Romance in Cambridgeshire is mostly about light and water. The Cam in the last hour of the day, a fen sunset seen from a lode bank, a cathedral choir singing as the light goes outside and the dark sky over the Great Fen on a clear winter night. None of it needs a big budget, although a few of the big occasion options here do cost serious money, and we have said which.
This guide covers fourteen places and experiences for couples, split between Cambridge and the south, Huntingdonshire and the Great Ouse, and Ely and the Fens. We have kept to scenery, music and the occasional big treat. Evening plans in the towns, such as bars and cinemas, are in our separate date nights guide.
Details were accurate at the time of research in November 2026. Seasons, prices and service times change, so please check each website before you set off.
Cambridge and South Cambridgeshire
The city has the river, the chapels and the restaurant with two Michelin stars, and Grantchester is an hour’s walk upstream through the meadows. Most of this section can be done on foot from the railway station, which saves arguing about parking.
Private Evening Punting on the Backs
Outdoor activity
- A chauffeured punt along the Backs, the stretch of the Cam behind the riverside colleges, with a punter who steers and talks you past King’s College Chapel and the Bridge of Sighs
- Let’s Go Punting runs private evening tours from April to September, leaving after 6pm, with the last departure set by the time of sunset
- Its private tours can be booked for just two people and last about 50 minutes, passing seven colleges
- Champagne, Prosecco and alcohol-free Prosecco can be pre-ordered on private tours, and you are also welcome to bring your own food and drink
- Scudamore’s offers a Proposal Punt Tour for two, where the chauffeur goes quiet at a spot agreed in advance so you can ask the question
- Scudamore’s also runs Champagne Punt Tours and Twilight Tours along the Backs as the light fades
- Booking online is usually much cheaper than buying on the riverbank, and Let’s Go Punting says online rates can be up to half the on the day price
- Only use operators licensed by the Conservators of the River Cam, and book at an official punt station rather than with street touts
- Tours run in light rain, so bring a layer, and getting in and out of a punt involves a step down from the bank
Address: Let’s Go Punting: Landing Stage, Thompson’s Lane, Cambridge CB5 8AG. Scudamore’s office: 32a Bridge Street, Cambridge CB2 1UJ
Website: letsgopunting.co.uk; scudamores.com
Phone: Scudamore’s 01223 359750
How to book: Online with the operator; ask Scudamore’s directly about proposal and champagne tours
A shared punt is a sightseeing trip, but a private one at the end of a summer day is something else. The crowds on the bridges thin out after six, the stone of the colleges warms up in the low sun and the punter’s commentary drops to a murmur if you ask nicely. The best of the light is in June and July, when the last tours leave late enough to come back under a pink sky. If you are planning a proposal, tell the company when you book so they can choose the spot and keep the pole out of your photos. Out of season, the same stretch of river in a crisp October afternoon is quieter still, though evening tours stop at the end of September.
Choral Evensong at King’s College Chapel
Indoor activity
- Choral Evensong is a sung evening service by the Choir of King’s College, held in the chapel during university term
- It is free to attend, which makes it the cheapest way to sit inside the chapel and hear its choir
- Evensong is sung most days during term, and the college publishes a service list for each week
- Services last around 40 minutes to an hour
- Arrive in good time, as nobody is let in once the service has started; weekday services are quieter than weekends
- Smart casual clothes are fine, and photography is not allowed during the service
- Daytime visits to the college and chapel need a paid ticket, and the reduced price for the week ahead ends each Sunday night
- Outside term, the choir is often away and services change, so check the college’s service list before you travel
Address: King’s College, King’s Parade, Cambridge CB2 1ST
Website: kings.cam.ac.uk
Phone: 01223 331100
How to book: No booking needed for ordinary Evensong; follow the college’s guidance for special services such as Advent and Christmas
Sitting in the chapel stalls while the choir sings under a fan vault 24 metres high is about as moving as anything in the county, whatever you believe. In winter the service starts after dark, and the chapel feels smaller and warmer than it does on a bright afternoon. Nobody will mind if you are there for the music rather than the prayers, but do stand and sit with everyone else. Afterwards you come out on to King’s Parade as the shops are closing, which is a good moment for a walk along the Backs or a drink. Michaelmas term ends in early December, so the last ordinary services before Christmas come round quickly.
