Downing College, Cambridge

Summary

• 19th century buildings
• Breakfast included
• Free car parking
• No smoking

Facilities

• Free broadband access
• Gardens
• Tennis court
• Gym
• Self-catering facilities

Drinking and dining

• English breakfast (included)

Nearby recreations

• Pub (walking distance)
• Museums (walking distance)
• Gardens
• Golf course (a short drive)
• Tennis courts (walking distance)
• Recommended restaurants (walking distance)
• Theatre (walking distance)

Downing College, dating from the early 1800s, has a unique setting amidst 20 acres of lawns and trees and yet it is within half a mile of the historic centre of Cambridge. While the college itself is quiet and peaceful, a short walk brings you to the very heart of the city, making Downing an ideal location for visitors on a leisure break or in Cambridge on business.

All of the bedrooms we have available are ensuite and either overlook the Main Court lawns, West Lodge Gardens or the beautiful Maitland Library. The rooms are used by undergraduate students during term time but are fully equipped for the modern day traveller, with facilities such as a flat screen TV and a spacious desk with free broadband internet connection. A telephone, alarm clock, hairdryer and tea and coffee making facilities are also provided, and rooms are cleaned daily by the College ‘bedders’.

Free parking is normally available within the college; please state in the Additional Information section of the booking form if you require parking.

Please note: We are unable to accept bookings for Stag and Hen parties.

On arrival all Guests are required under the Immigration (Hotel Records) Order 1972 to complete a registration form giving full name and address and nationality. Non UK guests will also be required to provide the number and place of issue of their passport, their nationality and their next destination. These records must be kept for at least 12 months and be available for inspection by any police officer.

History to the present day

Downing College was founded in 1800 by Sir George Downing, with wealth left by his grandfather, who served both Cromwell and Charles II and built No.10 Downing Street. When the front door of No. 10 was replaced in the 1960s, the original was donated to Downing College, and is now the door to the College Office.

Dining and drinking

A full English breakfast is included, and is served in the recently restored Dining Hall. Breakfast is available from 8am-9am, and is self-service.

Grounds and gardens

Downing is set amidst 20 acres of lawns and trees, making it a very spacious college. The East Range, Rose Gardens and the Paddock are open for visitors to enjoy during the day.

Other facilities

The Lt. Col. Anderson Gym and two outdoor Tennis Courts are available for guests to use, although we are unfortunately unable to provide tennis equipment. Please book these facilities at the Porters' Lodge.

Arrival information and how to find us

Address: Downing College, Regent St, Cambridge CB2 1DQ

Check In: From 2.00pm Check Out: By 10.00am

Guests should check in and out at the Porter’s Lodge, located at the entrance to the College on Regent Street. It is possible for guests arriving before 2.00pm or departing after 10.00am to leave a small amount of luggage at the Porters' Lodge.

On arrival all Guests are required under the Immigration (Hotel Records) Order 1972 to complete a registration form giving full name and address and nationality. Non UK guests will also be required to provide the number and place of issue of their passport, their nationality and their next destination. These records must be kept for at least 12 months and be available for inspection by any police officer. 

How to Find Us: 

By Train: Downing College is situated about ¾ of a mile (15 minutes walk) from the station and is served by regular buses and taxis.

By Bus: Cambridge's main bus station, Drummer Street is only a 5 minute walk from the College.

Parking on site is free, and though normally plentiful, please request this in the Additional Information section of the booking form.

More photos of Downing College, Cambridge

West Range Staircases	The Hall Exterior	View Across College	Aerial View of Downing
Masters' Lodge	The Hall and Fellows Garden	Superior Single Ensuite Room	Superior Twin Ensuite Room
The Hall	Greek Deco in the Hall	The Hall Servery	Fitness Centre
Tennis Courts	Gardens	Downing In The Snow	The Hall In The Snow

Customer feedback

We guarantee that all our feedback is genuine and can only be submitted by people who have booked through our websites.

mrs r a bullough, September 2010: I had a wonderful stay at Downing College. We came by coach and the college was just across the green. The staff were all enormously helpful. The location is excellent and near all the facilities that Cambridge has to offer and I would definitely recommend it to my friends instead of staying at a hotel.

Mark Cowmeadow, August 2010: WOW!...at last a place worthy of the word fantabulous! he he...from the very helpful staff in the porters lodge on arrival to the excellent wedding service and staff at the reception capped finally by the sunniest smile from the girl on duty in the dinning hall for breakfast I've ever seen...cant reccomend staying here highly enough!!!...as Arnie said...I'll be back!!!

Gottfried Sedelmeier, Dr. , August 2010: We, and our german guests were quite happy with the rooms and the services. We thank you very much for all supports especially the Porters Lodge. It was a beautiful wedding.

Stephen Rigg, August 2010: A very, very wonderful weekend. Downing provided a very special setting and wedding experience for us all. Our sincerest thanks.

Stephen Rigg, August 2010: We were very pleased with the standard of our room on the first floor. It exceeded our expectations of a student room and had every comfort that we required. The breakfast also catered for every taste with very nice lean bacon. An excellent stay, thankyou. Christine and Ian Clark

Alan Winder, August 2010: Porters at Reception pleasant & capable chaps but didn't know breakfast times. Room basic & characterful -- v happy with that. Unique Cambridge Uni ambience pleasing. Breakfast appalling ie poor food & lethargic staff -- way below commercial standards in both respects. Parking very useful indeed. I will check your website to see if my comments are posted.

