Private Day Tour To Oxford And The Cotswolds

What a flawless way to start a trip to the UK! Having a seamless pickup right at Heathrow transformed our travel day into an unforgettable adventure. From the moment Peter met us at the airport, we knew we were in fantastic hands. He was an exceptional host—incredibly knowledgeable, warm, and engaging throughout the entire journey. Skipping the stress of luggage and transit transfers to head straight out on a private tour was the best decision we could have made. Our first stop in Oxford was brilliant. Peter brought the city's rich history to life as we explored several of the iconic university colleges, offering fascinating insights into student life and the incredible architecture. From there, we headed into the stunning countryside of the Cotswolds. The highlight was definitely visiting Upper and Lower Slaughter—Peter’s commentary and guided walking tour through both villages were spot-on, perfectly capturing the charm, history, and tranquil beauty of these quaint spots. If you're looking for a stress-free, deeply informative, and scenic day out right after landing, we cannot recommend Peter enough. A truly perfect experience from start to finish!

Richard, our driver and guide for the day, was fantastic. His knowledge of the history of England and the places we were visiting was never ending. The day was delightful and would highly recommend this excursion.

Christian was very pleasant, and quite knowledgeable about the areas we visited. It was a pleasure chatting with him. Highly recommend him.

Our guide was outstanding. Knowledgeable, professional, and funny. Perfectly balanced trip. Thank you Christian!

Our tour to Oxford and Cotswolds was amazing and so fun. Our tour guide, Peter, was extremely knowledgeable and provided all sorts of interesting historical tidbits throughout the day. The pacing of the tour was great as well - we didn’t feel rushed and got to see several sites and villages throughout the day. It’s clear Peter loves his job and takes it very seriously.

Our guide was very knowledgeable and made an effort to keep everyone engaged. It was lovely having a tour guide tailor the trip to our wants as we went.

We had a wonderful day with David , our tour guide. He was prompt and very flexible. The van was clean and comfortable. We were on a very tight schedule so he had to modify his normal routine, which he did easily while still getting us to the places we wanted to see as well as locations we didn’t know about but we’re glad we visited. It was a day trip well spent.

I've been to the Cotswolds before and this time wanted to show it to friends. Our tour guide basically just drove us through and only stopped at one not-so-picturesque place. We asked at the time of booking if the spot we wanted to go for lunch would be able to get us in and out fairly quickly. Unfortunately, lunch took forever and our tour guide, knowing we wanted a fairly quick stop, did not assist with this at all. Finally, we had elderly people with us who needed to stop at a restroom on the long way back to London and he first said he would not stop. When I asked what he thought the alternative was, he stopped, but was very rude about it. I would never recommend this tour guide. The Oxford component was lovely, but the guide had nothing to do with that - he just dropped us off.

Our guide Christian was remarkable and communication with the company before the tour was very good. Christian was so knowledgable about everything we saw from ancient history to current popular media and he made everything come alive. He asked us about our interests and custom tailored the trip on the fly to include sites pertinent to some of our favorite books, shows and authors. We had asked for Oxford and the Cotswold but we had a brief tour through Bath as a bonus.

Our family enjoyed our tour to Oxford and the Cotswolds. Richard our guide was very knowledgeable and kind. We were a tad disappointed in that we had specifically communicated to Tailored Tours that we wanted to visit Oxford to see the Harry Potter filming sights and besides Christ Church college, which we booked ourselves, we did not see any other places at the University related to Harry Potter. In hindsight we should have visited Oxford by ourselves and done a specific HP tour there. However, we would used Tailored Tours again and recommend them.

Highly recommend. Wonderful guide and he tailored the day exactly how we wanted it. Very knowledgeable - we all really enjoyed it.

This was an excellent tour and very fun experience. Will, our driver, was outstanding. He was knowledgeable, engaging, and quite personable. I highly recommend this tour and that you request Will as a guide. You won’t be disappointed.

We had an outstanding experience with Christian as our tour guide through Oxford and the Cotswolds. From the moment we met him, it was clear we were in great hands. Christian is not only a wealth of knowledge—sharing fascinating insights about everything from the lives of J.R.R. Tolkien and C.S. Lewis to the rich history of the English countryside—but he’s also a fantastic listener. He took the time to understand what we were most interested in and tailored the day perfectly to match. He even added a special stop that meant the world to us—an unforgettable personal touch. Whether you’re hoping to dive into literary history or grab a pint at the Ted Lasso pub, Christian makes it all happen with warmth, wit, and professionalism. Highly recommended!

