OXFORD JOURNEYS FAQs

 

OXFORD JOURNEYS FAQs

For over 20 years, we have been proud to offer alumni the chance to explore the world through our Oxford Journeys travel programme. In the company of expert trip scholars, intrepid alumni have followed the Silk Road, gone behind the scenes at CERN, witnessed solar eclipses and visited the world’s leading museums. In more recent times, we have had great success with our online Armchair Travel series, bringing academics into your living rooms, taking thousands of you on virtual travel experiences. 

However, as we are all aware, the last two years have brought a great period of change that has required us to review our future priorities within the Alumni Office. As a result, we have made the decision to put our travel programme on hold from the end of 2022. We are committed to any tours departing before the end of this year and you can continue to book for any tours currently showing on our website but we will not be commissioning any further trips.

We would like to reassure you that this decision will not impact your booking if you have already signed up to a trip. If you would like to continue to travel with one of our tour operator partners in the future, please sign up to their mailing lists.

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Journey around the world from the comfort of your living room

From 2020, in collaboration with our travel operators, we have hosted a number of exciting virtual lectures led by our tour leaders on their area of expertise. These have included the wildlife of South and Central America, a interactive session on the Chilean solar eclipse and how Iceland was formed by volcanic eruptions.

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We are committed to all currently organised tours departing before the end of 2022. However, we will not be confirming any new tours.

No, Cambridge are continuing with their travel programme. If you are part of the Cambridge alumni community, you can find out more about their programme here.

The COVID-19 pandemic has brought a great period of change and this has forced us to reassess our priorities within the Alumni Office. The way in which we engage with our alumni is now very different and we as a University must adapt to ensure that we continue to provide the resources and opportunities that support our growing alumni community. Unfortunately, after much deliberation, it was felt that the travel programme could no longer be maintained.

Your booking is still secure, and the tour operator will be in touch with further details as appropriate.

Yes. Your booking is direct with the tour operator and is not affected by this decision.

Please contact the tour operator directly using the details sent to you when you booked your place on the tour.

It is unlikely that we will restart the travel programme within the next few years. The travel industry is currently in a state of transformation, not only from the effects of the pandemic but also due to growing concerns about environmental issues and wider ethical discussions about the impact of tourism. We will continue to keep up to date with specialist travel programmes for consideration in the future.

Yes. The Armchair Travel events have been massively popular, and we will continue to offer these as part of our ongoing online events series. If you would like to receive updates about these events, please join the mailing list.

During 2022 you will receive the regular travel updates including upcoming tours and Armchair Travel digital events. After 2022 you will continue to receive Alumni Office e-newsletters featuring the latest news from the University, alumni stories, events notifications, and more.

Please email travel@alumni.ox.ac.uk and we will get back to you as soon as possible.