How to spend the perfect 48 hours in Cambridge

If I had to write a list of my top 10 towns and cities in Britain, Cambridge would be right up there. It’s full of history, charm and beautiful architecture, which are all important factors to me when choosing a city break. You could happily while away an entire weekend just strolling through the picturesque streets, popping into shops and avoiding being hit by one of the many cyclists (did you know that students are prohibited from having cars in Cambridge?) But there are a few things I’d consider ‘must do’s’ when visiting. So read on to see how to spend a perfect 48 hours in Cambridge.

DAY 1

Hot Numbers Coffee

Start the day off right by heading to Hot Numbers Coffee for breakfast. They are arguably the best breakfast and brunch spot in the city and with a short but vegan friendly menu, its sure to keep you going for the first few hours of the day.

Kings College Chapel

From there head straight to Kings College which is just off the Kings Parade and unmistakeable due to it’s impressive chapel. Get your tickets online here, or across the street, and try to be the first inside to beat the crowds. Kings College Chapel has been standing on this spot since 1515. As soon as you enter you can feel the history in its walls. From its Tudor era stained glass windows, to it’s magnificent fan vaulted ceiling. Make sure you drink it all in and take plenty of photos before the crowds descend! Then take your time walking through its side chambers and reading up about its construction, which took almost 70 years to complete.

TIP: If you have time, try to catch an Evensong performance by the world famous Kings College Choir. Even if you aren’t religious, the music will give you goosebumps.

Corpus Clock

Head out of Kings College and down Kings Parade to see one of the oddest attractions Cambridge has to offer – the Corpus Clock. A bizarre sculpture, loved and hated in equal measure, it’s made up of a giant gold clock with a pendulum, straddled by a grasshopper, known as a chronophage (Greek, meaning ‘time eater’). It was created to remind us of the inevitable passing of time, and is definitely more successful in that, than in actually TELLING the time. In fact, the clock is only accurate every five minutes! The rest of the time, the pendulum is seen catching, stopping or racing ahead; meant to demonstrate ‘life’s irregularity’.

Great St Mary’s Church

‘Two churches in one morning?!’ I hear you cry. Well this church happens to have some of the best views of the city. So head to Great St Mary’s where you will be given access to it’s tower and from it, one hell of a view. Be warned, the steps are steep and very narrow so take your time going up and down.

The Eagle Pub

After all those steps you’ve probably worked up an appetite, and a thirst. So head onto Bene’t St and to the most famous pub in Cambridge – The Eagle. It’s known for 2 things; the first being the place where the discovery of DNA was first announced to the world. Watson and Crick reportedly burst through it’s doors, shouting that they had ‘discovered the secret of life’. They were regulars here and their usual table is marked with a plaque commemorating the historical discovery.

The other reason for The Eagle’s fame is the back bar – also known as the ‘RAF bar’. This is decorated with war memorabilia and if you look up, you’ll see the ceiling is adorned with signatures of real WW2 pilots, who signed their names here right before heading off to war.

TIP: Check out the info sheet which should be on the tables – it will tell you all about the pub’s history, including its resident ghosts!

Punting

Now it’s time to head for the River Cam, to partake in a very popular leisure activity – punting. Pleasure punting has been around since the early 1900s and has recently had a resurgence thanks to tourism marking it as a particularly ‘English’ past-time. It’s also very popular in Oxford but in my humble opinion, Cambridge is the best place to have a go – whether it’s on your own or on a tour.

Just a word to the wise – it is MUCH harder than it looks. If you go for the DIY option, you may find you don’t actually get very far and instead turn into a sweaty angry mess going around in circles.

We personally always opt for the tour – being a passenger makes for a relaxing and stress-free experience, and your punter (who is usually a student here) will regale you with interesting facts about the colleges, Cambridge life, and all the landmarks you pass along the way. I don’t want to spoil any surprises but my favourite stories involved the various student pranks played across the years, involving cars on roofs and suspended from bridges! Get tickets here.

TIP: Keep an eye out for the two most famous bridges in Cambridge – the Bridge of Sighs and the Mathematical Bridge. You’ll want to have your camera out for both!