Grantchester Meadows and the Orchard Tea Garden
Outdoor activity
- Grantchester Meadows is the stretch of open riverside grassland on the west bank of the Cam between Newnham and Grantchester village
- The walk from the centre of Cambridge to Grantchester takes about an hour each way, through Sheep’s Green, Paradise Nature Reserve and the meadows
- Komoot’s loop from Grantchester to the city centre and back is about 9.5km, mostly on natural and paved paths
- The meadows are a classic picnic spot, and on sunny weekends they fill up with sunbathers, swimmers and rowers, so go on a weekday or early in the day for a quiet patch
- The Orchard Tea Garden in the village has served teas under its apple trees since 1897, and the poet Rupert Brooke lodged at Orchard House from 1909
- The Orchard serves cream teas with homemade scones, and brunch and lunch are walk-in only rather than booked
- The tea garden was added to Cambridgeshire’s local heritage list in April 2026
- You can also reach Grantchester by self-hire punt or canoe from the Mill Pond, which takes about an hour upstream
Start point: Mill Lane or Newnham in central Cambridge for the meadows path; the Orchard is at 47 Mill Way, Grantchester CB3 9ND
Distance: About 3 miles each way from the city centre to Grantchester
Maps: OS Explorer 209 (Cambridge)
Website: theorchardteagarden.co.uk
Phone: The Orchard 01223 840230
This is the walk Cambridge couples have been doing for more than a century, and it still works because the meadows have barely changed. Cows graze the riverbank, willows lean over the water and the city disappears behind you within ten minutes. Pack a rug and something to eat, find a spot facing the river and give it an hour. Then carry on to the Orchard for tea under the apple trees, where Brooke, Virginia Woolf and their friends once sat. The paths get muddy in winter and after rain, so leave the good shoes at home.
Cambridge Botanic Lights
Outdoor activity
- An after-dark trail of light, colour and sound through Cambridge University Botanic Garden, now in its fourth year
- In 2026 it runs on 17 evenings between Friday 27 November and Wednesday 23 December
- Entry slots run every 15 minutes from 4:30pm to 7pm, and the garden gates close at 8:30pm
- Standard adult tickets are £24.75 and off-peak adult tickets are £18.15, including the booking fee; 3 and 10 December are off-peak all evening
- The trail takes about an hour and a half at a gentle pace, and you can walk it more than once before closing
- Hot food and drinks are sold along the route, including the Garden Café with a winter menu and a café shed near the Winter Garden
- Pushchairs and wheelchairs can use the gravel and tarmac paths, and only assistance dogs are allowed
- The event goes ahead in rain and sleet and only closes for high winds, so wrap up and wear shoes with grip
Address: Cambridge University Botanic Garden, entrances on Station Road and Brookside, Cambridge
Website: botanic.cam.ac.uk
How to book: Timed tickets through Cambridge Live, linked from the Botanic Garden website
Botanic Lights is busy with families on weekend evenings, so couples are better off picking a weeknight slot after 6pm, when the small children have gone home. The light installations are set among the glasshouses, the lake and the big trees, and the garden looks completely different in the dark. Get a hot chocolate from one of the stalls and take the trail slowly. It is ten minutes’ walk from the station, so you can arrive by train and finish with dinner in town. Off-peak nights sell out first, so book early if you want the cheaper tickets.
Midsummer House
Indoor activity
- A restaurant with two Michelin stars on Midsummer Common, on the banks of the Cam
- It opens Wednesday to Saturday for lunch and dinner, with the last dinner reservations at 9pm
- Reservations open three months ahead, at 9am on the first of each month, so anniversaries and birthdays need planning
- In December 2026 it also opens for Sunday lunch on 6, 13 and 20 December
- The restaurant closes from 24 December 2026 to 16 January 2027 for its winter break
- There is no parking on Midsummer Common; the restaurant suggests Aylestone Road (CB4 1HF) as the nearest parking, with pay and display car parks nearby
- Bookings are online through OpenTable or by phone, and there is a waiting list by email when dates are full
- Diners choose between three set menus, named Solstice, Corpus and Trinity, and the bill matches the two stars, so this is a big occasion meal rather than a casual night out
Address: Midsummer Common, Cambridge CB4 1HA
Website: midsummerhouse.co.uk
Phone: 01223 369299 (Tuesday to Saturday, 10am to 5pm)
How to book: Online through OpenTable from the restaurant’s website, or by phone
Midsummer House is the restaurant Cambridge people save up for. It sits on its own on the common, close to the river and the college boathouses, so you can walk along the towpath before or after the meal. Recent reviews on Tripadvisor, up to October 2026, still praise the cooking and the service, including the non-alcoholic drinks pairing. Tables go quickly when each month’s bookings open, so set a reminder if you have a date in mind. If you are proposing here, let the team know when you book.
