Woodstock, United Kingdom

Oxford Street in Woodstock. Photo: Steve Daniels/Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 2.0)

The name Woodstock is Old English in origin, meaning a "clearing in the woods".

Near the village was Woodstock Palace, a residence that was popular with several English kings throughout the medieval period. The building was destroyed in the English Civil War. 60 years later the palace remains were cleared for the building of Blenheim Palace.

From the 16th century the town prospered by making gloves. Today it is largely dependent on tourists, many of whom visit Blenheim Palace.

Get in

By bus

Stagecoach Gold runs a frequent service, bus 7 or S3, from Oxford city centre. bus 7 leaves from Magdalen Street (stop C3), and bus S3 can be taken from George Street (stop B2). The journey is about half an hour long, and costs £3.20 one way (£4.80 return).

By car

Woodstock is about 15 minutes' drive north of Oxford on the A44. Traffic can be heavy, particularly in summer and at weekends, and there are limited parking opportunities.

Get around

Woodstock is small enough to be explored on foot.

What to See in Woodstock

• Blenheim Palace, Woodstock, OX20 1PP (bus: Stagecoach Gold S3 bus from Oxford (about 30 minutes); car: A44 from Oxford, signposted from Junction 9 of the M40 and from the A34), +44 1993 811091, e-mail: customerservice@blenheimpalace.com. A stately home open to the public. It is one of the most popular tourist destinations in the country on account of its sheer size and opulence, and its strong associations with Sir Winston Churchill, Britain's wartime prime minister (who is buried in the nearby village of Bladon). The Palace is a UNESCO World Heritage site. £22 for adults (upgradable free of charge to an annual pass); concessions available.

Blenheim Palace. Photo: DeFacto/Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)

• Chaucer's House, Park Lane. Former home of Thomas Chaucer (c. 1367 – 1434), son of the author Geoffrey Chaucer and Speaker of the English House of Commons. The house is now a private residence and can only be viewed from the outside.

• Church of Saint Mary Magdalene, Park Street, OX20 1UG. Every Sunday 8AM – Holy Communion; first Sunday of the month 10:30AM – coffee and cake followed by 11AM family service; every Sunday except first of the month 11AM – sung Eucharist with Children's Church. Rebuilt in the 19th century, the church has a Norman doorway, early English windows and a musical clock which plays tunes on the hour.

The Church of Mary Magdalene in Woodstock. Photo: Steve Daniels/Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 2.0)

• Oxfordshire Museum and Coffee Shop, Fletchers House, Park Street, OX20 1SN, +44 1993 811456, e-mail: oxon.museum@oxfordshire.gov.uk. Tu-Sa 10AM-5PM; Su 2PM-5PM; last admission 4:45PM (closed on bank holidays). Free.

• St Martin's Church, Church St., Bladon. A Victorian period reconstruction of 1894 on the site of an earlier church rebuilt in 1801. Sir Winston Churchill was buried in the churchyard in January 1965 at the head of the grave of Lady Randolph Churchill, his mother. Churchill's father, Lord Randolph Churchill, is buried alongside.

St Martin's Church. Photo: gailf548/Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 2.0)

What to Do in Woodstock

• Farmers' Market, in front of the Town Hall, Market Square, Woodstock, OX20 1SL. one Saturday each month, 8AM-1PM.

Eat

• Chef Imperial, 22 High St, OX20 1TF, +44 1993 813591. Fresh and tasty Chinese food from various parts of China. Good vegetarian options as well.

• The Star Inn, 22 Market Pl, +44 1993 811373. Good British food and ales.

Sleep

• The Blenheim Guesthouse and Tea Rooms, 17 Park St (in Woodstock, turn into the town centre towards the Oxfordshire Museum, then continue past the Church of Saint Mary Magdalene until the road is at its narrowest point – the hotel is on the left, a few yards from the Blenheim Palace Woodstock Gate), +44 1993 813814, e-mail: theblenheim@aol.com. Lovely guesthouse with tearooms at the end of Park Street. Blenheim Palace is located just around the corner.

• The Feathers, Market St, +44 1993 812291, fax: +44 1993 813158, e-mail: reception@feathers.co.uk. On 1 June 2012, the hotel held the Guinness World Record for having the most varieties of gin commercially available – 161; "our latest count is 174 and growing".

• Macdonald Bear Hotel, Park St, +44 1993 811124. Occupies a 13th-century coaching inn.

• The Duke Of Marlborough, Woodleys (2 miles north of Woodstock on A44 and bus route), +44 1993 644028. Comfortable rooms behind the pub, although lacking in power-sockets. Good food and drink, friendly service.

Go next

• Visit Oxford.

• Explore other Cotswold towns such as Broadway, Chipping Campden, Chipping Norton, Moreton-in-Marsh and Stow-on-the-Wold. (Wikivoyage, Wikipedia)

See also Woodstock (Oxfordshire) in Pictures.

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