York City Walls

Visited York on many occasions but only now got around to touring the walls. A pleasant walk around the historic edge of the city also provided numerous unique views and perspectives on the history contained within. If you are in the city don't wait as long as I did to discover these sights for yourself.

You don’t need to pay to go on the city walls, just walk around the main part of York and find some stairs going up onto the walls which can be found usually at the end of main roads. The York City Walls are a beautiful walk around the city, sometimes the wall is thinner on areas and can only allow single person file, whereas it is larger in other areas. Safe for children, not certain of the ability for those in wheelchairs or prams to use the city walls as I am not sure there was any ramps up onto the walls.

During my visit to York for the day, my overseas friend and I planned to walk the York City Walls and what a lovely experience it was! Made better by the sunshine and clear, blue skies. There were plenty of things to see along the way, and moments where we were able to stop off, take in our surroundings and simply be still, in the moment. At certain points, there are benches to rest and take in the sights and sounds of York. It was fascinating to try and picture, while walking these walls, what life would have been like back then. I found myself wondering throughout the walk "Who once walked these walls?" "Who were they as a person?" "What were they thinking about?" Of course, along the way, you come across the 'bars' which are great to see (came across one, which I didn't know was a cafe!) Although we didn't go inside, it certainly looked quirky! A great place to stop off, for a drink and maybe a slice of cake, before continuing on the adventure! Definitely a great day out, especially for those into history like myself, as there are information boards along the way, telling you about the history of York. And best of all? It's free! So if you fancy taking in the sights of this ancient city, want to learn more about it, and walk in the footsteps of those before us, then I'd recommend walking the York City Walls.

Although my walk was during a raining day, I had the best time. I took the advice of a local to do it clock wise, it was easier and the views were so beautiful.

Unfortunately, I didn’t get a chance to walk along all the city walls. But anyway, I was on some of them. That’s the best landmark after the York Minster, in my opinion. Speaking of York Minster, you can see it from the city walls. The walls give you a chance to explore the city and also dive into York’s history. There are text boards where you can read about the history of these walls.

This was a lovely, free experience in York. You have several very pretty gardens to view as you walk along the wall. It's very nice to me able to walk along it till today Be careful, the staircases up and down are very narrow but there are only about 20 steps, or so. The wall is open till 6pm.

Fantastic walk to kill a good 3-4 hours with the added bonus of multiple amazing views of York city and York Minster. Along the route there's many sections with ruins, artifacts, buildings, guard towers and parts or sections of things to see. There's a full port cullis in one of guard the towers, which is pretty cool. Some of the towers are still complete, so you can go inside, they have incredible wooden doors that are hundreds of years old. You will see guards rooms and toilets and classic rampart features like crenellations and archers arrow slits. Along with the towers there's many gates too. There's signage and plaques to show what things are. You know you're on the correct route as there are little brass markers every 25 metres in the floor with a little castle emblem on them. When you get to the section along the river and busy road, it's tricky to keep on the correct track but you follow the busy road and that keeps you on the correct route towards the Red Tower. There are seats along the way but not often, so be prepared to walk. Some sections are narrow and you can barely get two people past but this only happens a few times on small sections of the wall, it's not claustrophobic or anything. Most of the wall is open with no safety rail or anything, so there's the wall, the path and then a drop off that can be a couple of feet, up to around 20 feet at some parts, there's plenty of room on the pathway at these sections though, so it's not dangerous but you certainly wouldn't let a toddler wander about on their own. The route will take you to Clifford's Tower, you can go inside and learn more about how the wall and tower was built and also climb to the top of Clifford's Tower and see some spectacular views. Overall, it's a cheap day out, parking in the city centre will cost around £15 for 4 hours and around £22 for all day, so if you're only going to walk the walls, it's a relatively cheap day, totally free if you can find free parking and take your own snacks and drinks! It's a highly recommended day out for young and old. It's not wheelchair accessible due to the numerous stairs to navigate up and down the walls. Anyone with bad knees might find it a challenge too.

We did not walk all the city walls, we probably did only half of them. They were rich in history, with some good views, some of the gates were beautiful and glorious. The river, the trees, the lotus and bridges added peace and tranquility to the scenery.