Overview to Cambridge: Travel Guide and Tourist Information
Cambridge is much as it always has been: a compact and devastatingly charming British town. Away from the striking colleges, it's a little lighter on sights than its counterpart Oxford - but this only has the positive effect of making it a bit less crowded.
If King’s College, with its stunning chapel, stands out as the city's most recognizable symbol, then St. John’s 'Bridge of Sighs' isn’t far behind. Trinity and Queens' Colleges complete the famous foursome, but there are various others to be explored amongst the picturesque streets.
Countless great writers, scientists and statesmen have walked the squares and gardens, and all the colleges are wrapped in stories. Trinity’s apple tree, for example, competes with that of the Botanic Gardens as a descendant of the one whose falling fruit inspired Newton.
The River Cam curls lazily between the colleges. Punting (not unlike Gondolas) on the river is one of the most iconic sights, and activities, associated with the city. Hiring a boat from Magdalene Bridge or Silver St Bridge, you get a privileged view of the area of the Colleges known as ‘the Backs’.
And when it comes to nightlife, although it's not as lively as some of England’s larger cities, Cambridge – understandably for a place with such a vast number of students – has its own distinctive scene. There are numerous attractive pubs, with those on King Street, particularly, packed with a studenty crowd most nights of the week.
But ultimately, Cambridge isn’t, nor ever could be, a cosmopolitan party destination. As an ancient city of church spires, magnificent libraries and elegant courtyards, its strengths lie in other wonderfully appealing features.
