Matthew Arnold's evocative description of Oxford as the city of "dreaming spires" is still accurate. Yet while many of Oxford's handsome old streets are lined with majestic architecture from centuries past, there's also a lively, youthful feel to the town. And if the streets seem crowded, it's not just with the thousands of students and tourists, but also with residents, because Oxford is the thriving commercial centre for a large area of suburbs, small towns and villages.

Oxford lies in the humid, misty plain between two rivers, the Thames (or Isis) and the Cherwell. Its wide central streets are a clue that this was once an important local market town where sheep, and their wool and leather, were traded and worked. It has remained a market and local commercial centre ever since.
  Oxford was founded as a fortified "burgh" by King Alfred in the 9th century, and its position in the centre of southern England gave it a certain political and strategic importance from the start.
  Oxford university was founded in 1167. The privileged standing of its scholars vis-à-vis townspeople led to tensions and episodes of violence, with rioting several times throughout the 13th century, and a three-day pitched battle between "town and gown" in 1355.
  However a modus vivendi was reached, and by the 16th century Oxford's citizens were almost entirely dependent on the university for their livelihoods, and remained so for centuries.
  In 1913, Morris opened their first car factory at Cowley, on the edge of Oxford. Its success, and the related industries, began to change the character of Oxford. The town expanded far from its historic heart, taking in many surrounding villages and adding large areas of new housing.
  In 1992, Oxford Polytechnic in Headington was renamed Oxford Brookes University.

Parking in the city centre is expensive and hard to find. If you're arriving by car, consider using one of the well-signposted Park & Ride car parks on Oxford's ring road. Parking in these is free and there's a frequent shuttle bus into the town centre.
www.oxfordparkandride.co.uk

The city's main tourist office (Oxford Visitor Information Centre) is at 15-16 Broad Street, nearly opposite Balliol College.
http://experienceoxfordshire.org

 The Ashmolean 
 and Oxford's other museums 
The oldest public museum in Britain, still free to enter, the Ashmolean occupies a well-designed six-storey modern building behind a fine neo-Classical facade in the town centre. One of Britain's leading art and archaeology collections, its Egyptian and Anglo-Saxon sections are among the best in Europe. Exhibits extend from earliest times to the present day, themed on subjects such as money and trade, writing and textiles. The art and design collections encompass a wide range, including Flemish painting, silverware and ceramics, pre-Raphaelites, Impressionists and modern art. There's a large, busy basement cafeteria, and a restaurant at the top of the building.
  Among Oxford's many other museums and galleries are the Museum of Oxford, telling the story of Oxford with entertaining displays; the Bate Collection of Musical Instruments; the National History Museum and attached to it, the Pitt Rivers Museum, an idiosyncratic Victorian personal collection of thousands of ethnographic pieces displayed in glass cases (with unreadably tiny labels!).

 The Colleges
The university's 38 colleges are independent and autonomous. Would-be students apply not to the university but to the college of their choice. Most are centuries old and full of character, and often open to visitors. Handsome Balliol (Broad St) is one of the oldest (founded 1260) and traditionally has some of the most distinguished alumni, while nearby Wadham (Parks Rd) is noted for its informal atmosphere and liberal tradition. Magdalen (pronounced 'Maudlin'; High St), beside the River Cherwell, is one of the most picturesque and has its own riverside meadows and deer park.
  Grandest is Christ Church (St Aldates), whose gateway is surmounted by the city's landmark Tom Tower. Its magnificent Great Hall was the model for Hogwarts Hall in the Harry Potter films. The college has its own art gallery of Old Masters and even its own cathedral (which entitles Oxford to be called a city). Among dozens of distinguished alumni and luminaries associated with the college, Lewis Carroll, author of Alice in Wonderland, was a Christ Church mathematics tutor.
www.ox.ac.uk - Oxford University

 Oxford Castle 
Almost 1000 years old, originally a Norman fortress. subsequently a prison, only part of Oxford Castle survives, including a tower with exceptional views. Oxford Castle Unlocked is an entertaining family-oriented hands-on overview of the castle's history, complete with costumed actor-guides.
  The rest of the site is occupied by the luxury Malmaison hotel (in which former prison cells are now guest rooms) as well as restaurants and bars, exhibitions and events.

 Bodleian Library 
The main library of Oxford University - which has several other distinguished libraries - is the Bodleian. It's housed in a number of connected buildings, all in constant use by students and academics. The library can be visited on guided tours (including the option of individual visits with an audio-guide) which begin in the 15th-century Divinity School and encompass some of Oxford's most impressive medieval and 17th-century architecture.
  The Bodleian's exhibition area in the Weston Library, on the other side of Broad St., hosts a succession of exceptional exhibitions of its own and borrowed historic archives.
www.bodleian.ox.ac.uk

••The Covered Market – The 18th-century covered market in the town centre has a surprising variety of traditional butchers, bakers, leather goods, fashion and shoe shops and many other boutiques and shops along paved lanes.
••The indoor shopping centres – Oxford's main modern shopping mall is Westgate, in Castle Street. There's also a traditional, independent department store, Boswell's, in Broad Street, trading since 1738.
••The main shopping streets – Oxford's main shopping areas are Cornmarket, Queen St and the parts of High St and St Aldates close to Carfax Tower.
••Books – Blackwell's in Broad Street is said to be the largest bookshop in the world.