London to Oxford, Cambridge

To get to Cambridge, I'd take the train. I should warn you that if I recall correctly, the train station for Cambridge is not in the center of town. There is, I believe, fairly quick rail service on this route now, under an hour, and I think the fast trains leave from King's Cross. Look at the National Rail website for more information.

Depending on how many days you have in London, if you've been there before, and how much you want to see, you may want to consider carefully how many day trips you take.

It's great if you have a free place to stay, but if I am reading the map correctly, Clissold Park to central London is going to take a fair amount of time each day, so be sure to factor that in to your travel plans.

Hope you have a great trip!

I have taken the Oxford Tube to Oxford and back...it's a bus service that departs every 10 minutes, 24 hours a day. Takes a little longer than the train but it is cheaper and gets you there relatively quickly. It leaves from Victoria Coach Station just around the corner from the Victoria Rail Station.
I spent a summer in Oxford when my husband was doing some academic research there and I couldn't love a city more. I got to play while he worked! It is utterly beautiful and has hundreds of interesting nooks and crannies to explore. The river is beautiful, many of the colleges are accessible to the public for visiting, and the history of the town is very interesting. Take a tour of the Bodleian Library, have lunch, dinner or a drink at The Eagle and Child Pub, visit Blackwell's Bookshop, spend an hour in the Ashmolean Museum, walk through the covered market, go see the deer park at Magdalen College, climb the spire of St. Mary's church, have lunch in the cafe in the church's vaults, walk the small lanes and alleys...it's a great place to just wander around and get lost!
You really don't have time to stop by Windsor Castle on the way...it's at least a 1/2 day affair to visit if you want to see anything at all.

I concur that Oxford by bus is better than Oxford by train. The train requires a certain amount of walking in, at which point you haven't saved any time over the bus which arrives in the center.

I love Oxford and we go there every time we go to London because my husband had a year there and wants to reminisce. But why two university towns? They are both lovely, but there are other day trips to take from London--not meant as a criticism of your plans, just as a question to ask yourself. You could spend another day in London or you could go to Bath, Greenwich, Windsor, Canterbury, Dover, or a number of other easy day trips.

The Oxford Tube is cheaper, but I would prefer the train for a day trip - if you're travelling at the times that would give you most time in the city, you might well hit severe rush hour traffic at one or both ends of the motorway.

The M40 motorway is nice enough once you have reached beyond the M25, before that it is mile after mile of red brick and concrete inner suburban yukk all the way from near Paddington on the bus.

The train goes through similar areas for a few minutes but does it quickly and then is in beautiful countryside all the way to Oxford, including following the river as it changes from the Thames to the the River Isis. You can see boats and beautiful views, and then the Dreaming Spires as you arrive.

Some like one way, others the other. Me? Choo choo.

The train is £12 return if you book 'advance' tickets early enough. The cheapest day return on the Oxford Tube or the Oxford Bus Company (X90) is £18. If you just do walk-up on the train it is £24.80. So regarding price either can be cheaper depending on if you are a planning person. The train could offer a few stopping points along the way - Windsor would be possible albeit with an extra ticket from Slough. Whether you would have the time for both is your affair.

The buses go to Gloucester Green which is about 5 mins closer walking into the centre than the railway station (and still a walk to most of the 'sights'). The only time the bus would have an advantage in my mind is if you happen to be staying in London more or less on top of one of its stops.

For Oxford add my yes to coach. Our Oxford friend advised taking the coach from Victoria Station bus terminal as the quick and economical mode with frequent and evening service. He was correct.

Marco - great tip about the train prices. And Nigel your description of the train ride is tempting. We most likely will not be renting a car, and taking a train or bus so we can see more parts of the country does sound fun.

Two universities in such a short trip does sound a bit silly :). On our itinerary I have about 5 question marks next to our Cambridge trip. Anita - we are seeing if there are any faculty my boyfriend might want to do some post-doc research with! So glad to hear you enjoyed your time at Oxford. Maybe we can visit Cambridge on another trip if he does end up studying there...:)