Cambridge Arts Theatre
Indoor activity
- The Arts Theatre was founded in 1936 as an independent theatrical charity for the students and people of Cambridge
- It reopened in late 2025 after a nine month redevelopment that began in January 2025, paid for by a £16 million gift from Lord David and Dame Susie Sainsbury through the Gatsby charitable trust
- The 666-seat auditorium was completely refurbished, with better sightlines, acoustics and audience facilities
- The 2026 season has included The Rivals, Easy Virtue directed by Trevor Nunn, Blood Brothers and the first UK tour of Operation Mincemeat
- The 2026 Christmas pantomime, Jack and the Beanstalk, runs from 27 November 2026 to 3 January 2027, with tickets from £10
- Captioned, audio described, BSL interpreted and relaxed performances are scheduled through the panto run
- The box office is on 01223 503333, and in November 2026 the website warned that online Mastercard payments were having problems, so phone if a card is declined
- The theatre is in the city centre, close to King’s Parade and the market, so it pairs easily with Evensong and an early supper
Address: St Edward’s Passage, Cambridge city centre
Website: artstheatre.co.uk
Phone: Box office 01223 503333
How to book: Online through the theatre’s website or through the box office
The Arts Theatre is tucked down a passage off King’s Parade, and the refurbished auditorium is intimate enough that nowhere feels far from the stage. A matinee followed by Evensong at King’s and an early dinner is one of the best winter afternoons you can have in the city. Check the programme a few weeks ahead, as touring shows come and go quickly. The panto is aimed at families, so it is a fun outing rather than a romantic one unless you both love a dame. We cover theatre and evening entertainment more fully in our date nights guide.
Huntingdonshire and the Great Ouse
West of Cambridge the Great Ouse slows down between water meadows and old stone bridges, and the skies get darker the further north you go towards the Great Fen. These are quieter, cheaper romantic outings than the city ones, and most involve the river in some way.
St Ives and the Hemingfords Riverside Walk
Outdoor activity
- A circular National Trust walk of 5 miles from Houghton Mill, taking about two hours along flat riverside paths
- The route passes St Ives bridge, built in the 1420s and one of very few in England with a chapel in the middle
- It goes through Hemingford Grey, past the manor house built in the 1130s and the church on the riverbank
- Hemingford Grey Meadow, on the way, is a Site of Special Scientific Interest
- Expect a kissing gate at the start and a stile on the way out of Hemingford Meadow, and the meadow sections can be muddy after rain
- Dogs are welcome on leads throughout
- The Axe and Compass in Hemingford Abbots is on the route, and the National Trust tea room at Houghton Mill serves cakes and light lunches
- The car park at Houghton Mill is pay and display and free for National Trust members
Start point: Houghton Mill National Trust car park, Mill Lane, Houghton PE28 2AZ
Distance: 5 miles (8km) circular
Maps: OS Explorer 225 (Huntingdon and St Ives)
Website: nationaltrust.org.uk (search St Ives and the Hemingfords walk)
Flooding note: The meadows beside the Great Ouse flood in wet winters, so check conditions with the National Trust at Houghton Mill between November and March
This is the prettiest stretch of the Great Ouse, and it is made for an unhurried afternoon. You leave the old watermill, follow the river into St Ives for the bridge and the quay, and come back through the Hemingfords, where gardens run down to the water. Late afternoon in autumn is the time to go, when the light comes low across the meadows and the river is glassy. There are enough pubs and benches to stretch two hours into four. Houghton Mill has had conservation work going on, so check the mill’s own opening before promising your partner a tour.
St Ives Electric Riverboat
Outdoor activity
- A small business running quiet electric boats on the Great Ouse from the Quay in St Ives, on the river since 2005
- Its two 21-foot Phoenix boats, Whisper and Meander, work the river between St Ives and Hemingford locks and can reach backwaters that bigger cruisers cannot
- You can hire your own boat and drive it yourself; the website lists Meander and Whisper at £68 an hour and the smaller Scoop at £48 an hour
- A skippered trip with your own boat and someone else at the wheel is listed at £90 for an hour
- Bespoke trips further along the river, including cream tea trips, are available by arrangement
- Scheduled passenger trips leave on the hour, listed at £12.50 for adults
- The boats run in the warmer months up to the end of October, so 2027 trips will not start until spring
- Children and dogs are welcome on board, and the Wildlife Trust runs wildlife trips with the company, with half the ticket price going to the Trust
Address: The Quay, St Ives PE27 5AR
Website: electricriverboat.co.uk
Phone: 07906 257308
How to book: Online through the Our Trips page, or by email or phone; confirm prices and the 2027 season start before booking
An electric boat is about the most peaceful way to see the Great Ouse. There is no engine noise, so you hear the water, the moorhens and each other, and the boats are small enough for just the two of you. Drive yourself up towards Hemingford Grey, past the manor garden and the church, then drift back to the quay for a drink by the bridge. A skippered hour is worth the extra if neither of you fancies steering.
