Jonathan Hutchins, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Things to do · Woodstock
The Oxfordshire Museum
The county museum in Woodstock, free, with galleries on Oxfordshire's history including Woodstock's gloves and cut steel, a garden and a café.
Rainy days · Car-free
A free hour before or after Blenheim, with a garden, a café and a lift to the upper floors.
- Good: Free
- Good: Lift to the first and second floors
- Good: Café with a garden and outdoor seating
- Worth knowing: Closed on Mondays; Sunday afternoons only
- Worth knowing: Last admission 4.45pm
About
The Oxfordshire Museum is the county museum, in Fletcher's House on Park Street, Woodstock. It opened on 15 October 1966 and marks its sixtieth anniversary in 2026 with an open art exhibition.
Its galleries cover the people and history of Oxfordshire, including Woodstock's glove making and the polished cut steel the town was known for in the eighteenth century. The garden has a resident dinosaur, and the café serves coffee, light lunches and afternoon tea with seats outside; it closes at 4.30pm, half an hour before the museum, and well-behaved dogs are welcome in its front courtyard seating. There are family sessions in the school holidays.
Entry is free. It opens Tuesday to Saturday from 10am to 5pm and on Sundays from 2pm to 5pm, with last entry at 4.45pm, and is closed on Mondays. A lift serves the upper floors. There is a free public car park on Hensington Road and a little pay and display parking in front of the museum, and the S3 and S7 buses from Oxford stop in the town.
It is a short walk from the Woodstock gate of Blenheim Palace, which makes it an easy hour before or after the palace or on a wet day. St Mary Magdalene and Woodstock Town Hall are a minute's walk.
Opening hours and season
| Monday | Closed |
|---|---|
| Tuesday | 10:00 to 17:00 |
| Wednesday | 10:00 to 17:00 |
| Thursday | 10:00 to 17:00 |
| Friday | 10:00 to 17:00 |
| Saturday | 10:00 to 17:00 |
| Sunday | 14:00 to 17:00 |
Last admission 4.45pm. Christmas 2026: closed 21 and 25 to 28 December and 1 January; 10am to 2pm on 24 and 31 December.
Facilities
- CaféLight lunches and afternoon tea, with a garden; Tue to Sat 10am to 4.30pm, Sun 2 to 4.30pm; dogs in the front courtyard
- LiftTo the first and second floors
The details
- Features
- Café · Garden or terrace
- History
- Opened 15 October 1966
Photos
Fletcher's House on Park Street Photo: Jonathan Hutchins, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Location
Places to stay nearby
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The Bear Hotel
Hotel · Woodstock
A Macdonald hotel in a Grade II* listed old inn on Park Street, Woodstock: 54 rooms with four-posters and suites, a restaurant, afternoon tea and dogs welcome, a short walk from Blenheim.
Dog-friendly · Wedding venues
Verified Nov 2026
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The Star Inn
Pubs · Woodstock
A Grade II inn on the north side of the Market Place in Woodstock, serving pub classics and burgers all day without bookings, with cask ales and four rooms.
Family-friendly
Verified Oct 2026
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The King's Arms
Inn · Woodstock
A Fuller's inn with 15 rooms on the corner of Market Street, Woodstock, in a Grade II listed building, with dogs welcome and breakfast included.
Dog-friendly · Car-free
Verified Oct 2026
Nearby walks, places and things to do
- The Bear Hotel 0.1 km away
- The Star Inn 0.1 km away
- Blenheim Palace 0.1 km away
- The Woodstock Arms 0.1 km away
Sights nearby
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Queen Pool, Blenheim
Sight · Lake · Woodstock
Queen Pool is the northern arm of the lake Capability Brown made at Blenheim from 1764, above Vanbrugh's Grand Bridge, with Rosamund's Well just west of the bridge and the Column of Victory above. Reached free on public footpaths from Combe; the lakeside road is permissive.
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St Mary Magdalene, Woodstock
Sight · Church · Woodstock
St Mary Magdalene is Woodstock's church on Park Street, founded with the twelfth-century town and long a chapel of Bladon, with a Norman zigzag doorway, a classical tower of 1784 to 1786 with chimes of 1792 made to play tunes, and a sundial with odd numerals. Grade II*.
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Woodstock Town Hall
Sight · Historic building · Woodstock
Woodstock Town Hall in the Market Place was designed by Sir William Chambers and built in 1766 to 1767 at the Duke of Marlborough's expense, over an open market hall enclosed in 1898, with a marble sundial on its south wall. Grade II.
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Column of Victory, Blenheim
Sight · Monument · Woodstock
The Column of Victory is the fluted Doric column of 1727 to 1730 that carries a lead statue of the first Duke of Marlborough dressed as a Roman general on the high ground of Blenheim's park. Seen from Woodstock and the park's public paths.