Domenico RONCONI, August 2010: In spite of being a little away from the oold colleges area, and in spite of the main entrance in a busy street, once you are inside the college site you feel as in an oasis of peace. I'd come back with pleasure when in Cambridge again.

Jay Livingstone, August 2010: Nice room with a lovely bathroom. Great surroundings, very quiet and yet very central. Free parking a great advantage

Robina Hodgson, August 2010: Room booked for guets at my daughters wedding. Fantastic overall experience.

Robina Hodgson, August 2010: Booked room for a wedding at Downing College fabulous experience if you are attending a wedding at a college then this really adds to the experience.

Mrs Mary Jacobsen, August 2010: Downing is an excellent place to stay; comfortable, quiet, central, with ability to park a car and have breakfast, all within a beautiful college setting. The Porters lodge staff were efficient, friendly and helpful, as were the staff at breakfast. The room, a superior room, with ensuite was excellent, as was the breakfast .We will certainly stay again. My only complaint was that the webbsite was down, post my original booking,and prior to our stay, which stopped me from booking a second night at Downing. This we would have done. It is a shame that it is not possible to book directly through the college, as well, which was also reiterated at the Porters lodge. I thoroughly recommend Downing College .

Andrew Bradley, August 2010: I spent 3 nights here in early August. The great plus in my view of Downing compared to other Cambridge colleges is that it has on site parking. It is also well situated, opposite Parker's Piece (large parkland) and very close to various and varied restaurants. For the less discerning, there is a large Wetherspoons under 5 minutes away - The Regal which I can recommend, particularly if you are single traveller - acceptable meals and cheap beer. Only a 7 minute walk to the main shopping area. The porters are very friendly, helpful and witty. My room, N9, was an en suite single, first floor room that faced onto the Maitland Library and I was able to park nearby. Obviously these are student and not hotel rooms and are fitted out accordingly. I had a decent sized room with plenty of storage space and a large writing desk, single bed with easy chair. Whilst the descriptions say there is a flat screen television, it is in fact a small computer screen but it gets all the terrestrial channels and to be fair I am not aware of another Cambridge College that has televisions in rooms. There was a large bathroon and I was very pleasantly surprised to find a good sized bath with a shower over it and also a heated towel rail. Breakfast is in a lovely large dining room -cereal, fruit juice are provided as is a very good cooked breakfast - the fried bread is excellent! University Rooms guests had their own table as when I was there, the college had several courses on for overseas students so it could be busy especially at the start of breakfast at 8am. Downing has huge grounds which are a delight - I do think they could perhaps provide a few more seats so you can admire the wonderful views- it can be a bit of a 'hike' to the few that are available. It really is an oasis of peace and tranquility yet only minutes from the middle of Cambridge. Contrary to what it says on your card, check out time for B& B (University Rooms) guests is 11am and not 9.30am. A great place to stay - a college of character with lovely old buildings and grounds

june waggitt, August 2010: We wanted to try the 'experience' and it was far better than we expected. It was a delightful room and we will stay again and recommend friends and colleagues to consider University Rooms. Can we book that room again specifically if it is free? June

Carol Richardson, August 2010: Would definitely recommend styaing here to friends.

A R Maryon-Davis, August 2010: Brilliant online booking. Very satisfactory accommodation and overall service. My wide and I will definitely recommend Downing to any friends visiting Cambridge.

Miss Julia Colley, August 2010: We had a great time and will book again. Wonderful facilities, and the breakfast was outstanding. What a lovely place to study.

mary kurvers, July 2010: We had an excellent experience. I especially enjoyed the porter's lodge staff - they were exceptionally kind and generous with their time and even gave us a personal tour of your splendid library. We would definitely recommend this facility to our friends and hope to return some day ourselves.

Russell Vandyk, July 2010: Very comfortable room and fun to be at a college, very useful to park easily right in the heart of Cambridge - at the top end of my price range but worth it

Rhian Reynolds, July 2010: The porters were very friendly and the free car parking is a bonus in Cambridge. Setting was excellent.

Andrew John Murphy, July 2010: Downing was stupendous ...great location not far from railway station .4 star room bathrobes.bath and TV !!!!!helpful and friendly staff .great breakfast .thought I was in a professor's room !!!Handy for bars shops and eateries nearby . enough said !!this place has it all.

Anne Newbould, July 2010: Excellent central Cambridge location.

Alistair Wishart, July 2010: The accommodation was excellent, and the staff in the porter's lodge were very helpful. The short (and early) window for breakfast (8-9am) and check out at 9:30am was challenging after attending a wedding the night before.

J. Cromie, July 2010: I wish to comment on the helpful attitude of the accommodation and porter staff. A word fom the dining room staff would have helped me on the first morning but this is hardly a criticism. Downing is already recommended to several other people.

Gerard O'Donovan, July 2010: Overall a great and comparatively inexpensive way to visit Cambridge. Would certainly stay at Downing again.

Kiran Singh, July 2010: I was very happy with the accommodation. I hope to be able to stay here again when i return.