Best one week from Oxford

How wonderful that you’ll have a week to explore. Could you give a sense of your interests? And what time of year are we talking?

We are going to be there in first week of August. We enjoy history and markets and friendly bars.

If you have a car, you could easily do a trip to the north Cotswolds. Bourton-on-the-Water, Lower Slaughter, Broadway, Chipping Campden are some of my top picks. Blenheim Palace around 7 miles NW of Oxford is also we’ll worth seeing. You could also go to Stratford-upon-Avon. All off these can be done from a base in Oxford or you could re-locate.

Bath should also be considered and can be easily reached by train.

Definitely a visit to Blenheim Palace. Also have a look here for plenty of ideas from Stately homes to gardens and countryside...

First of all be sure you take time to visit Oxford, all the things you didn't have time to do when you were tied up for business. I love Oxford and would definitely recommend visiting a couple of the Colleges and the Bodleian Library. I was lucky enough to stay at Christ Church College during a term break and really enjoyed having breakfast in the 'Harry Potter' dining hall. You can easily take the train to Moreton-in-Marsh and go on a day tour of the Cotswolds with Go Cotswolds or rent a car if you would like more time to explore this lovely area. I stayed in Chipping Campden, but visited many of the other villages. I also agree you should definitely go to Blenheim Palace. My visit there simply was not long enough.

I forgot to add. Stratford on Avon is very close and is a great place to visit, especially if you like Shakespeare.

Another worthwhile site in Oxford is the Pitt Rivers Museum - an amazing collection.

Love the Pitt Rivers and always stop by!

a few years ago, we booked into https://www.witneyhotel.co.uk/ which is adorable as it looks in the town of Witney, a small town 12 miles from Oxford (with direct daily bus service to Oxford). There was good food, a great pub and very friendly people. And Witney is so well located that we rented a car for the week and took day trips to Stow on the Wold, Gloucester, Great Tew, Bletchley, Royal Lenington Spa, Warwick and the Castle and Stratford on Avon. Each destination was an hour or so (some were less). We stayed 7 days and visited a different place every day and in addition, a lot of small, interesting places popped up along our chosen routes. We loved it all.

I echo visiting sites in Oxford, which I didn't do when I was there in August-Sep 2023 and now regret not doing.

While based in Oxford, I did day trips to Waddesdon Manor and Hughenden, both accessible via public bus routes from Oxford (about an hour long trip each). Hughenden was the home of Victorian-era Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli and also has a WWII story that is very interesting.

I also went to Basildon Park, which was a little underwhelming from the way that the guides shared the history of the house, however the Shell Room at Basildon Park was mind-blowing.

Also in Witney (recommended by a previous poster) is Cogges Manor Farm which is a farm since the 1100s (earlier??) and which has a Downton Abbey filming connection. On a Sunday morning, you could hear the church bells pealing which was very enjoyable.

Farther from Oxford, consider York or Wales. I think you would really enjoy the Museum of Welsh Life(St. Fagan's) which is easily reachable as a day trip from Cardiff.