The Best Things to do in York with Kids – 3 Day Itinerary

Things to do in York with Kids. Trying to make the most of our school holidays time we visited York for four nights with the kids between Christmas and the New Year. City breaks with kids are a great idea and we have been lucky to go on several with the boys over the years. The UK had some great cities with lots of activities to keep kids entertained – 10 UK City Breaks for Kids. 

Things to do in York with Kids – 3 Day Itinerary

We actually stayed for four nights but our first day was mostly travel. So this itinerary is based around three full days in York city centre. It is such a great place there is so much to do for the whole family. We booked all of our indoor activities in advance unsure how busy it would be and on the basis that numbers may be limited. The problem with booking things in advance is that you never really know how much time you are going to want to be somewhere. So I have tried to give an indication where possible. The boys are aged five and nine. But there is plenty to do for young children and older kids alike.

Tips for organising a city break to York with kids

• Pick a hotel in the centre of york. We stayed in the Novotel which is around a fifteen-minute walk from the city centre. The reason we chose it, is because it had parking. Parking in the centre can be difficult and expensive. 
• York is compact with no need for public transport. Many of the main tourist attractions are close together.
• Book your restaurants in advance. Many bars and cafes were really accommodating but we dd notice that all the restaurants we ate in were turning people away that had not booked.
• Head to the main attractions early, with youngsters it is likely that you will be up early anyway. We really noticed that places get busy around mid-morning.
• There are lots of free things to do with kids, although many also need booking. Not only are some of these brilliant but also really helps to keep the cost down.
• There are lots of things you can do inside making it perfect for the time of year we visited. 

READ MORE – Free things to do in York with kids

 

Day 1 in York with kids

Potion Mixing on the Shambles 

One of the main attractions of visiting York for us was its association with Harry Potter. For this reason, we headed to the Shambles (aka Diagon Alley) on our first day to have a look at the souvenir shops. Along with a potion experience I had booked for 11 am at the Potions Cauldron. It takes about twenty-five minutes, you are given a brief introduction to the history of magic in York. Before being told all about the magic potions you can mix and then create your own. After the boys were delighted to find that their potions had worked by using the magic metre.

Cost – £6.99 each (£2 extra for adults if they want to add alcohol to their potion)

Time – 25-30 minutes

READ MORE – Our Harry Potter inspired trip to York

Wizard Mini Golf

Once we had finished our potion-making we headed to a wizard inspired mini-golf. It is about a ten-minute walk from the shambles. It is essential that you book this in advance. We had a booking for midday. The nine holes are all inside. Each with its own clever set-up. The holes are not very big but some are quite tricky. Staggered entrance means that you are not under pressure from the people behind you. We opted for a group ticket which gave us cake and a butterbeer at the end. I did think to make sure the kids had full tummies but to be honest it wasn’t needed. And just resulted in us having to carry around four butter beers for the day!

Cost – £6.99 each with a free Harry Potter-inspired drink at the end as a reward. Our group ticket cost £44.99 and included a butterbeer and cake each. 

Time – it takes about an hour to do the course, we spent a further half an hour in the cafe eating cake.

READ MORE – Wizard Golf in York a Review of Hole in the Wand

The National Railway Museum

This is a little out of town and it took a little over twenty minutes for us to walk there from the mini-golf right in the centre. The museum does offer a land train which runs from the city centre. We didn’t know about this before we arrived! It would be something we definitely would have got if we had known. Our tickets were booked from 2.15 pm. I also booked the Mallard Experience which is a five-minute simulation of the fastest steam locomotive in the world. If this is something that you want to do then I would recommend doing this at the same time. When we arrived they had sold out of the miniature railway tickets.

There is so much fun to be had. And so much see at the railway museum that we could have spent much longer there. We left when it closed at 5 pm and just about managed to see everything. Although the weather was bad so we didn’t visit the play area. 

Cost – FREE entry. Mallard Experience is £3 per person. 

Time – 2.5-3 hours although you could spend longer.

READ MORE – Review The National Railway Museum 

For dinner, we ate at the Tomahawk Steakhouse. A kids meal costs £6.95 although this does not include a drink or a starter. Charlie was pleased to see they did mocktails. All menus are online. They operate a two-hour table policy, very easy and simple to make a reservation online. Lovely ambience, friendly staff and clean toilets! Separate baby change. Not a cheap dinner option, but delicious and a good place for a treat. 

Cost – 2 kids, 4 starters, mixed sharing platter, a bottle of red and 2 soft drinks with service charge £147.

Day 2 in York with Kids

York Minster

I do not think you can come to York and not be wowed by the enormity of the York Minister. I booked tickets for 10.30 am. If you arrive early then you may be able to get one of the explorer backpacks. There was only a handful when we visited. They include a treasure hunt, paper, pencils, tape measure, magnifying glass and binoculars. It definitely helped Harry navigate something that he may otherwise find boring. Charlie at nine was much more engaged. Again my tip would be to book an early ticket if you can, as it gets busy late morning. 

Cost – £26 for two adults, kids are free (check)

Time – 1.5 hours although you could easily spend longer

We stopped for a drink and lunch in the Shambles market. There is a selection of different types of street food outlets. Or if you can get a table then The Shambles Tavern has a limited menu of picky snacks to share. 

