Cambridge for a year

[Iafontaine]

I am going to Cambridge for a year to do a long saved for master's degree, taking an unpaid year out from my job. I could take a College room (feel a bit too old for that) but I am thinking of finding a flat somewhere to rent, from September/October. Which areas of the town are nice? Or parts to avoid? And recommendations for your favourite places?

There isn’t really anywhere in Cambridge to avoid. It is such a small city it all melts into one.

People will tell you to avoid Mill Road and Cherry Hinton but the rough areas of Cambridge are the same as the nice areas elsewhere.

How far out are you willing to go? There are massive roadworks north of Cambridge at the moment which are going to continue for another 9 months or so to avoid the traffic stay away from Milton.

One of my favourite places is the clip n climb, it is great if you are looking for something a little more active to do.

Do you know about this service?

https://www.postgraduate.study.cam.ac.uk/why-cambridge/support/accommodation-service

I think they will be able to find you somewhere.

Anywhere in the city centre is nice. Newnham is good. Anywhere around Midsummer Common and Jesus Green is good. Chesterton Village is nice, but that's a bit of a long walk into town. Streets off Chesterton Road are nice, but possibly not Chesterton Road itself, as it's a busy road.

Streets off the lower end of Milton Road are good (ie, the Chesterton Road end), but it gets much less good at the top end - I'd avoid Arbury. Mill Road is OK, but not great - it's a poorer area, and a bit scruffy.

I lived in one of the many roads off Mill Road when I was a student there – it's absolutely fine, just a bit scruffy by Cambridge standards!

I spent a year in Newnham for my Master's (college-owned house) and it was lovely, a pleasant walk to the centre. DD is off Mill Road and it feels a bit more student-y. (With some excellent small restaurants!)

Yeah I don't think there's any places to specifically avoid. Nowhere is particularly rough. However certain areas are definitely more aesthetically pleasing than others.

I'm local and if I could choose anywhere I'd aim for around Jesus green / midsummer common / close to the river. It's close to the centre and some streets are very pretty.

Newnham is nice but lots of families and it's heading out of town.

aha @Wolfpa good to know about the roadworks. clip n climb is exactly my kind of thing too.
@Time40 yes I just found that service so registered, things seem to move quite quickly. I registered for one of the new flat developments (?) too so will see if that comes up.
@PhotoDad a College house might be a nice option after all.
@Tiredmummaoftwo some green spaces would be nice.
It seems that Cambridge is small enough to generally be in reach of nice places.
Mill Road sounds pleasantly quirky.
I'll see what comes up, I'm doing this from afar so good to know there's nowhere in particular to avoid.

Lots of colleges own houses/flats out in town not just in their main college building. Check that first, as may be cheaper. And postgrad students can be a wide range of ages so don't worry about living with kids necessarily.

Milk road is good for international food. A big thing will be do you need parking? It's pretty bad through most of town so that might help you narrow down. Quite a few people live further out and cycle in along the busway, some lovely villages around cam.

Cambridge is a compact city and very walkable/bikeable. Since you asked about favourite places... my DD misses the countryside but spends a lot of time in the Botanic Gardens (near the station). And in fact it's easy to get to a nature reserve on the "Guided Busway"!

Don't immediately dismiss a college room. The provision for graduate students is often really nice, and not at all undergraduate feeling. I lived in a series of college-owned beautiful old houses shared with a handful of other graduates. My college also has newish graduate accommodation which is also excellent. For price and location, you can't beat it.

@mumarooni I don't think I'll be bringing my car as it seems a good opportunity to bike around, though that might change.
@PhotoDad the botanical gardens sound lovely, I'll have to work out what this guided busway is (like a tram?)

I also lived, later, on one of the little streets off Mill Road. Yes, it was a small terraced house, rather than the grand college houses, but it was absolutely fine too. As another poster said, Cambridge's version of "not that nice," is actually not bad at all.

What's your budget?
See if the college has any graduate accommodation. If you can be with fellow graduates that's by far your best option.

@Ruthietuthie yes I think I'll be more open minded about College rooms

@AnotherEmma I have a decent budget as this is a once in a lifetime career break, but I think lodging with graduates could be a nice idea.

To be clear: the vast majority of rented housing in Cambridge is overpriced and a poor standard. College accommodation is often a decent standard and price (because it's owned and sometimes subsidised by the college).

Have you contacted these people yet?
https://www.accommodation.cam.ac.uk/

yes I have @AnotherEmma it took a bit of time to prove I was going to be studying as I think they are careful only to offer to staff and students. I'm looking on there and in Colleges. Thank you for the warning about private rented.

The busway connects Cambridge to a few neighbouring towns (and can also be used by cyclists and pedestrians). Normal buses slot between guide-rails when outside of town which apparently lets them go faster safely.

Also there are a whole bunch of really great, mostly small, museums and galleries. It's a lovely place to spend a year (but don't take your car!)

Intriguing @PhotoDad I'll look into that. Yes I think a car might be a nightmare especially with many cyclists. I like the look of the galleries and museums.

I'd definitely get college rooms if possible. Spending time with other post grads from all around the world is one of the joys of doing a masters.

Seconding those saying that graduate accommodation is often far better than private rented. Some colleges have gorgeous graduate sites, with lots more than just rooms on site - sometimes a buttery, library, gym, beautiful gardens and other nice facilities (eg Darwin; Leckhampton at Corpus; Clare Colony). The colleges often have shared graduate houses or studios/flats available too if you want a bit more independence. You may also be much more likely with college accommodation to end up in the nicer and more central bits of town, near the libraries and so on (there’s very little private rented housing in the city centre, as the colleges own most of it). Do you know which college you will be at, and what subject? Proximity to the libraries/faculties/labs you’ll most be using is probably the most important facet of choosing accommodation. If you’re a humanities or law student, for example, Darwin, Newnham or Leckhampton/Corpus accommodation are fabulous choices to be really near the libraries and humanities faculty sites.

Whereas, if you’re a scientist who will be working out at the West Cambridge site, say — then Girton, Churchill or the university grad accommodation at Charles Babbage Road is fantastic (the university-owned rental flats at Charles Babbage Road also have a nursery on site with a percentage of places allocated for grad students).

Private rented accommodation in Cambridge is generally insanely expensive and of a very poor standard (I could tell you some tales from my grad student days—!) You’re more likely to be out around Mill Road or Romsey (an area I don’t like much, though many people do), than Newnham (which is an insanely expensive area where bog standard terraced houses cost £1m plus these days). The Accommodation Service acts as a broker more than anything else, so it doesn’t guarantee quality. All in all, college graduate housing is often a far better and nicer bet!

I would also advise college accommodation. I rented a room in a professional flat, and I never really felt I "belonged" at college as a consequence. I think you'll find it a smoother transition if you're living in right from the start.

I agree with all the previous posters who advise college accommodation. As you’ll only be in Cambridge for a year it will definitely help you feel part of the college.

@myveryownelectrickitten has some good advice about locations. BTW, Clare Colony isn’t called that any more as far as I can tell. I think it’s now Castle Court, with St Regis next door for postgraduates.

Correction: Clare’s Castle Court and St Regis are on the same road but a few minutes apart. I was getting it muddled with a Magdalene College building which is close to Castle Court.

I’d kill to live in a Cambridge college for a year. It’s my local shopping city and every time I go I think how amazing it would be. What a great experience.