Oxford as a place to live
Oxford as a place to live
Author
Discussion

st_files

Original Poster:

5,443 posts

211 months

Friday 16th April 2010
quotequote all
I'm moving to oxford in August/september - anyone here got any tips/places to live in/places to avoid?

VEA

4,792 posts

231 months

Friday 16th April 2010
quotequote all
Personally I love most of it, Jericho is a really nice place to live, anywhere up towards kidlington really.

I never get tired of oxford and have often though I would like to move back there again.

sday12

5,067 posts

241 months

Friday 16th April 2010
quotequote all
Cowley- avoid

voicey

2,494 posts

217 months

Friday 16th April 2010
quotequote all
A good friend lives in Iffley - very nice.

Don

28,378 posts

314 months

Friday 16th April 2010
quotequote all
VEA said:
Personally I love most of it, Jericho is a really nice place to live, anywhere up towards kidlington really.
+1

Oxford, like many places, combines areas of utter beauty and fabulous architecture with areas that are just many st-pits piled up together in a heap.

They are easy to spot, though, as they're often cheap.

I spend a pleasant year living in Oxford: In a st-pit I can't recommend.

illmonkey

19,827 posts

228 months

Friday 16th April 2010
quotequote all
Oxford as a city or rural around Oxford?

Some fantastic towns near by with a short trip to Oxford.

As above though, Jerico is great, summertown too. Stay clear of Cowley and Blackbird leys.

st_files

Original Poster:

5,443 posts

211 months

Friday 16th April 2010
quotequote all
illmonkey said:
Oxford as a city or rural around Oxford?

Some fantastic towns near by with a short trip to Oxford.

As above though, Jerico is great, summertown too. Stay clear of Cowley and Blackbird leys.
Initially we're moving to headington for work reasons but we're planning to move and buy after 6 months.

Kidlington was a place we like but we were also looking out towards Marsh Gibbon....

illmonkey

19,827 posts

228 months

Friday 16th April 2010
quotequote all
st_files said:
illmonkey said:
Oxford as a city or rural around Oxford?

Some fantastic towns near by with a short trip to Oxford.

As above though, Jerico is great, summertown too. Stay clear of Cowley and Blackbird leys.
Initially we're moving to headington for work reasons but we're planning to move and buy after 6 months.

Kidlington was a place we like but we were also looking out towards Marsh Gibbon....
Headington has some good areas, but be careful. I'd not go to Kidlington, there are better places and you're an other 30 minutes from London.

Never been to Marsh Gibbon, so cant comment. I assume you are going to be working in Headington, in which case, its got great links towards the south too. Depending where abouts in headington you are working, you could get there very quickly from a smaller town, if that is your thing (ie Marsh Gibbon).


billybuds

264 posts

248 months

Friday 16th April 2010
quotequote all
Been here for 4 years now, haven't got a bad word to say about the place. It's lovely in the Summer, a selection of half decent restaurants and pubs and a nice mix of people.

I would highly recommend the Summertown/North Oxford area, not a massive fan of Jericho.

koolchris99

12,527 posts

209 months

Friday 16th April 2010
quotequote all
lived in summertown, staverton road for a while..

really enjoyed it.

stay out of cowley unless you like students and jamacians

defblade

8,074 posts

243 months

Friday 16th April 2010
quotequote all
st_files said:
Initially we're moving to headington for work reasons but we're planning to move and buy after 6 months.

Kidlington was a place we like but we were also looking out towards Marsh Gibbon....
If you need to get into Oxford every day, have a look at the traffic on the A40 (North/NW)in rush hour frown

Getting round Oxford by public transport is a PITA (tends to go in and out, rather than around); traffic on the ring road is pretty much always heavy.

I worked for 6 years in Cowley/Headington and lived out Wallingford (south east of Oxford) way. 20 minute commute, very little traffic. (Also halfway to Reading for decent shopping wink ). If you're not in to a massive night life thing, I'd look outside the city, but stick to places that are straight out from where you work if possible (ie avoid commuting the ring road as much as possible!!).


But if you're in Headington for 6 months first anyway, you'll make your own mind up.

st_files

Original Poster:

5,443 posts

211 months

Friday 16th April 2010
quotequote all
defblade said:
st_files said:
Initially we're moving to headington for work reasons but we're planning to move and buy after 6 months.

Kidlington was a place we like but we were also looking out towards Marsh Gibbon....
If you need to get into Oxford every day, have a look at the traffic on the A40 (North/NW)in rush hour frown

Getting round Oxford by public transport is a PITA (tends to go in and out, rather than around); traffic on the ring road is pretty much always heavy.

I worked for 6 years in Cowley/Headington and lived out Wallingford (south east of Oxford) way. 20 minute commute, very little traffic. (Also halfway to Reading for decent shopping wink ). If you're not in to a massive night life thing, I'd look outside the city, but stick to places that are straight out from where you work if possible (ie avoid commuting the ring road as much as possible!!).


But if you're in Headington for 6 months first anyway, you'll make your own mind up.
Cheers for all the advice - my gf will be working in Headington & Bicester which is why we were thinking Kidlington or further out in Marsh Gibbon direction.