Our group of 4 adults and 1 teen had a great day with Dave exploring Oxford and some Cotswold villages. He was a timely, knowledgeable and personable host and his van was very clean and comfortable! We wanted to explore outside of London during our week long visit and this was a good choice! The ease of pick up at our flat, having a personal host and driver, and Dave's knowledge of where to go, what to see and what was realistic timewise made the cost of this tour well worth it for our group rather than managing our own itinerary and transport. He is also a great conversationalist and knows tons about the areas visited. We didn't really know what to expect of Oxford or the Cotswolds, and in a perfect world, with time stretched out, we would've enjoyed more time in all locations, but that's not realistic in one long day trip, nor is it a reflection on Dave or the tour company, more about our lack of research about where we wanted to go/see, and understanding of the distance and traffic in and around London. We didn't know how fascinating the locations would be, especially Oxford. We could easily spend a day or two in Oxford in the future to dive deeper into the history and enjoy the village and university. Once we got the hang of how the day was shaping up and what was most interesting to us, we voiced our ideas to Dave and he flexed the tour plan to meet our interests, including some pub stops for a creamy cold pint. Highly recommend this tour operator, and if you are inclined, doing some research in advance will make your tour even better. This isn't a "cookie cutter" tour, they really strive to make it what suits you, you just have to let them know!

Had an amazing experience with Russ as our tour guide. He is was so attentive to our needs and our tour ideas. He brought us to the Diddle Squat Farm , the Formula 1 museum, and a hedge hog rescue farm. We had a delightful lunch in a local pub and everything was just so customized. You can really tell that he cared about giving us a memorable experience. Id highly recommend him to anyone looking to book a private tour trip!

Our Guide was very knowledgeable and took us to places I couldn’t even have imagined. It was so beautiful and full of rich history.

Dave was amazing!! So full of knowledge, made us feel comfortable from the start. Would do all over again in a heartbeat.

Dave did an incredible job! Very knowledgeable. He knows so much about the histories of Oxford and the Cotswolds. Great conversationalist. Very flexible and patient with our family, even when some of us were moving slow. My 21 year old son said it was one of his favorite days of all time.

Very picturesque and historic. A big plus that our guide is passionate about history so the wealth of knowledge is priceless

Peter was absolutely the best tour guide. Very knowledgeable, entertaining and a pleasure to be with. Highly recommend his services. Thank you Peter for a wonderful day!

A wonderful day out in a most beautiful part of England. Having the opportunity to go through Oxford and see the different colleges and beautiful buildings was a thrill. Driving through the countryside as well as a beautiful lunch at an ancient inn was a real treat. Our 7 year old grandson was equally as thrilled and our guide Kerri was fantastic. Well versed in the history of the area as well as really turned on to some of the back roads providing the full experience. A great day out for the whole family.

My family and I had the absolute best day in the Cotswolds and Oxford with Christian! My brother had specifically requested a stop at Diddly Squat Farm Shop, and around that Christian planned the perfect day for us to see filming locations for Clarkson's Farm as well as Ted Lasso, Downton Abbey, and of course all the filming locations in Oxford for Harry Potter. In addition to his expertise in guiding us through the Cotswolds and Oxford, Christian was so friendly and fun to spend the day with. In researching tour companies, it was really important to me to find one that was customizable for our 7 person group to make sure we all got a little something out of the trip, and Tailored Tours more than delivered on that. I would definitely book a trip with them again - in fact my family's been discussing other places we could go using Tailored Tours in the future. Thanks again for a lovely day trip that created a very special memory for us all!

Fernando was amazing! He picked us up outside of our house, was super flexible and accommodating. He is extremely knowledgeable and shared so many amazing insights with us throughout the day. Amazing walking tour, followed by several incredible stops in the Cotswolds. Highly recommend!

If we could give 10 stars, we would! Christian from Tailor Travel was our guide. Christian was extremely knowledgeable— providing us with the history and even etymology of the region in a fun and interesting way. We were highly engaged and recommend this tour!

If you’re coming to London and want to venture out. You must book this tour with Oliver We had a fabulous day at Oxford and the Cottswolds. He knowledge of history is impressive. He narrated and pointed out all the highlights from London all the way there and back. We couldn’t get enough. Once in Oxford he took us on a walking tour to be sure we didn’t miss anything. We had free time on our own to explore as well. On the way to the Cotswolds he even stopped for a photo opportunity and booked us into the Porch House the oldest inn in the area dating back to 947AD for lunch. The food and inn was excellent. Oliver offers other tours Tailor Made is the name of his company and he will take you to other locations out of London. We highly recommend booking any tour with him.

