CATEGORY · A HUDDLEPIN LIST

Tours, Trails & Treasure Hunts in York

York is a city built for wandering, and most of these are on foot from the centre. The Association of Voluntary Guides to the City of York runs a free two-hour walk led by a volunteer who properly knows the streets. The Foss Fairy Trail is a free woodland walk along the River Foss for younger children hunting fairy houses in the trees. For a broader look, CitySightseeing York's open-top bus covers 21 stops and your ticket lasts a full day or two, from £10. For toddlers, the Fairy Trail is the gentle option and costs nothing. For older children and teenagers, The Ghost Trail Of York and The Deathly Dark Tours both lead you through the snickelways and cobbled corners after dark, from £4 for the Ghost Trail, and neither promises an actual ghost. If the walking feels like enough for one day, Golden Fleece York does a Sunday roast or afternoon tea with a kids menu, and takes teenagers up to 18. Booking ahead is sensible for most of the guided walks.

9 places 12 upcoming events 4 free to visit

What's on: tours, trails & treasure hunts

Rolling green countryside with stone-walled field divisions, scattered farm buildings, and hills in the background under blue sky.

WED 7 OCT, 08:25 · +120 MORE DATES

The Yorkshire Dales of All Creatures Great & Small

Grand Yorkshire - Day Trips and Tours

From £99

Rolling green hillside with stone walls dividing fields, stone buildings, and forested valleys beneath mountains.

WED 7 OCT, 09:00 · +120 MORE DATES

All Creatures Great and Small from Windermere

Mountain Goat -York

From £69

WED 7 OCT · +120 MORE DATES

Yorkshire Dales from York

Mountain Goat -York

From £69

WED 7 OCT · +120 MORE DATES

All Creatures Great and Small from York

Mountain Goat -York

From £69

Elevated view across expansive mixed woodland in autumn, with coniferous and deciduous trees in varied green and golden foliage across rolling hills.

WED 7 OCT · +120 MORE DATES

Malton Sculpture Trail at Dalby Forest

Dalby Forest

Young children display yellow chicken artwork at an intergenerational craft activity with adults supervising.

SAT 10 OCT

Captured History: Photography Walk

National Coal Mining Museum for England

Moth with mottled grey and white wings resting on moss-covered stone.

SAT 10 OCT, 12:00 · +33 MORE DATES

Garden Tours

Multangular Tower

From £5

SAT 10 OCT, 12:00 · +33 MORE DATES

Garden Tours

Museum Gardens

From £5

SAT 24 OCT, 10:00 · +8 MORE DATES

Nature Trail

Yorkshire Museum

From £1

SAT 24 OCT

Why's Our Water Orange?

National Coal Mining Museum for England

Free

THU 5 NOV

The People Who Made Caphouse Tour

National Coal Mining Museum for England

Free

Grand stately home with formal gardens, manicured lawns and tree-lined grounds stretching into the distance.

FRI 6 NOV · +58 MORE DATES

Snow Globe Trail

Harewood Castle

Free

Places for tours, trails & treasure hunts

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Gothic cathedral with stone towers, ornate windows and spires against a blue cloudy sky.

Free

Association of Voluntary Guides to the City of York

York

A free two-hour walk round historic York, led by a volunteer who actually knows the place.

Booking required

A red double-decker tour bus crosses an ornate stone bridge spanning a river under clear blue sky.

from £10

CitySightseeing York

York

Hop on and off an open-top bus round 21 stops, with your ticket good for a full day or two.

Food on siteWi-Fi

Golden Fleece York

York · up to age 18

A proper working pub in York where teenagers can join a Sunday roast or afternoon tea, with a kids menu for the rest.

Birthday partiesBooking requiredGroup bookingsKids menu+2 more

Directional signpost with multiple arms in front of a Gothic stone cathedral under blue sky with white clouds.

from £5

Golden Tours York

York

One ticket bundle covers an open-top bus, a river cruise, Clifford's Tower and a live-actor dungeon walk around York.

The Deathly Dark Tours

York

A guided walk through York's darker history, cobbles, old ghost stories and a guide who won't promise you a sighting.

Booking required

Miniature fairy house with yellow walls nestled among green foliage and tree branches in a woodland garden setting.

Free

The Foss Fairy Trail

York

A free woodland walk along the River Foss where you hunt out tiny fairy houses tucked among the trees.

Bike parkingDog friendly

from £4

The Ghost Trail Of York

York · ages 0+

An evening walk through York's snickelways and gothic corners, told through its ghost stories.

A guide with long hair and beard addresses a group of visitors gathered in front of a historic stone wall.

Free

White Rose York Tour meeting place

York

A free two-hour walking tour through York's historic streets and city walls, covering everything from Romans to Dick Turpin.

Free

York Cat Trail ®

York

A free self-guided hunt around York's streets to spot more than 30 hidden cat statues perched on buildings.

Good to know: tours, trails & treasure hunts in York

Are any of them free?

Yes, Association of Voluntary Guides to the City of York, The Foss Fairy Trail, White Rose York Tour meeting place and York Cat Trail ® are free to visit.

What does a paid visit cost?

Paid entry starts from £4 at The Ghost Trail Of York. Prices, ages and facilities are listed on every place page, taken from each venue's own published price list.