Ideally I think we'd like a nice village 20 mins from Oxford town centre - but thats what everyone wants so it will be expensive....


illmonkey

19,827 posts

228 months

Friday 16th April 2010
quotequote all
st_files said:
defblade said:
st_files said:
Initially we're moving to headington for work reasons but we're planning to move and buy after 6 months.

Kidlington was a place we like but we were also looking out towards Marsh Gibbon....
If you need to get into Oxford every day, have a look at the traffic on the A40 (North/NW)in rush hour frown

Getting round Oxford by public transport is a PITA (tends to go in and out, rather than around); traffic on the ring road is pretty much always heavy.

I worked for 6 years in Cowley/Headington and lived out Wallingford (south east of Oxford) way. 20 minute commute, very little traffic. (Also halfway to Reading for decent shopping wink ). If you're not in to a massive night life thing, I'd look outside the city, but stick to places that are straight out from where you work if possible (ie avoid commuting the ring road as much as possible!!).


But if you're in Headington for 6 months first anyway, you'll make your own mind up.
Cheers for all the advice - my gf will be working in Headington & Bicester which is why we were thinking Kidlington or further out in Marsh Gibbon direction.

Ideally I think we'd like a nice village 20 mins from Oxford town centre - but thats what everyone wants so it will be expensive....
You're right, but it depends on your definition of 'expensive', I'm sure it'll be cheaper than alot of London. Also depends on what you want, 1 bed house or 5 bed house, garage, big garden etc

If you want, drop me a PM for more details/locations. I've lived around here for my life, worked in all of the towns (so done the commutes).

gregd

1,805 posts

249 months

Friday 16th April 2010
quotequote all
Marsh Gibbon is not far from me. I drive through it as a rat run skirting over to the A34. Seems a lovely village with some great old properties.

defblade

8,074 posts

243 months

Saturday 17th April 2010
quotequote all
st_files said:
Cheers for all the advice - my gf will be working in Headington & Bicester which is why we were thinking Kidlington or further out in Marsh Gibbon direction.

Ideally I think we'd like a nice village 20 mins from Oxford town centre - but thats what everyone wants so it will be expensive....
Out of Kidlington towards Oxford is one long traffic jam every single morning.

I'm not saying don't go there at all, but do be aware that a quick trip viewing a house on a weekend afternoon will be a very different thing to the commute in on a weekday...

...do it by motorbike wink

Nickyboy

6,825 posts

264 months

Saturday 17th April 2010
quotequote all
st_files said:
illmonkey said:
Oxford as a city or rural around Oxford?

Some fantastic towns near by with a short trip to Oxford.

As above though, Jerico is great, summertown too. Stay clear of Cowley and Blackbird leys.
Initially we're moving to headington for work reasons but we're planning to move and buy after 6 months.

Kidlington was a place we like but we were also looking out towards Marsh Gibbon....
I work around the Bicester area and Marsh Gibbon is very very quiet as are the other villages around there. Plenty of shops etc in Bicester itself and only half hr to Oxford. Only downside is trying to get back into Bicester when its busy at Bicester Village, 2 hrs to get down the A41 is not uncommon on bank holidays

AndrewD

7,659 posts

314 months

Saturday 17th April 2010
quotequote all
billybuds said:
Been here for 4 years now, haven't got a bad word to say about the place. It's lovely in the Summer, a selection of half decent restaurants and pubs and a nice mix of people.

I would highly recommend the Summertown/North Oxford area, not a massive fan of Jericho.
Lived in Summertown for a couple of years when I was a student there. Great place, and easy bike ride into the centre

trooperiziz

9,457 posts

282 months

Saturday 17th April 2010
quotequote all
st_files said:
Ideally I think we'd like a nice village 20 mins from Oxford town centre - but thats what everyone wants so it will be expensive....
I lived in Benson for a while, which is a lovely little village, but it really is little, didn't even have a cashpoint when I was there, and the chippy closed at 11pm which was useless for after pub munchies biggrin

Then lived in Abingdon, which is quite a nice town, but no train station which is annoying. Particulary if you need to go into London regulary, but then you wouldn't live anywhere around Oxford if you needed that, as the train service is shocking...

Some great roads in that part of the country though! driving

illmonkey

19,827 posts

228 months

Saturday 17th April 2010
quotequote all
trooperiziz said:
st_files said:
Ideally I think we'd like a nice village 20 mins from Oxford town centre - but thats what everyone wants so it will be expensive....
I lived in Benson for a while, which is a lovely little village, but it really is little, didn't even have a cashpoint when I was there, and the chippy closed at 11pm which was useless for after pub munchies biggrin

Then lived in Abingdon, which is quite a nice town, but no train station which is annoying. Particulary if you need to go into London regulary, but then you wouldn't live anywhere around Oxford if you needed that, as the train service is shocking...

Some great roads in that part of the country though! driving
I can vouch for that, a rather strong smell of hot rubber stepping out of the car last night! Great fun.

raf_gti

4,257 posts

236 months

Saturday 17th April 2010
quotequote all
st.

HTH.