Museum of Zoology/Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology

We are going to finish strong with a wander around one of the many great museums Cambridge has to offer. Depending on your interests, you can head to the Museum of Zoology or the Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology. They are both on Downing Street, just across the road from one another. Both are free to enter and house an impressive range of artefacts, despite their modest size. I particularly enjoyed seeing specimens found by Charles Darwin himself from the Beagle voyage in the Zoology museum.

Dishoom Permit Room

Finish the day off with an incredible meal at Dishoom’s Permit Room. It’s a more relaxed cafe/bar vibe than other Dishoom restaurants, but with the same great flavourful dishes. Plenty of vegan options and unlimited chai = heaven.

DAY TWO

Fitzbillies

Another day, another Cambridge icon – this morning head to Fitzbillies for breakfast. They’re famous for their Chelsea buns, which happen to be vegan. Pick up a pastry and coffee to go and head for the first attraction.

Wren Library/Trinity College

If you saw Kings College yesterday you may think it’s a waste of time visiting another college. But I assure you Trinity College is worth it. For a start, the grounds here are beautiful. You can spot deer, cranes and many other animals at various times of year. It is also home to ‘Newton’s tree,’ Donated to Trinity College in the late 1660s. This is a descendant of the tree Isaac Newton sat under when an apple fell on his head and helped him ‘discover’ gravity.

The college building is also an architectural treat. Within you will find the Wren Library, a must-do for all fellow book and/or history nerds. Wren Library is stunning in its own right, but also contains manuscripts and rare books such as A.A Milne’s Winnie the Pooh and Isaac Newton’s notebooks. There are also hand written notes from Robert Oppenheimer describing the ‘Trinity’ atomic bomb tests. And a collection of John Milton’s autograph poems. Please note there is strictly no photography in the Wren Library.

TIP: Christopher Wren, who designed this library, also designed St Paul’s Cathedral and the Old Royal Naval College in London. He was responsible for rebuilding many of London’s churches after the Great Fire of 1666 and is behind some of the most beautiful buildings in the UK.

Market Square

When you leave Trinity College, take some time to wander around the surrounding streets. Cambridge is very photogenic, and some of my favourite parts of town are near here. Including Trinity Lane and the Round Church (a 12th century structure with an unusual shape). Stop in a few shops as you make your way down to Market Square. It’s always full of interesting vendors, selling everything from fresh fruit and veg to pottery and paintings made by local artists. Pick up a souvenir or two and then enjoy a bite to eat at one of the street food stalls. My personal favourites are Just Greek Gyros and Vegan Bites, but there really is something for everyone here.

For the afternoon, I’m going to give you two options, depending on whether you prefer to spend your time indoors or outdoors:

Fitzwilliam Museum

If you are a history or art fiend, then head to Cambridge’s largest and most comprehensive museum, the Fitzwilliam. There’s artwork and archaeological finds from across the globe – from Asia and Ancient Egypt to Greece and Rome. There is a lot to get through and if you love museums then you’ll need an entire afternoon here.

Grantchester

Can’t stand the thought of another museum? Put on some good walking shoes and head out of town on a stroll to the nearby Grantchester. It’s a gentle, fairly flat walk that follows the River Cam the entire way. You will end up in a village full of thatched cottages straight out of a fairytale. The entire walk – there and back again – takes about 1.5-2 hours. But you can stop in one of the pubs in Grantchester if you need to break it up with a pint.

The Pickerel

For your final meal you may want to seek out another pub (we are in England after all). And there are few better than The Pickerel. Reputably Cambridge’s oldest pub, it is frequented by both students and college professors, and you can overhear many interesting conversations while nursing your drink. The staff are very friendly and will gladly give drinks recommendation, and the food is classic British pub fare. We were told that when Tolkien visited from Oxford he would often stop here for a beer.

Have you been to Cambridge? Did I miss anything key off my list? Or maybe you’re now planning a trip to this incredible little city? Let me know! And if you’re looking for more city break inspo not far from London see here. x