Cambridge, a small city about 90 kilometres north of London is home to the prestigious University of Cambridge, dating back to 1209. Over the centuries the University Colleges and the city have evolved and grown together into what it is today. The place is rich with history, dating right back before the Romans in the first century AD and is a great place to go to get out of London for a unique English experience.
History
Despite, only being formally classified as a city in 1951, the history of Cambridge goes back 2000 years with archeological evidence of human settlement from the Bronze age. However, it wasn’t until AD 70 that the Romans settled and built a small fort and grew their influence in the area.
During the Medieval period, which saw the arrival of the Vikings, the place grew as an important centre for trading and eventually became until the control of William of Normandy, following the Battle of Hastings in 1068. Following this the first town charter was created in the early 12th century with the famous Round Church also dating back to this period.
In 1209, you could say the place saw another invasion…invasion of the students. The University was founded by students escaping from Oxford due to hostile treatment towards scholars by local townspeople (this is a bit of a complex and brutal story, I’ll leave that for you to research later on).
As the Industrial Revolution took off in the Early Modern times, rapid growth was seen once again, with even further development stemming from the arrival of the railway in 1845, despite facing resistance from the University. The train station was deliberately placed outside of town (about 15 to 20 minutes walk), with the University wanting to restrict travel for undergraduates…fearing they would gallivant off to London to see shows at the theatre and get distracted from their studies! Personally, I don’t think that would have stopped many of them 😂
Finally in 1951, Cambridge was granted status as a ‘city’ despite not having a cathedral (a traditional prerequisite for such status). This was done in recognition for its history, importance and economic success.
Today, studying at one of the colleges at the University of Cambridge is a goal for many young students and a degree from here carries with it immense prestige. It is also a drawcard for tourism, being an easy day trip from London, surrounded by rather picturesque countryside and provides opportunities for some epic nights out at one of the many bars, pubs or clubs…so I am told 😊
Getting Here
You have a few different options depending on exactly where you are coming from, the time you have on your hands and your budget.
Driving: Cambridge is roughly 100 kilometres from Central London and most navigation devices will tell you the better route is taking the M11 North. It should take between 1 hour 30 minutes and 1 hour 45 minutes. If there is heavy traffic it can take up to 2 hours 30 minutes (if you get unlucky).
Coach: This can sometimes be the cheapest but also takes the longest. It is a 3+ hour journey from London Victoria Station on a National Express Bus and they all seem to make you change at Stansted to pick up another coach for the remainder of the journey into the centre of Cambridge. Most of the fare prices I have seen range between 10-15 GBP each way. If you did the return journey that is roughly $55-60 AUD. Alternatively, you can manage to snag tickets for around 12-13 GBP each way departing from Golders Green, Liverpool Street or Stratford and these journeys are quicker (2-2.5 hours). However, these coaches drop you at a Park and Ride about 5 Kilometres from the city centre and you would have to use a bus transfer from here. On my recent trip in December 2021 I opted to catch the train (details below) and because I was willing to take an early train (7am) out of London and a slightly later one to get back (5 or 5.30pm) my tickets were considerably cheaper. So all in all, this was a much better option I thought, than using the National Express coach. I didn’t like the idea of changing buses or being dropped a decent way out of town. I just wanted the shortest, most direct and convenient journey to make things easier and more relaxed.
Train: This is the quickest and easiest from London. But, be warned kids…train tickets in the UK are not great for backpacker travellers. As mentioned above, I had to take a early morning train there and return later in the evening just to make it a bit cheaper and more reasonable for a day. Just keep in mind that the train station is a decent walk from the city centre (at least 15 to 20 minutes, as mentioned above).
What to see and do
Stroll along the River and go punting: I loved taking a walk along the river while I was in Cambridge. I found it super peaceful and really pretty. Punting is also very popular and a great way to take in the sights of Cambridge with a unique view. For those who don’t know what this is, you are basically sitting in a long, square ended boat with a flat bottom. It moves by having someone push it along with a long pole against the bottom of the river. It is a little bit like being on a gondola (if you have been to Venice). If you take a walk through town and towards the river, you will come across plenty of opportunities for this.
