As a family, we visit York regularly. I had taken the boys to Jorvik Viking Centre when they were 6 and 8. Both spent most of the visit moaning about the smells! Fast forward 4 years and we were back again, thanks to my younger son (now 10) studying the Vikings at school.
Visiting Jorvik
The visit starts with a short explanation from one of the guides about the excavations and key finds. Below the glass floor, you can see a recreation of what the excavated site looked like, together with the original wooden panels from a later Viking home. There are also pictures and videos of the excavation around the walls.
The gondola ride
The most exciting part of the visit! You board a gondola to ride through Coppergate and the surrounding area as it was in 960 AD, complete with sounds and smells! The figures and animals are very realistic and turn towards you as you ride through. Be warned, not all the smells are nice! You will see the various workshops, dwellings, river life and shops.
Commentary accompanies the ride through speakers in the back of the gondola. You can select your language. There are also subtitles and close-up pictures of artefacts on the digital screen in front of you.
The gallery
Disembarking the gondola, you head into the gallery collection of artefacts. These objects were all excavated under or around Coppergate. Highlights for my boys included the 3 Viking skeletons, a fossilised Viking poo (yes, really!) and the bits of weaponry and arrows.
They also enjoyed playing a recreated version of a Viking game, known as 9 Men’s Morris.
The other hit with my two was the storytelling corner. Here, a guide, in full Viking costume, explained various weapons and items of clothing and answered numerous questions from overly keen children!
We spent around 1.5 hours at Jorvik. I think you would have a shorter visit with younger kids who might not have the patience to look at the artefacts in glass cases in the gallery.
What the kids thought
My kids summed up our visit in these quotes.
Henry (age 12): “its less museum-y, more like a theme park” .
Toby (age 10): “it can be a bit creepy with the realistic figures looking at you. I liked there being people there who could tell you about stuff”
Tickets
You can, and should, pre-book your tickets (time slots often sell out). Click here for a link to book.
Your ticket converts to an annual pass so you can visit again for free within a 12 month period. As a repeat visitor, you can still book your timeslot online.
For those based in England, you can use Tesco reward vouchers against entry – see more details here.
Getting to Jorvik
Jorvik is located on Coppergate in the centre of York. It is an easy 10-15 minute walk from York rail station. You are just minutes from the Shambles in one direction and the Castle Museum / Clifford’s Tower in another.
Refreshments
Jorvik has toilets and a shop but no café. There are a few street food stalls on Coppergate and a Caffé Nero on the corner. Otherwise, you can head towards Piccadilly and the Shambles for many options.
I hope you enjoy your visit to Jorvik. For more ideas on what to do, please see my post on how to spend 3 fantastic days in York.
