Kings College Cambridge in the snow from the river Cam.

Gift vouchers are now available to book online from Scholars Punting Cambridge. You can choose between shared or private tours.

What is a punting experience?

You’ll join a chauffeured punting tour through the famous College Backs of Cambridge and enjoy one of the most beautiful lengths of the river in England, it’s the perfect Cambridge gift and a great way to see the historic city. 

Just sit back and relax and enjoy the views as your professional guide takes you on a punt tour that navigates along this beautiful mile-long stretch of the River Cam, and provides a historical and entertaining overview of the sights as you pass along the famous College Backs of University of Cambridge.

Check out our Shared Punting Tour and Private Punting Tour pages, which provide an overview. The voucher can be selected for these tours, set by season but with the date and time not yet set.

What is punting?

Punting is a traditional method of navigating the shallow chalk stream rivers of England, a punt is a traditional flat bottomed boat that can be moved around the waterways using a long pole or quant, pushing along the bed of the river. Punts are thought to be one of the oldest boats used by mankind, even featuring in the oldest story – The Epic of Gilgamesh. Within the UK, punts have been used to navigate the fens, transport supplies, for fishing, eel catching and wild fowl hunting. It wasn’t until more recent times, Edwardian to be specific, that punting was adopted as a pastime.

Newcomers can find punting difficult to master so a chauffeured punt tour is a great way to try punting and take in the fantastic views of the backs. You’ll also be entertained with a historical tour of the College Backs that we see today. Should you wish to expand your skillset, or apply for a job, here is our blog overview on How To Punt.

What is a punting gift voucher?

A punting experience gift voucher is simply a way of gifting this fantastic experience to someone be it for a birthday or Christmas present it makes a great Cambridge gift. Your voucher will be sent by post in a gift card for you to pass on. 

The shared punting experience gift voucher entitles up to 3 people to take a punt tour with a guide on one of our scheduled punting tours.  Alternatively, you can book the private tour gift voucher for up to 6 people.

Where can I get a punting gift voucher?

You can order your punting gift voucher on this site, select the Punting experience tab on the menu fill in the form and once your payment has been verified you will receive an email confirming the purchase. Your voucher will arrive in the post a few days later so please allow a few days from purchasing the punting voucher before you plan to make your gift.

Why choose a punting gift voucher? 

The punting experience voucher guarantees that your loved one or friend will get to enjoy a taste of Cambridge and an experience to remember. 

A punting experience gift voucher will ensure that the person lucky enough to have a gift voucher, can book a place on one of our tours ahead of schedule, avoiding long waits on busy days. Prices on the day can also be more expensive, especially in peak season or on holidays. 

When can the voucher be used?

The voucher can be used all year on one of our chauffeured tour guide tours, shared or private according to the voucher type. These usually run on the hour and half-hourly throughout the day from January to December.

Seasonal Considerations

Punting is a great experience suitable for all ages in any season but wrap up warm in winter and check the weather forecast as you will need suitable attire on rainy days.

On the rare occasion that the weather is extreme or the river is too fast, we will offer to change or move your Punting experience booking.  

Opening Times

As a company that runs tours outside, we follow the seasons and the amount of daylight. This means that we are open much longer hours in the summer months and in winter months we run reduced hours as the daylight allows. 

What you will receive

You will receive an email confirmation of your voucher purchase and a few days later you will receive a printed voucher from Scholars punting Cambridge in a card ready for you to gift.