Plan your visit

Visitor information

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Whether you’re planning a sightseeing trip to Oxford or popping into our free exhibitions, you won’t be short of things to do at the Bodleian Library.

The Bodleian Library is spread across three buildings in the city centre: the Weston Library, the Old Library and the Radcliffe Camera.

We offer guided tours of our historic library spaces and the city. Or check our what’s on calendar for special exhibitions, lectures, family events and more.

Come and discover our iconic buildings and beautiful manuscripts.

  Opening hours

We’re open to sightseers and the public:

Monday – Friday: 9am – 5pm
Saturday: 10am – 5pm
Sunday: 11am – 4pm

Full opening hours

  Tickets

The Weston Library is free to enter, with no ticket required.

If you want to explore the Old Library or Radcliffe Camera, you will need to book onto a Bodleian tour.

Find the right tour for you

  What is open to the public

The ground floor of the Weston Library is free and open to everyone. Here you can find our free exhibitions, tour ticket desk, café and shop.

The Old Library and Radcliffe Camera are only accessible with a Bodleian tour ticket.

Discover our spaces

 

We’re open to sightseers and the public:

Monday – Friday: 9am – 5pm
Saturday: 10am – 5pm
Sunday: 11am – 4pm

Check our upcoming closures for any changes to our normal hours.

Exhibitions at the Weston Library

Our exhibition galleries are open:

Monday – Friday: 10am – 5pm
Saturday: 10am – 5pm
Sunday: 11am – 4pm

Café and shops

Café and shops opening hours
 

October

  • Tuesday 1 October: There will be no 60-minute tour at 1pm and 2pm.  
  • Thursday 3 October: There will be no 60-minute tour at 10.30am and 11.30am.  
  • Friday 4 October: There will be no 60-minute tour at 2pm.
  • Sunday 6 October: The Divinity School will be closed from 12pm. There will be 30-minute Bodleian Library-only tours available for purchase in person only.
  • Tuesday 8 October: The Divinity School will be closed from 11am–3pm. During this period, there will be 30-minute Bodleian Library-only tours available for purchase in person only.
  • Thursday 10 October: The Divinity School will be closed until 2pm. During this period, there will be 30-minute Bodleian Library-only tours available for purchase in person only.
  • Sunday 13 October: The Weston Library ticket desk will open at 2pm. The café, shop and exhibitions will be open as normal from 11am. The Old Bodleian Library will be open for guided tours and Divinity School will be open from 11am as normal.
  • Tuesday 15 October: The Divinity School will be closed all day. There will be 30-minute Bodleian Library only tours available for purchase in person only.
  • Saturday 19 October: The Divinity School will be closed all day. There will be 30-minute Bodleian Library-only tours available for purchase in person only.
  • Sunday 20 October: The Divinity School will be closed from 11.30am–3.30pm. There will be 30-minute Bodleian Library-only tours available for purchase in person only.
  • Monday 21 October: The Divinity School will be closed all day. There will be 30-minute Bodleian Library-only tours available for purchase in person only.
  • Tuesday 22 October: The Divinity School will be closed all day. There will be 30-minute Bodleian Library-only tours available for purchase in person only.
  • Wednesday 23 October: The Divinity School will be closed all day. There will be 30-minute Bodleian Library-only tours available for purchase in person only.
  • Friday 25 October: The Divinity School will be closed from 3pm. During this period, there will be 30-minute Bodleian Library-only tours available for purchase in person only.
  • Sunday 27 October: The Divinity School will be closed from 3.30pm. During this period, there will be 30-minute Bodleian Library-only tours available for purchase in person only.
  • Thursday 31 October: The Divinity School will be closed all day. There will be 30-minute Bodleian Library-only tours available for purchase in person only.

November

Please note: these closures are subject to change, and there will likely be more closures added later in September.

  • Friday 8 November: The Divinity School will be closed all day. There will be 30-minute Bodleian Library-only tours available for purchase in person only.
  • Saturday 9 November: The Divinity School will be closed all day. There will be 30-minute Bodleian Library-only tours available for purchase in person only.
  • Monday 11 November: The Divinity School will be closed all day. There will be 30-minute Bodleian Library-only tours available for purchase in person only.
  • Saturday 16 November: The Divinity School will be closed all day. There will be 30-minute Bodleian Library-only tours available for purchase in person only.
  • Friday 22 November: The Divinity School will be closed from 2pm. There will be 30-minute Bodleian Library-only tours available for purchase in person from 2pm.  
  • Sunday 30 November: The Divinity School will be closed from 4pm onwards; this will not affect our tours schedule.

We recommend starting your sightseeing visit at the Weston Library:

 Weston Library, Broad Street, OX1 3BG

Here you can buy tour tickets, pick up a map, visit our free exhibitions, stop for a drink at the café or pop into the shop.

If you have a pre-booked Bodleian tour ticket, you can go straight to the Old Bodleian Library via the Great Gate on Catte Street.

Find out more about how to get here
 

We want to ensure that everyone can explore our buildings as comfortably as possible. We have different kinds of support in place for visitors with specific access needs.

Find out more about accessibility at our site.

Please note: all library guided tours involve stairs, and the 90-minute tour also includes a substantial amount of walking. We are working on improving accessibility on our guided tours to ensure visitors have an equitable experience.
 

We ask that visitors follow these rules in all of our spaces:

  • Please do not leave bags unattended.
  • When walking around library buildings, please observe 'quiet please' signs to avoid disturbing those working inside the Old Library and Radcliffe Camera.
  • 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 or tripods (including selfie sticks) inside our buildings. Photography is not allowed in the Radcliffe Camera.

Exhibition galleries

Please follow these rules when visiting the 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.
  • 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. 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.
  • 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 may bring pencils into the galleries. Pens and markers are not allowed.
  • 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 we recommend that visitors recommended 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.

What to do on your visit

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Explore the Bodleian Libraries

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