London: Warwick Castle, Oxford & Stratford Shakespeare Day Trip

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Free cancellationTravelers' pickLikely to sell out

1/13

Duration10h 30m

GroupUp to 53

LanguagesEN · ES

Mobile ticketAccepted

Four centuries, four towns, one coach—and you're moving the whole time

You visit four major sites—Warwick Castle, Shakespeare's Stratford, Oxford's university colleges, and a panoramic drive through the Cotswolds—all in one day from London. Entry to the castle and Shakespeare's birthplace are optional add-ons; the walking tour of Oxford is included. A coach with WiFi and a guide who knows the history of each place means you're not navigating or timing yourself—just moving through the day on a fixed schedule.

10h 30m

Step-by-step itinerary

Visit Warwick Castle and nearby towns

Explore Warwick Castle grounds
Tour State Rooms and Great Hall
See 14th-century castle dungeon graffiti
Visit Shakespeare's Stratford-upon-Avon town
Optional visit to Shakespeare's Birthplace
Walk tour of Oxford city sights
Drive through the Cotswolds countryside

The Experience

You're on the coach by mid-morning, heading out of London toward Warwick Castle first. The drive takes you through the English countryside, and your guide starts talking about the 'Kingmaker'—the Earl of Warwick who actually held power over kings in the 1400s. The castle sits on 64 acres along the River Avon, and when you walk in, you're standing in rooms that haven't changed much since the 17th century. The State Rooms are full of suits of armour and medieval weapons. There's a 14th-century gaol—the original dungeon—where prisoners carved their names into the stone hundreds of years ago. You can still read some of them. If you've added entry to your booking, you spend maybe ninety minutes here; if not, you stay on the coach and the guide points out what's visible from the gates.

Then it's on to Stratford-upon-Avon, the market town where Shakespeare was born in 1564. The half-timbered house where he grew up is still standing, and if you've paid for entry, you walk through rooms where his family actually lived. The Shakespeare Trust has kept rare artefacts—letters, documents, objects from his time. The town itself is small and walkable, and most people spend an hour or two here before heading back to the coach. After Stratford, you drive through the Cotswolds—almost 800 square miles of rolling countryside across five counties. It's the largest Area of Natural Beauty in the UK, and the coach just moves through it; there's no stop, but the guide points out the stone villages and the way the landscape changes. You're watching, not getting out.

Oxford is the last stop, and this is where you get a proper walking tour. The guide takes you through the cobbled streets past the Bridge of Sighs, Trinity College, the Ashmolean Museum, and the Sheldonian Theatre. Oxford is the oldest university in the English-speaking world, and the architecture goes back to Saxon times—every period is represented somewhere in the stone. You've probably seen it in films: it's been used for Harry Potter, countless period dramas, and detective series. The walking tour is included, and you're on foot for about an hour, moving at a steady pace. By late afternoon, you're heading back to London, and the coach has WiFi and USB charging if you want to catch up on anything or just sit quiet and watch the motorway roll past.

What’s included

Your day includes a superior coach with WiFi and USB charging, an expert guide with a personal audio headset system so you hear clearly, a walking tour of Oxford, a panoramic drive through the Cotswolds, and optional entry to Warwick Castle and Shakespeare's birthplace if you add those when booking.

Good to know

Moderate physical levelWheelchair accessibleStroller friendlyPublic transport nearbyInfants must sit on laps

Operated by Evan Evans Tours

Is this one for you?Right for travelers based in London who want to see four major English destinations without renting a car or planning transport between them. Expect a full day out—you're on the coach by mid-morning and back in London by evening—which is what makes fitting all four sites into one trip possible.