Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

How do you organise groups?

We have had several groups (French, Italian, Japanese, Korean) requesting us to organise homestay (host family) accommodation for their members. We need to know what the group is trying to do in Oxford (education, tourism, business) so we can organise their homestays efficiently. We have a network of home stay famillies around Oxford and we organise them to make the group visit a success.. Contact us for more infromation.

How far is it from Headington to the city centre?

The distance is about 2 miles/3 kilometres. It is walkable (mainly downhill) but most times we take the number 15 bus which runs every 10 minutes from a stop very close to the house. The journey takes 10-15 minutes. Usually our guests buy a weekly ticket which saves money and time – also it allows them to use many other buses in Oxford.

Oxford city is fairly small and it is easy to travel to the centre from most places using frequent buses.

Can I get directly from the airport to Oxford?

First, you need to identify which airport you are using – for London there are many different airports. Please don’t assume you have to travel to the centre of London to get to Oxford. Also don’t assume the best way is by train – most times the special coach is much better – more convenient, very frequent and much cheaper.

Normally when people come to stay at Homestay Oxford we provide very specific advice designed to make the journey easier and cheaper. We normally arrange to collect guests when they arrive in Oxford to bring them to the house.

What is the best way to bring money to Oxford?

Obviously this is not easy to answer as personal circumstances vary so much. Generally it is advisable to use travellers’ cheques for safety. The only general advice we would give is that you should try to avoid changing money at the airport as the exchange rate is usually the worst available rate. So generally you should arrange to have local currency (pounds) for the first few days of your stay and then change the money you need for the rest of your stay at a bank.

Can you arrange language classes for me?

There are several possibilities: First we can arrange for you to stay at HomestayOxford and take classes at an excellent institute in the centre of Oxford. That is around £200 per week for lessons in the mornings. Another option is to take English language lessons with me as I am a qualified English language tutor. There are advantages with both these schemes; going to classes is more fun and you get to mix with other learners, studying one to one is more intense and as the lessons are geared to you personally they can produce much faster and better results.

There is one other possibility which is to take a mixture of both. In this scheme you would have some of your lessons at an institute while also having perhaps one hour per day one-to-one tuition or alternatively some lessons at the weekend.

Can you arrange for me to stay in other homestays in UK?

We now have a limited number of associate homestays let us know us know your needs and I will try to help.