Oxford's October half term is 26 to 30 October 2026. Ghost Fest at the castle, pumpkin picking at Stanton St John, free museums and shows, with prices.

October half term for Oxford’s state schools is Monday 26 to Friday 30 October 2026. Pupils finish on Friday 23 October and go back on Monday 2 November. The things already booked and priced for that week are Ghost Fest at Oxford Castle & Prison, the pumpkin patch at Rectory Farm and a run of shows at the Playhouse and the New Theatre. The free museums are open every day. Several of the big family programmes, including the Story Museum’s, are not published yet, and we list what is still to come at the end.

The quick answer

  • Half term: Monday 26 to Friday 30 October 2026, but Oxford Spires Academy and Magdalen College School are off a week earlier (from 19 and 17 October respectively).
  • Potion Making at Oxford Castle & Prison, 25 to 31 October, £16 for one child and one adult; after-dark Spooky Tours for ages 14+ run 27 to 31 October.
  • Rectory Farm pumpkin patch is open every day from 24 to 31 October, £7.50 a head on half-term weekdays, booked in advance.

Check your school’s dates first

The county’s half term is 26 to 30 October (Oxfordshire County Council, term dates), and Cherwell, Cheney and Matthew Arnold follow it. Oxford Spires Academy is off for two weeks, 19 to 30 October, and Oxford High School GDST breaks up on Tuesday 20 October. Matthew Arnold’s pupils finish on Thursday 22 October, because the Friday is an INSET day. Every school is compared on our Oxford school term dates page.

What’s on in Oxford in half term week

What Where Dates Price
Potion Making Experience (ages 5+) Oxford Castle & Prison 25 to 31 Oct, 10am to 2.30pm £16 child and adult, £14 extra child
Spooky Tours (ages 14+) Oxford Castle & Prison 27 to 31 Oct, 6.30pm to 11pm £21, £23 on Halloween
Spectre Ghost Tour (family walk) Starts at Oxford Castle & Prison Friday 30 Oct, 6.30pm £15.75 adult, £10.50 child
Pumpkin Patch Rectory Farm, Stanton St John Daily 24 to 31 Oct £7.50 weekdays, £8.50 weekend, under 2s free
Ashmolean Adventure (ages 7 to 11) Ashmolean Museum Every day of the holiday From £10 for a family of two
Pitt Rivers and Museum of Natural History Parks Road Daily, 10am to 5pm Free
Public skating Oxford Ice Rink Sessions every day £11.85 adult, £9.20 junior, skate hire £2.45
Brother Tree Sound (all ages) Jacqueline du Pré Music Building Tue 27 Oct, 4.30pm and 7pm See the box office
Half Term Halloween Crafternoon New Theatre Oxford Wed 28 Oct See the box office

Ghost Fest at Oxford Castle & Prison

Ghost Fest returns for its 17th year from 23 to 31 October (Oxford Castle & Prison, Ghost Fest 2026). The family part is the Potion Making Experience, 25 to 31 October between 10am and 2.30pm: an hour in the medieval crypt helping “Merlin’s apprentice”, making a drinkable potion and a wand to take home. It is suggested for ages 5 and over, costs £16 for one child and one adult and £14 for each extra child, and does not include the normal guided tour or St George’s Tower (Potion Making Experience).

The Spooky Tours, 27 to 31 October from 6.30pm, take hour-long groups into the punishment cells and other spaces not normally open. They are suggested for ages 14 and over, and under 16s need an adult. Tickets are £21, or £23 on Halloween night (Spooky Tours).

The Spectre Ghost Tour runs every Friday at 6.30pm all year, so the half term date is Friday 30 October. It is a 90-minute walk through the city with a costumed guide, billed as family-friendly, at £15.75 an adult and £10.50 for under 18s (Spectre Ghost Tour).

Pumpkin picking at Rectory Farm

Rectory Farm at Stanton St John, OX33 1HF, runs its pumpkin patch every October weekend and every day of half term week, 24 to 31 October, from 9am to 5pm with the last entry slot at 3.30pm. Tickets are £7.50 a head on half-term weekdays and £8.50 at weekends for anyone aged 2 and over; under 2s are free. Every adult and child needs a booked ticket, and the pumpkins themselves are paid for separately at the farm shop or the payment huts (Rectory Farm, pumpkin patch).

The free museums

The Pitt Rivers Museum normally opens at noon on Mondays, but on half-term Mondays it opens at 10am, so Monday 26 October is a full day, 10am to 5pm. Entry is free, and you go in through the Museum of Natural History on Parks Road (Pitt Rivers Museum, visit us). The Museum of Natural History is open every day from 10am to 5pm, also free, and its Geology of Star Trek display runs until 8 November (Museum of Natural History).

At the Ashmolean, the Ashmolean Adventure digital trail for 7 to 11 year olds runs every day of the school holidays rather than weekends only. It is priced per family, from £10 for two people to £18 for six, and each person needs their own device (Ashmolean Adventure).

Skating, music and theatre

Oxford Ice Rink runs public sessions every day. Adults pay £11.85, juniors (16 and under) and students £9.20, and skate hire is £2.45 (Oxford Ice Rink, family and children).

Brother Tree Sound, “a journey through British folk music” marked for all ages, plays the Jacqueline du Pré Music Building on Tuesday 27 October at 4.30pm and 7pm (Oxford Playhouse box office). At the Playhouse itself, The Gang of Three runs from 27 to 31 October and Michael Palin brings In the Philippines on Sunday 25 October (Oxford Playhouse).

New Theatre Oxford lists a Half Term Halloween Crafternoon on Wednesday 28 October, Michael Portillo on the 29th, a Tina Turner tribute on the 31st, and The Proclaimers on Sunday 1 November, which is sold out (New Theatre Oxford, what’s on).

Still to be announced

  • The Story Museum has not yet put up its 2026 half term programme. Its page still shows last year’s, when it opened daily 10am to 5.30pm through the holiday with paid workshops from £10 (The Story Museum).
  • The Ashmolean, the Museum of Natural History and the Botanic Garden normally run free half term drop-ins, but none has listed October 2026 dates yet.

We will add these when they are published, expected in the first half of October.

The week after

Oxford’s fireworks are on Saturday 7 November in South Park: see our Oxford fireworks page. If you are driving into the centre, check parking in Oxford and the roadworks and travel page first.