READ MORE – Complete Guide to Visiting York Minster with Kids

Barley Hall

We had a booking at 1.30 pm. I had brought a triple attraction ticket and so this came as part of it. If it hadn’t then I probably would not have bothered. Barley Hall is a reconstructed 15th-century townhouse. At the beginning, there is a short video explaining the restoration process which the boys found interesting. The rest of the exhibits around the house are very word heavy and there is not a lot of interaction. I think older children would get more from it. Although the banquet hall was stunning. You can peek a look at this from the alleyway that runs through the middle of the house, as the windows are floor-length glass.

Cost – part of a triple ticket which costs £50 for a family of four. Or without the other attractions, a family of four ticket costs £21 for Barley Hall on its own.

Time – forty-five minutes although we did not read everything

We picked up a tasty treat in Betty’s on our way to the Viking experience. If you want to you can have afternoon tea in the famous cafe. Although there were queues around the block when we visited. So instead we popped into the shop (no queue) and picked up a tasty treat to munch on our walk. 

Jorvik Viking Centre

Part of the same triple ticket we booked the Jorvik Viking Experience for 3 pm. Again it is essential that you book this in advance as it is a very popular attraction. Charlie declared it as the best thing we did while we were in York. This is surprising since he is such a Harry Potter fan! This museum is so interactive and the staff so friendly and engaging. It really does have to be on your list if you are visiting. You take a ride around how York could well have looked over 1000 years ago, see so many different Viking artefacts. Plus see some of these up close in a show and tell and get your own coins struck.

Cost – part of the triple ticket as per above. A family of four tickets just for Jorvik is £39.

Extras – £2 per coin

Time – 1 hour 

READ MORE – Jorvik Archeology is the triple ticket worth it?

We stopped for dinner in Ambiente Tapas restaurant in the Fossgate quarter. The menu is more limited than other tapas restaurants we have visited. But the food was very tasty and it gave us the option to share a starter board and paella. No specific kids menu. Full menu online and possible to reserve online. Two-hour table limit. A starter board, paella, four tapas dishes, two soft drinks and a bottle of wine with a tip cost £97.

Day 3 in York with Kids

Learning to be an archaeologist at DIG

Our first stop of the day was DIG which is the final attraction in the triple ticket and a great rainy day archaeological adventure. We had the first slot of the day at 10 am. Just round the corner from The Shambles, it will also give you the opportunity for a photo opportunity before it gets busy. First, the kids learnt all about archaeology before being set free to ‘dig’ four different sites. All of which are replicas of actual digs that have been undertaken across the city. It is one of the most fun things we did during our visit to York. There is also a small children’s museum. Very well managed from a pandemic viewpoint, a unique attraction that both boys really enjoyed. 

Cost – part of the triple ticket (as above). For a family of four, the price is £26.

Time – 1 hour and then time to look around the exhibit. 

York Chocolate story

Booked for 12.30 pm and only ten minutes away from DIG we managed to pick up some street food to keep the kids full. Before going on to learn about all how York is the centre for chocolate. It was really interesting hearing about the history of chocolate. But I think the tour lost some of its magic with the limits that the pandemic has placed on the tasting element. But it was still interesting and the boys got to make some chocolate lollypops at the end. Plus there were a few interactive exhibits within york’s chocolate story.

Cost – £50 for a family of four

Time – 1.5 hours 

READ MORE – Review Yorks Chocolate Story 

Walking the Walls – City Walls

One of the things we really wanted to do was walk the walls. You can only get onto the walls at certain points around the city. We got lucky with the weather and decided to squeeze it in. We joined the walls at Monk Bar which meant that we got to see the best views, back of York Minster. You do need to climb steps that are quite narrow at various points so probably not easy to do with a buggy. 

The walls continue after Lendal Bridge. Our intention was to walk a little further but the rain came. Below should give you an indication of where you can join the walls. More information is available from the York Walls website. 

Sightseeing via Boat

There are many different sightseeing tours which you can experience. We opted to go on the last sightseeing boat of the day at 3.10 pm from Lendal Bridge with City Crusiers. The cruise of the historic city of york is only 45 minutes, it is possible to book online. Although we just turned up and waited and paid when we boarded. They did let the people that had pre-booked on first which was good to see. We opted to sit downstairs, although did brave it upstairs for a little while until the rain got too much. With a bar selling snacks, drinks and toilets on board, it works well for kids. Allowing a little break from walking. 

Cost – £31 for a family ticket for 4

Time – 45 minutes.

For dinner, we headed back towards our hotel and had an Indian meal close by. There is so much choice you could easily pick one up closer to the city centre depending on where you were staying. We ate at Atithi which had a special offer on Sunday to Thursday of a starter and a main for £9.99. No children’s menu but the boys ate off the special offer menu. I did not see a baby change. 

Conclusions – 3 Days in York with kids

We had a great time in York and did not want to leave. A charming surprise of old and new, in a compact location with plenty of places to grab a coffee or a meal. With a lot to do for kids and parents alike. 

There are so many other attractions which we did not get a chance to visit. I think you could easily spend longer. Although three days for the boys is generally enough for a city break. This means we will be visiting again in the future I am sure, hoping to pick up some of the other attractions. Including Clifford’s tower, Yorkshire Museum, the Museum Gardens, York Castle Museum, and Castle Howard. I can’t wait to have more family fun and earn much more about such a fabulous city. 

You can purchase a york pass that will help with free entry to a number of the attractions mentioned in this post. We did not do this as when we brought the triple ticket it saved us more money than the pass would. It worked out cheaper for us to buy individual tickets for the best places

Have you visited York? I would love to hear more in the comments below. 

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