Hot Air Balloon Flights over Cambridgeshire
Outdoor activity
- Virgin Balloon Flights flies from three launch sites in the county: Huntingdon Racecourse, Ferry Meadows in Peterborough’s Nene Park and Little Gransden Airfield near Cambridge
- Hinchingbrooke Country Park in Huntingdon is used as a back-up launch site, so your meeting point can change on the day
- Flights take off in the early morning or early evening, when the air is calmer, and spend about an hour in the air
- Allow three to four hours in total for the briefing, inflation, landing and the trip back to the launch site
- Baskets carry 12 to 16 passengers in four compartments, and pilots seat couples together, but this is not a private flight for two
- Passengers are offered sparkling wine or orange juice after landing, along with a flight certificate
- Vouchers are valid for 12 months, and a weather cancellation extends the voucher by six months, so you may need several attempts before you fly
- Passengers must be able to climb into the basket using foot holes and stand for the whole flight
Address: Launch sites at Huntingdon Racecourse; Ferry Meadows, Peterborough; and Little Gransden Airfield
Website: virginballoonflights.co.uk
How to book: Buy a voucher online, then book a date and launch site; call the flight status line on the day of the flight
Drifting over the Great Ouse at sunrise, with the river and the fens laid out below you, is the most memorable present on this list, and couples often buy it for anniversaries. The catch is the British weather. Balloons only fly in light winds and decent visibility, and cancellations are normal, so treat the voucher as a promise of a flight sometime that year rather than on a set date. The Ferry Meadows launch is in a country park with parking charges, and the crew meets you at the gate to the meadow. WonderDays also sells balloon vouchers for the Peterborough area, and an older Visit Cambridge listing gives the Little Gransden season as March to October.
Stargazing at the Great Fen
Outdoor activity
- The Great Fen, between Ramsey and Peterborough, has two Dark Sky Discovery Sites designated by the Science and Technology Facilities Council
- The two sites are the Wildlife Trust Countryside Centre at Ramsey Heights and the New Decoy information point near Holme
- Both are in the Milky Way category, which means you can see the Milky Way with the naked eye on a clear, moonless night
- Light pollution is low because there are few towns or villages nearby, which is unusual this close to Peterborough
- New Decoy has a free gravel car park, information boards and picnic tables, and is signed with a brown tourist sign; it appears as New Decoy Great Fen on Google Maps
- The Wildlife Trust runs occasional stargazing evenings at Ramsey Heights, including a family stargazing night in January 2026, so watch its events page for the next one
- New Decoy has no facilities listed beyond the car park, boards and picnic tables, and the Countryside Centre’s toilets are only open on staffed weekdays
- Part of nearby Holme Fen burned in a wildfire on 8 August 2026 and remains closed, so keep to the New Decoy paths
Address: New Decoy, Holme Road, near Holme; Countryside Centre, Chapel Road, Ramsey Heights
Website: greatfen.org.uk; wildlifebcn.org for events
How to book: No booking needed for the Dark Sky Discovery Sites; book Wildlife Trust stargazing events through its website
The Fens are one of the few places in the south of England where a short drive gets you under a properly dark sky. On a clear night in winter at New Decoy, once your eyes adjust, the stars go right down to the horizon in every direction because there is nothing in the way. Bring a flask, a blanket and a red torch, and check the moon phase before you go, as a full moon washes out the fainter stars. It is a cold, exposed spot, so dress as if you were going to a firework display and then add a layer.
Ely and the Fens
North and east of Cambridge the land flattens out and Ely Cathedral rises from its island above the fields. The Fen sunsets here are the best in the county, and Ely itself has the cathedral choir and a restaurant that has been open since 1968 within a few minutes’ walk of each other.
