Tolkien Lewis Walking Tour, with Magdalen College visit, + Alice!

What's Included

Meeting and pickup

Itinerary

• 1

  Your guide will meet you here and will give you an introduction to the tour.

  10 minutes • Admission ticket free
• 2
  University of Oxford

  Learn about the workings of the University of Oxford, where Tolkien and Lewis were students and where they taught for most of their careers.

  10 minutes • Admission ticket not included
• 3

  See the pub where the Inklings met. The pub is currently closed for repairs and can be viewed from the outside only (2025).

  10 minutes • Admission ticket not included
• 4
  Sheldonian Theatre

  See the Sheldonian Theatre, where Tolkien and Lewis matriculated and graduated and attended many other events of importance in their Oxford careers.

  10 minutes • Admission ticket not included
• 5
  Bodleian Library

  See the world famous Bodleian library.

  5 minutes • Admission ticket not included
• 6

  See the original site of Oxford's Ashmolean Museum, where Tolkien worked as a lexicographer on the Oxford English Dictionary. Hear about his time there.

  5 minutes • Admission ticket free
• 7
  Exeter College

  See the College where Tolkien was an undergraduate. Learn about his time in Oxford. We view Exeter College from the outside - internal visits are not normally permitted.

  10 minutes • Admission ticket not included
• 8

  See the famous Mitre Inn (now also called Gusto), where C.S.Lewis met T.S.Eliot. Hear about their stormy relationship!

  5 minutes • Admission ticket included
• 9
  Radcliffe Camera

  See the iconic Radcliffe Camera - a great spot for some memorable photos

  5 minutes • Admission ticket not included
• 10

  Visit Radcliffe Square and see the iconic Radcliffe Camera, Brasenose College, All Souls College and the University Church of St Mary.

  5 minutes • Admission ticket free
• 11
  Oriel College

  See this lovely small college where Tolkien and Lewis sat their scholarship examinations before coming up to Oxford as students.

  5 minutes • Admission ticket not included
• 12
  Christ Church

  See the Canterbury gate of Christ Church College. Learn how Charles Dodgson (Lewis Carroll) met the young Alice Liddell at Christ Church College and how she inspired him to write Alice in Wonderland. Learn also about recent developments at Christ Church including the new Alice collection.

  10 minutes • Admission ticket not included
• 13
  Merton College

  See the College where Lewis and Tolkien first met in the 1920s, and where Tolkien was Professor of English during the 1940s and 1950s when he was working on the Lord of the Rings.

  5 minutes • Admission ticket not included
• 14

  Walk down beautiful Merton Street, often used as a backdrop when films are made in Oxford

  5 minutes • Admission ticket free
• 15
  University College

  See the college where C.S.Lewis was an undergraduate and where we worked as a tutor from 1925 - 1947.

  5 minutes • Admission ticket not included
• 16
  Magdalen College

  The tour includes a visit inside Magdalen College, one of Oxford's most beautiful and historic colleges. See the chapel where Lewis worshipped daily after he became a Christian and the College dining hall where he ate. See the New Building where the Inklinks met. If you have time you can walk around Addison's Walk which is a beautiful circular walk around an island on the River Cherwell within the grounds the college. You can recreate the walk which Lewis, Tolkien and Hugo Dyson did in 1931 and which had such important consequences for Lewis. The College also has a Cafe by the river Cherwell serving drinks, light lunches and tea.

  45 minutes • Admission ticket included

Additional info

• Service animals allowed
• Public transportation options are available nearby
• Suitable for all physical fitness levels

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