Cambridge in 2 days, on foot

This 2-day self-guided walking plan for Cambridge covers 12 narrated sights in an easy day-by-day order. Each day is split into a morning and an afternoon loop, and every stop has a two to three minute audio story in the Gingerguide app.

You set the pace: this is a suggested order, not a schedule. Walk it in 2 days, or stretch it out. Reorder freely; Cambridge rewards a detour.

Day 1

Morning

1. King's College Chapel: A masterpiece of late Gothic architecture and the iconic symbol of Cambridge, renowned for its fan vault ceiling and world-famous choir.
2. The Backs: The picturesque parkland and meadows along the River Cam behind several of Cambridge's most famous colleges.
3. Mathematical Bridge: A famous wooden footbridge at Queens' College that appears to form an arch but is built entirely from straight timbers.

Afternoon

1. Trinity College: The largest and wealthiest Cambridge college, founded by Henry VIII in 1546, with more Nobel Prize winners than most countries.
2. Bridge of Sighs: A beautiful covered bridge at St John's College, built in 1831 in neo-Gothic style, named after the famous bridge in Venice.
3. The Fitzwilliam Museum: Cambridge's principal art and antiquities museum, housing world-class collections spanning 4,000 years of art and culture.

Day 2

Morning

1. Senate House: The elegant Palladian building where Cambridge University degree ceremonies have been held since 1730.
2. Cambridge University Botanic Garden: A 40-acre garden housing over 8,000 plant species, founded in 1831 by John Stevens Henslow, Charles Darwin's mentor.
3. Punting on the Cam: The quintessential Cambridge experience, gliding along the River Cam in a flat-bottomed punt past the famous colleges.

Afternoon

1. The Eagle Pub: A historic pub where Watson and Crick announced the discovery of DNA's structure in 1953, and where WWII airmen left their marks on the ceiling.
2. Corpus Clock: A mesmerising and unsettling timepiece featuring a mechanical grasshopper "Chronophage" that devours time, unveiled by Stephen Hawking in 2008.
3. Great St Mary's Church: The University Church of Cambridge since the 13th century, with a tower offering panoramic views over the city and colleges.

Full Cambridge guide and all stops →