshops for adults of all abilities and they’ll going to be running a series of half-term art workshops for children.

You could also unleash your pottery painting gifts at The Funky Teapot in Wantage or if you want to get behind the potter’s wheel for the first time, you could explore what’s available at The Oxford Clayhouse or Sabali Pots in Jericho, Oxford.

And finally, if you’d like to try something a little different, the Grade II listed Maker Space in Nuffield will be offering some Mosaic workshops in February and March.

For our comprehensive list on things to do in Oxford please visit oxfordbus.co.uk/things-to-do.

Getting to Oxford and surrounding areas

Oxford is well connected by road and rail to major cities, including London. For the most convenient and eco-friendly travel, we highly recommend using the various bus services. The Oxford Bus Company and Thames Travel operate high-frequency services throughout Oxford and to surrounding areas such as Abingdon, Didcot, Wheatley, Wallingford, Wantage, Thame, and Reading. If travelling from London, the Oxford Tube offers frequent connections to central London. Additionally, the Oxford airline coach service provides daily connections from Heathrow and Gatwick airports, as well as High Wycombe.

Bus Services

Buses to Wallingford and Dorchester-on-Thames: X40

Buses to Harcourt Arboretum, Nuffield, Nettlebed and Henley: X40 to Wallingford, 33 from Wallingford to Henley

Buses to Didcot Railway Centre: X2, X32

Buses to Millets Farm in Frilford: X15

Buses to Sunnyhill Vineyard in Horspath: 46

Driving

For those who prefer driving, please note that parking options in Oxford City Centre are limited. Therefore, using one of the four Park&Ride car parks is a convenient option to get into the city centre easily and quickly.

Plan your journey: www.citysightseeingoxford.com/getting-to-oxford.