Things to Do in Cambridge

Cambridge is one of the biggest tourist attractions in the United Kingdom, whether it be the city’s picturesque setting, it’s lakes and canals or because of the possibility of seeing one of the oldest universities in recorded history, Cambridge has always been a must-see for everyone from abroad and those from other cities too!

Here, we will show you all the different things to do in Cambridge.

Location

Cambridge has long since been at the forefront of education and the world of students, ever since it’s world-renowned university has been achieving the heights it has. Sitting about 80km north of London, it is possibly one of the most well-known university cities in the UK.

Things to Do in Cambridge

There are a number of bars in Cambridge to look into, one of the most popular bars is Vodka Revolution, which is a sort of club and bar hybrid and changes on the night and depending on the entertainment provided on any given night. Lola Lo is one of the many clubs in Cambridge that has people queuing up at the door too, everything you need in a nightclub is offered here, with everything from live music all the way to DJ sets. Fez Club is another place that’s worth looking at too with everything from music and drinks all the way through to VIP Areas, definitely, one of the premier places in Cambridge to visit, if only for it’s special nights dedicated to well-known artists!

Cambridge is home to some festivals that it runs every year, with everything from music to culture. There’s the History Festival, Cambridge Literary Festival and The Big Weekend; there are even a few comedy festivals that run as well.

Cambridge boasts a breadth of museums available to the public and students alike with everything from the Fitzwilliam Museum, the Museum of Classical Archaeology, Kettle’s Yard to the Cambridge Museum of Technology.

There are a number of cinemas too if you’re looking to watch the newest and greatest in the world of cinema as Cambridge offers The Light Cinema, Arts Picturehouse and Vue Cinemas. Students looking to study Film studies degree or Film-making degree would love the variety that Cambridge has to offer!

Transport

The city has a number of transport routes and is considered one of the best cities for transport in the UK.

There are a number of motorways and A-Roads that connect into the city. There is also easy access to King’s Lynn and to London.

The city has a guided busway service, which has been in service since 2011 and in 2017, it was integrated to link with the Cambridge North Railway. The city also operates a Park and Ride scheme seven-days-a-week.

The city also has an airport, the Cambridge City Airport, which has no scheduled services, as it’s mainly used by charter and training flights, and is also used regularly by FBO services. For those looking to fly commercially, nationally or internationally, will need to head to London Stansted Airport.

Universities in the City

There are two universities in the city, the University of Cambridge and Anglia Ruskin University.

The University of Cambridge is one of the most renowned universities in the world and is generally considered to be the best university in the United Kingdom, along with the University of Oxford, with the two affectionately referred to as Oxbridge, it is also part of the Russell Group of Universities. The university is one of the oldest universities in the world, dating back to 1209.

The university has two student unions: the Cambridge University Students Union (CUSU) and the Graduate Union (GU). The CUSU represents all students at the university and the GU represents graduate students.

The university is renowned for its emphasis on certain sports as well, particularly rowing. The university regularly competes with the University of Oxford, during the annual Boat Race. The university also competes with Oxford against other Varsity matches such as rugby, cricket, tiddlywinks and chess. The university also has a Hawks’ Club, for men only and The Ospreys, which is the equivalent for women.

In August 2013, the university opened the University of Cambridge Sports Centre, which included a Sports Hall, Fitness Suite, Multi-Purpose Room, Conditioning Room, Rugby Fives courts, squash courts and a swimming pool.

The university has a number of clubs and societies, in fact, at the last count, they have over 700! One of the most well known clubs that the university runs, is Footlights, which has produced some of the most respected British comedians of all time, including Stephen Fry, John Cleese, Eric Idle, Richard Ayoade, Olivia Colman, Robert Webb, Hugh Laurie, John Fellowes, Hugh Dennis, David Mitchell and Sue Perkins and countless more.

The university also has Varsity, which is the uni’s oldest student newspaper, which was established in 1947. The paper is available every week and prints around 9,000 copies, with stories from the paper appearing in tabloid newspapers such as The Guardian, The Times and The Independent.

There is also a student radio station called Cam FM, which is run in conjunction with Anglia Ruskin University.

As for Anglia Ruskin University, the university has four campuses, Chelmsford, Peterborough and London as well as Cambridge. It was established originally in 1858 as a school, though it received university status in 1992.

History and Culture

The city of Cambridge has stood since prehistoric times. The city was prominent during the early Roman times, with a number of different important landmarks being built, such as Duroliponte on Castle Hill, a former fort (or castrum).

Around the time of the industrial revolution, Cambridge began to expand rapidly. The life expectancy in the city went up and the city’s agricultural production picked up too, turning Cambridge into one of the country’s foremost market cities.

With the introduction of the rail line, the city benefitted even further, as the rail link to London brought the ingredients for the production of brick, malt and cement.

During World War II, Cambridge was an important centre for defence on the country’s east coast. The RAF training centre and the regional headquarters was also in the city. The city was attacked by the German Lufftwafe, but the casualties were not as severe as in other parts of the country.

In 1944, the city was host to a secret meeting of military leaders for the allied invasion of Europe as well.

Who’s from Cambridge

There are numerous famous people born in Cambridge, for notable alumni of their university, check out our profile on Cambridge University. Famous people include; Olivia Newton-John, Rosie Day, Charli XCX, Jeremy Irvine and Richard Attenborough.