Wonderful day exploring Oxford and some of The Cotswold villages. Pete was very flexible and when we stopped for lunch and we loved the village we changed our itinerary to accommodate more time there. The Mercedes van was comfortable. Would highly recommend this tour!

Christian was the best tour guide I have encountered. He was professional and very knowledgeable. He was always willing to stop for cream tea. He was prompt and arrived at the appropriate time to start our tour.

Great tailored experience where you can see what you’d like to see. We had a 2 seniors and 3 children and everyone had a great time

Kerri was great and we enjoyed the tailored experience. Comfy ride and the countryside was beautiful as we got to ride and learn many be things.

Highly recommend this day trip to the Cotswolds and Oxford! Our driver/host, Christian, did an amazing job of tailoring this excursion to our interests so that we saw Oxford first and foremost, and the rest was simply lovely icing on the cake! Our DIL often suffers from car sickness, but she was delighted that she had NO issues with that -- in fact, she said that her very favorite memory was driving (!) through the Cotswolds as the sun was setting! The car was comfortable; Christian's tutorials were interesting and compelling; and we made wonderful memories during our trip. Thank you, Christian, for an excellent experience!

On our trip to London, we wanted to experience the English countryside and booked the Private Day Tour to Oxford and The Cotswold. The experience did not disappoint. I was initially very disinterested in visiting Oxford as I knew nothing about it. Oh, I was so wrong. Our wonderful guide Peter made the city come alive. His knowledge of the history of Oxford and the surrounding area was fascinating. We then continued into the Cotswold's, visiting 3 lovely towns. During my research, I had saved a posting about the Porch House-England's oldest inn, and unbeknownst to me, tailored Tours had made a lunch reservation for us at their restaurant. The lunch was everything one would imagine, where we indulge in great fish and chips. Sometimes when I book through Trip Advisor getting in touch with the tour operator tends to be an issue as they are not all very responsive. This was not the case with Tailored Tours. Each time I emailed with a question, they responded in a very timely fashion. I cannot say enough wonderful things about our guide and driver Peter. The day was a highlight of our trip.

We had a group of 5 and the day was not at all what we expected, especially due to the large expense. We were basically stuck in a van all day with very poor visibility due to the high seats and head rests. We had no opportunity to stop and take pictures, we weren't even offered any water which was probably good since we were not allowed to stop and use a restroom until we insisted. And even then Will didn't want to because we didn't "have time." I had specifically asked to skip the Oxford portion to spend more time in the Cotswolds and we just flew through some amazing little towns without having the opportunity to get out and explore. The tour stated we could have lunch and we were hoping to stop in Stow on the Wold but just got blurry pictures of the beautiful main area as we wizzed by! We had a 30 minute stop to get a sandwich which we had to eat in the car because it was the only place in the little village and was swamped with people and took 20 minutes waiting in line. The day started by our guide complaining about having to pick us up at the Westin in London square and wanted to drop us at the tube at the end of the day because he didn't want to drive back through London. We felt extremely rushed all day, didn't get any lasting memories, and were talked to in a condescending way all day. I would recommend NOT taking this tour.

Tailored Tours created our best adventure! On our perfect Autumn day in the misty hills of the Cotwolds we saw where Hobbits much have first been imagined. Let your own imagination go and you will find what you dream of. We followed where our favorite authors caught inspiration walking the cobblestone lanes of Oxford. Turn your head and see towers Tolkien gazed at. At every nook and corner are reminders of C.L. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien. At Holy Trinity Church in Stratford upon Avon we listened to a local bard recite Tolkien's 1936 poem Noel, just uncovered a decade ago, while standing at the feet of Shakespeare's epitaph warning to "Good Friends" to never disturb his rest. Tailored Tours created a day that exceeded our expectations! Take one of their tours or craft one of your own with them. Our amazing travel guide Christian entertained with wit and wisdom as our comfortable 21st. century coach became a time machine. Ask to have lunch at the local pub where a dog named Findlay greets you!

The guide, Christian, was very friendly and professional. The car was clean and comfortable. Communication with Tailored Tours was efficient and timely. Based on conversations with guide, we were able to fine-tune our itinerary and schedule to our preferences. The entire day was really enjoyable, not rushed, and interesting. We would happily use Tailored Tours again!

We had such a good experience with Tailored Tours. From beginning to end, they were great! Oz our driver and guide was so knowledgeable about the history of where we touring and sightseeing. He was awesome. They were also very good with correspondence after we booked and so timely on the day of our event. Would definitely book with them again!