Choral Evensong at Ely Cathedral
Indoor activity
- Choral Evensong is sung at Ely Cathedral at 5:30pm from Monday to Saturday and at 4pm on Sundays, lasting up to an hour
- The cathedral choir sings during term time; when the choirs are on holiday, a visiting choir may sing instead or the service is said rather than sung
- Unlike King’s, Ely has a sung or said evening service almost every day of the year, which makes it a reliable choice outside university term
- The cathedral welcomes everyone to services, and Sunday Choral Evensong is also livestreamed on its YouTube channel
- The cathedral is famous for its 14th century octagon lantern tower and is often called the Ship of the Fens for the way it rises above the flat land
- The cathedral is a short walk uphill from Ely station, about 15 minutes by train from Cambridge
- Special services in Advent and at Christmas draw large congregations, so arrive early in December
Address: Ely Cathedral, The College, Ely CB7 4DL
Website: elycathedral.org
How to book: No booking needed for daily Evensong; check the cathedral’s fortnightly service schedule for the choir and any changes
Walking up from the station to Ely Cathedral at dusk, with the windows lit from inside, is a fine start to an evening. Once the doors close behind you the noise of the town goes completely, and even a small congregation feels part of something. You can follow it with dinner at the Old Fire Engine House, which is a few minutes’ walk away, or a walk down to the riverside. On a winter Sunday, the 4pm service lets you catch the sunset first from the cathedral green. It costs nothing, and visitors are not expected to know the words.
The Old Fire Engine House, Ely
Indoor and outdoor
- A restaurant in a mid-18th century house on St Mary’s Street, just west of Ely Cathedral, where Ely’s horse-drawn fire engine was once kept
- Ann Jarman opened it with two friends in 1968, and her family still runs it
- Afternoon tea is served from 3:45pm to 5:15pm, Tuesday to Sunday, a good choice for two after a cathedral visit
- Dinner is served from 6:30pm to 8:30pm, Tuesday to Saturday, and lunch from Tuesday to Sunday
- The cooking is traditional English, built around local and seasonal ingredients, and some reviewers find the choice of mains limited to classic dishes
- There is a large walled garden with old fruit trees and herbs, where you can sit in warm weather
- An art gallery on the first floor can be visited during opening hours
- Bookings are taken by phone only, not by email, and it closes on Mondays, Sunday evenings, bank holidays and for two weeks from 24 December
Address: 25 St Mary’s Street, Ely CB7 4ER
Website: theoldfireenginehouse.co.uk
Phone: 01353 662582
How to book: By phone only
The Old Fire Engine House feels like eating in someone’s family home, which in a sense it is. There are paintings from the gallery upstairs, the garden is walled and quiet, and the cathedral is right there when you step outside. Recent Tripadvisor reviews, up to October 2026, are mostly warm about the food and the service, with the odd complaint about plain cooking. Come for afternoon tea after Evensong in summer, or a candlelit dinner in winter. Remember it closes for two weeks over Christmas.
Sunset from the Sedge Fen Platform, Wicken Fen
Outdoor activity
- Wicken Fen is the National Trust’s oldest nature reserve, one of the last pieces of undrained fen in England, near Wicken village south of Ely
- A new viewing platform on the lode bank opened in late October 2026, on a short detour from Stage 5 of the boardwalk trail, looking out over Sedge Fen
- The National Trust describes the platform as good for skies, sunsets and birdwatching, with hen harriers over the sedge in late autumn and winter
- The full boardwalk trail is 0.7 miles (1.1km) and takes about 50 minutes, suitable for wheelchairs and pushchairs, but it can be slippery when wet or icy
- The nature reserve is open from 9:30am to 5pm and the car park from dawn to dusk, so a sunset from the platform works best between November and February, when the sun goes down before closing time
- Sedge Fen admission is £11 for adults, or free for National Trust members, and is paid at the Visitor Centre
- From October to May only the boardwalk and woodland walk are open on Sedge Fen, with the longer Summer Nature Trail opening from June to September
- Only assistance dogs are allowed on Sedge Fen
- The National Trust has no plans for late evening opening in 2026, unlike the summer evenings it ran in 2024 and 2025
Address: Lode Lane, Wicken, Ely CB7 5XP
Website: nationaltrust.org.uk/visit/cambridgeshire/wicken-fen-national-nature-reserve
How to book: Pay on arrival at the Visitor Centre; National Trust members free
Wicken Fen in winter, with the reeds turning gold and the sky going orange over the sedge, is the most romantic place in the Fens. The new platform gives you a raised view over the sedge, and on a still afternoon the only sounds are geese and the wind in the reeds. Get there by 3pm in December so you have time to walk out before the sun drops. If you wait for the colours to fade, the walk back to the car is short and level, but take a torch. It also makes a quiet place to propose, as long as you check the closing time first.