Colleges: Take the opportunity to go inside the grounds and the famous buildings that make up this wonderful university. Most notable are St John’s, Kings and Trinity College. Most Colleges are free to enter, but a few may charge a small fee. NOTE: they are only open to visitors and certain times so I suggest doing your own research beforehand to make sure you can visit the ones you want.
Walking tour: I took the ‘Free Cambridge Walking Tour’ with Footprints tours. They also run walking tours in Oxford,York, Bath and London. The University and King’s College tour was paid (£25 GBP for an Adult) and I was on a super tight budget so I opted for a free one that took in the city as well as little bit about the University Colleges, without actually going inside or entering the grounds. It is a great way to engage with the history of the place and understand the significance and purpose of the buildings that you can see in front of you.
Museums : Cambridge is home to some outstanding museums, which should come as no surprise given the academic prestige of the place. Some of the popular ones include:
*The Fitzwilliam Museum. Here you will find more than half a million artefacts and pieces of art from around the world including Egyptian coffins, rare coins and medieval armour.
*Centre for Computing History. You can experience a hands on and interactive display of computers and game consoles that date back to the early 1960’s!
*Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology. Includes exhibits relating to world cultures with artefacts ranging from costumes, textiles, stone tools and pots, sculptures and paintings that represent human history over more than 1000 years.
Enjoy a cooked English breakfast: I feel like this is something you could do in any English town or city, but why not give it a go here. After all, you are in England…may as well soak up any opportunity for those famous English breakfasts.
A night out: Head out to a bar, pub or club for a few rounds of drinks. Popular choice include The Elm Tree, The Grain and Hop store, Hidden Rooms and Cambridge Lola Lo.
Places to Eat/drink
The Mill: Situated by the water, The Mill is one of Cambridge’s iconic and idyllic pubs.
The Anchor: Another riverside pub very close to Queen’s College and the famous Mathematical Bridge.
The Fudge Kitchen: Pick yourself up a few slabs of the most fabulous fudge…they are all pretty much gluten free and they have some Vegan options too (made on Coconut or Oat Milk). Note: this is also the starting point of the Walking tour I mentioned earlier, so why not get there a bit early and pick up some treats to reward yourself at the end of the day 🙂 They also have a lot of the products available to order online and have delivered. Currently they are only delivering within the UK and not internationally, due to Brexit issues. Check out more details HERE.
Fun facts
River Name Change:
Cambridge was originally built around the banks of the River Granta, but the name of the River was later Changed to Cam, in honour of the city the town that had sprung up around it.
Newton’s Apple Tree:
Located on a lovely patch of grass outside Trinity College is a replica of the tree that Newtown was sitting under when he made the revolutionary discovery about gravity, from the falling of an apple. This actually happened at his childhood home in Lincolnshire and the tree outside Trinity College today is grafted from the exact ‘Flower of Kent’ apple tree he was sitting under at the time!
Famous people who studied here:
- Sir Isaac Newtown
- Alan Turing (mathematical genius who developed the first computer and helped to crack the German Enigma codes at Bletchley Park during WWII).
- Stephen Hawking (theoretical physicist, first to establish a theory of cosmology).
- Actress Emma Thompson
- Actor Hugh Laurie (Star of TV Drama ‘House’).
- Poet Sylvia Plath
- Charles Darwin
- David Attenborough
- A.A. Milne (Author of Winnie the Pooh)
- Prince Charles (English Royal Family)
- Jimmy Carr (actually you would be surprised at the number of actors and actresses that you know…that studied here).
Of course, the list could go on for days but they are some of the stand outs I found when doing a bit of digging.
My overall thoughts
It definitely made for a good day out, and you could even make a little weekend getaway out of it. It is a super walkable city and between a tour, going punting along the river, a typical English pub feed, a night out at one of the cool bars or pubs and a visit to a few of the museums, you have enough to keep you busy for a few days if you wanted to.
If you’ve been, I’d love to hear your thoughts…and would love to hear people weigh in on the old Oxford Vs Cambridge debate (I love a bit of rivalry). For me, Cambridge wins hands down…I feel it is more picturesque, slightly smaller, a little easier to navigate and with a slightly better vibe.
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