In Oxford we visited the impressive Blackwell’s Bookshop, walked around some of the beautiful college buildings at Oxford University, walked through the Covered Market, and were able to buy walk-up tickets to see Christ Church and its grounds. In the lovely though showery Cotswolds we walked around Burford, had lunch in Stow-on-the-Wold, saw scenic Upper and Lower Slaughter and Bourton-on-the-water. Our guide Peter was quite knowledgeable and an excellent driver. His van was spacious and comfortable.

Christian heard our family talking about Diddly Squat Farm and made a side trip just for us. Later he drove us by Tolkien's house because he heard us talking about LOTR. He gave us so much good information but also let our family talk and interact the way we always do. We loved the towns he showed us in the Cotswolds and his food recommendations were perfect. I wish it could have been longer, at times I felt rushed to get through each city and I wanted to do a bit of shopping at antique stores. When I dawdled, he was gracious. Overall, a huge success and our favorite day of the whole trip.

We had the best day with Christian! He tailored our tour to our interests and took us to the most beautiful locations and interesting sites. We had a private tour and I definitely recommend doing that. It’s worth the extra for the experience. The car was roomy and very comfortable. His knowledge was vast and we felt like we made a friend. We will be back!

Book your trip! Oz with Tailored Tours led us on a sensational and educational tour that we will be talking about for years. He promptly picked up us at 7:30 in a comfortable and clean minibus outside of our accommodations. Happily, we left the navigating and trip planning to Oz then settled in for the comfortable ride. We first traveled to Oxford then Upper and Lower Slaughter in the Cotswolds. Along the way, Oz shared history of the area. We set out in search of a CS Lewis and Tolkien themed tour full of truth, goodness, and beauty. Oz delivered! He tailored some of the tour information and destinations just for our family. Oz entertained us with charm, grace, and knowledge for part of each tour then gave us some time on our own to explore each destination. We loved Blackwells bookshop and Lucy’s tea room for treats. After feasting in Upper Slaughter, we roamed a few fields on walking trails through Lower Slaughter, stopping for churches, flowers, and sheep. What a fantastic day tour from London! Yes, I highly recommend this tour for a family with teens.

We had a wonderful day with Christian sightseeing around Oxford & various Cotswolds villages! He was super helpful throughout the day and worked to customize our itinerary throughout the trip. Christian provided great fun facts and made the journey very comfortable. We appreciate the flexibility and how seamless the planning was for this trip. Will be recommending!!

Christian was very helpful and accommodating. He had a ton of fun facts along the way! He added in a few surprises as well!

We had an outstanding tour with Will to Oxford and the Cotswolds. The drive was very comfortable and enjoyable, and Will takes great care of you and shares great knowledge every step of the way. With a private tour with Will, we saw far more than we could ever see on our own or with a tour group and got off the beaten path to see so many interesting and amazing villages. Greatly enjoyed and highly recommend!

Relaxing and easy going tour with overnight in Cotswalds. Tailored Tours set it up and we followed. If you have seen LONDON this is a nice change. Enjoyable pub stops beautiful countryside.

We had a wonderful day with Peter! We 1st went to Oxford. We could have easily spent 2 days in Oxford! The shops were wonderful but we really didn't have time to visit many....had I to do it again, we would do a whole day there. Peter got us the most bang for the back in our time there. We loved the Cotswold villages. We could have spent a day there easily. Peter was fantastic and we would definitely use him again!

The tour was amazing. Oz made it an incredible experience with his knowledge, and passion for history! He was also very accommodating.

Incredible tour provided by local volunteer. Very knowledgeable. Walk is about 3miles on various services but well worth the effort. This is a must when visiting Bath!

It was a great day spent with Will. He knows all of the back roads and will keep you laughing during the day. Highly recommended.

This was a fabulous job and Christian was a wonderful tour guide. He was extremely knowledgeable and elevated the experience by sharing the history and stories of the area. We especially appreciated his recommendation for a snack and for lunch. His friendly personality enabled us all to feel relaxed and entertained. We were 3 generations- ages 72 to 13 and we all enjoyed our tour. Thanks so much!

Our tour was provided by Tailored Tours, and our guide Oz was very punctual, knowledgeable, friendly, and a safe driver. We toured Oxford and the Cotswolds. Oz is a history major and provided us with a wealth of knowledge pertaining to our tour sites. My wife and I have done about 20 day tours and Oz was definitely one of the best guides we have ever had. I highly recommend using Tailored Tours.