Devil’s Dyke at Reach
Outdoor activity
- An Anglo-Saxon earthwork running about 7.5 miles in a straight line from Reach to Woodditton, with a path along the top of the bank
- The bank rises more than 10 metres in places, and from the top you look north across the fen towards Ely and south over chalk farmland
- The first stretch from Reach climbs straight to the top of the bank, so you can be watching the sun go down over the fen within a few minutes of leaving the village
- The Ramblers’ circular route from Reach via Swaffham Prior and its windmills is 6.4 miles and rated leisurely
- The path is narrow and uneven in places, with steep sections where it crosses roads and the old railway, so it is not suitable for pushchairs or wheelchairs
- The dyke is a Site of Special Scientific Interest for its chalk grassland, with wild flowers and butterflies in early summer
- Further south it crosses the Newmarket racecourses, so keep dogs on leads and stay on the path on race days
- There is another Devil’s Dyke in Sussex, so check the location before you put it into a sat nav
Start point: Fair Green, Reach, East Cambridgeshire (village parking)
Distance: A short there and back from Reach of under 3 miles, or 6.4 miles for the Swaffham Prior loop
Maps: OS Explorer 226 (Ely and Newmarket)
Website: ramblers.org.uk (search Devil’s Dyke Reach)
Devil’s Dyke is the best free sunset in the county. Walk up from Reach Fair Green on a summer evening, sit on the top of the bank, and you have the whole fen spread out to the north with Ely Cathedral on the horizon. It feels oddly private, because the bank is narrow and the ditch on one side drops away steeply, so you rarely meet more than a dog walker. Bring a picnic and something warm, as it gets breezy on top. Go in June for the orchids and the flowers along the bank.
Seasonal Highlights
Spring: The St Ives Electric Riverboat season starts again in spring 2027, private evening punting on the Backs returns in April, and balloon flights from Little Gransden are listed from March.
Summer: Evening punts leave after 6pm from June to August with the latest sunsets of the year, Grantchester Meadows is at its best for picnics, the chalk grassland on Devil’s Dyke flowers in June, and the Summer Nature Trail on Sedge Fen at Wicken Fen opens from June to September.
Autumn: The last balloon flights of the Little Gransden season are listed for October, the St Ives Electric Riverboat runs to the end of October, hen harriers arrive over Sedge Fen in late autumn, and the free Institute of Astronomy public open evenings in Cambridge run every Wednesday from October to March, 7pm to 9pm, with telescope viewing if the sky is clear.
Winter: Cambridge Botanic Lights runs on 17 evenings from 27 November to 23 December 2026, the Arts Theatre panto Jack and the Beanstalk runs from 27 November 2026 to 3 January 2027, Advent and Christmas services fill King’s and Ely, and clear moonless nights from December to February are the best for stargazing at the Great Fen.
A Note From Inside Cambridge
We wanted this guide to be about the moments that make a day together special rather than a list of expensive things to book. Some of the best entries here cost nothing at all: a sunset on Devil’s Dyke, an hour of Evensong or a cold night looking up at the stars in the Fens.
If you got engaged at one of these places, or you have a romantic spot we have missed, we would love to hear about it. And if something has changed since we checked, please tell us so we can put it right.
Before You Go
- Book Midsummer House as soon as bookings open on the first of the month, three months ahead, and book Botanic Lights early for off-peak nights
- Evensong at King’s is only sung by the college choir during university term, while Ely has an evening service almost every day, so choose Ely if you are visiting in the holidays
- Private evening punting runs from April to September only, so plan a proposal punt for the summer months or book a daytime private tour in winter
- Balloon flights depend on calm weather and are often cancelled, so do not plan a proposal around one fixed date
- Check sunset times before heading out to Wicken Fen, which closes at 5pm, and Devil’s Dyke, where you need a torch for the walk back
- Riverside paths at Grantchester and the Hemingfords flood or turn muddy between November and March, so wear proper boots
- National Trust membership covers Wicken Fen admission and parking at Houghton Mill and Wicken
- For a spa day together see our spas and wellness guide, and for a romantic night away see our mini breaks guide
- Use the Cambridge park and ride or the train for the city entries, as parking near the Backs and Midsummer Common is limited
