Plan your visit

Plan your visit

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The Bodleian Library, Radcliffe Camera and Weston Library are three of Oxford's most iconic libraries, located in the heart of the city.

Get exclusive, behind-the-scenes access on a guided library tour, or explore the historic city of Oxford on a walking tour with one of our expert guides.

At the Weston Library, explore our free exhibitions, open every day; or take a break in our café and shop

Tickets and opening hours

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The Weston Library is open to the public. For all of our other library spaces, you will need a ticket to go inside.

Most tour tickets are only available to buy in person on the day of the tour, from the information desk in the Weston Library. Some tour tickets are available to buy in advance online. These tickets go on sale exactly one month in advance of the tour.

Audio guides are also available to buy in person from the Weston Library information desk. This will take you around the exteriors of our historic libraries, and includes entry to the Divinity School. It does not include entry to the Bodleian Library.

Check our upcoming closures before you visit.

 

July

  • Friday 26 July: 30-, 60- and 90-minute tours will not be available. There will be Bodleian Library-only tours available to buy in person only. The Divinity School will be closed all day.
  • Saturday 27 July: 30-, 60- and 90-minute tours will not be available. There will be Bodleian Library-only tours available to buy in person only. The Divinity School will be closed all day.
  • Sunday 28 July: The Divinity School will be closed at 1pm. There will be library-only tours available to buy in person only, from 2pm onwards.
  • Monday 29 July: There will be no 60-minute tours available all day.

August

  • Saturday 3 August: 30-, 60- and 90-minute tours will not be available. Library-only tours will be available to buy in person only. The Divinity School will be closed all day.
  • Monday 5 August: There will be no 60-minute tour at 10.30am.
  • Wednesday 7 August: There will be no 60 minute tours at 2pm.
  • Friday 9 August: The Divinity School will be closed from 4.30pm.
  • Saturday 10 August: The Divinity School will be closed from 12.30pm to 4pm. 30- and 60-minute tours will not be available during this time. Bodleian Library-only tours will be available for purchase in person.
  • Monday 12 August: There will be no 60-minute tour at 2pm.
  • Tuesday 13 August: There will be no 60-minute tour at 10.30am.
  • Friday 16 August: There will be no 60-minute tour at 10.30am.
  • Saturday 17 August: There will be no Library tours available on this day. There will be walking tours available and Divinity School tickets will be available until 3.45pm.
  • Sunday 18 August: There will be no library tours available on this day. There will be walking tours available and Divinity School tickets.
  • Monday 19 and Tuesday 20 August: Library tours and Divinity School tickets will not be available. Walking tours will be available.
  • Wednesday 21 and Thursday 22 August: 30-, 60- and 90-minute tours will not be available. Library-only tours will be available to buy in person only. The Divinity School will be closed all day.
  • Saturday 24 August: The Divinity School will be closed from 4pm.
  • Monday 26 August: There will be no library tours or Divinity School tickets available, only city walking tours.
  • Tuesday 27 August: There will be no 2pm 60-minute tour available.
  • Wednesday 28 August: There will be no 60-minute tours available after 10.30am.
  • Friday 30 August: Last entry into the Divinity School will be 4.15pm.
  • Saturday 31 August: The Divinity School will be closed from 11.30am. There will be library-only tours available from 11.30am.

 

We ask the public to follow these rules when visiting the Bodleian Libraries exhibition galleries in the Weston Library. We aim to provide a safe environment for our visitors and make sure that our collections are preserved for the future.

  • Food and drink are not allowed in the galleries, including bottled water. The café is situated in Blackwell Hall for visitor refreshment.
  • Children are very welcome, but please make sure they are supervised at all times.
  • Pushchairs and buggies are welcome in the galleries. At very busy times we may need to limit the number of buggies in the gallery, and this will be at the discretion of the room attendant. Please note that very large double-buggies cannot be brought into the exhibition galleries, due to the narrow walkways between exhibits.
  • Assistance dogs are welcome in the galleries.
  • Large items such as rucksacks or wheeled cases may not be taken into the galleries, due to space limitations. This includes any item larger than aircraft carry-on luggage. Medium-sized backpacks or cases should not be worn on the back or wheeled, but may be carried. Very small bags and day-packs may be carried on the owner’s back. These rules help avoid damage to works on the walls or to the display cases. The room attendant will use his or her judgement on which bags may be admitted, and how they should be carried, to avoid any risk of damage to the galleries, collections, or other members of the public. For guidance, bags larger than approx. 50 x 40 x 25 cm will be excluded from the galleries. We are unfortunately not able to provide any storage for large bags which have been excluded. You must not leave bags unattended in Blackwell Hall.
  • Please do not bring wet umbrellas into the galleries. You can leave coats or umbrellas on the coat rack outside the galleries (please note that this is at the owner’s risk).
  • You are very welcome to take photographs, as long as this is for your personal, non-commercial use only. We do not allow the use of video cameras, flash and tripods (including selfie sticks).
  • You may bring pencils into the galleries. Pens and markers are not allowed.

Your visit

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What we’re doing to improve our sustainability

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  • We encourage all visitors to use Park and Ride options to travel into Oxford to visit us.
  • We provide e-tickets for all tours purchased online and visitors are recommended to show their tickets on their devices. Onsite, we have halved the amount of paper being used for printing receipts/tickets.
  • Read about sustainability at our café and shops.