From 19 July to 31 August 2025
Warriors with swords, a blacksmith showing his bladed wares and the origin story of how the Great Heathen Army arrived in York awaits at JORVIK Viking Centre this summer, as the must-visit attraction prepares for its own invasion of history-thirsty visitors!
“This is set to be a blockbuster summer for JORVIK Viking Centre! After 40 years telling the tales of the peaceful inhabitants of 10th century Coppergate, this year we will share the origin story of how Jorvik became the capital of the Viking North,” says director of public engagement, Gareth Henry. “The experience starts even before visitors enter the attraction, with handling opportunities as they wait for their timeslot outside – arming their minds for the world-class Viking experience that follows!
Once inside and in the Discover Coppergate gallery, groups of visitors gather on a glass floor to hear a brand new talk on the Vikings’ arrival in the city, before learning about the recreation of the archaeological dig found on this very site in the late 1970s and early 1980s. The orientation space sits at the level of the Viking-age streets – several feet below current street level, which has been built up by centuries of waste being discarded above.
Step into Viking-Age York
JORVIK’s ride remains one of a handful of ‘dark rides’ in the country, with visitors boarding a time capsule for a trip around the sights, sounds and even smells of Viking-age Jorvik in the year AD960 – not long after the infamous king Erik Bloodaxe was banished from the city. Usually cited as the favourite part of a visit to JORVIK, the recreation is what archaeologists believe this area would have looked like over 1000 years ago.
“This was part of a much larger city of around 8,000 inhabitants – the second largest city in England at the time – and features the craftspeople that we know occupied the site during the Viking period,” adds Gareth. “Our archaeologists found evidence of wood-turning, horn carving and blacksmithing on this site – and indeed, the word Coppergate means ‘Street of the cup maker’. We also have eleven unique smells as visitors travel around, from fragrant fruit to rotten meat and even a cesspit, to give an idea of just how smelly life would have been in any settlement without underground sanitation or waste removal.”
Another new feature for Summer 2025 will be the chance to meet one of Coppergate’s blacksmiths with a recreated a Viking-age forge! Metal items – from tweezers to swords – were expensive to make, so were often somewhat of a status symbol. Costumed guides will talk to visitors about the processes involved, and give them a chance to handle other replicas to show how remarkable craftsmanship was possible without modern power tools and manufacturing technique.
Forging the Viking Way: Meet the Blacksmith
Another new feature for Summer 2025 will be the chance to meet one of Coppergate’s blacksmiths with a recreated a Viking-age forge! Metal items – from tweezers to swords – were expensive to make, so were often somewhat of a status symbol. Costumed guides will talk to visitors about the processes involved, and give them a chance to handle other replicas to show how remarkable craftsmanship was possible without modern power tools and manufacturing technique.
JORVIK is open daily all year round, and prebooking is essential as the must-see attraction is often fully-booked throughout the school summer holidays. JORVIK opens from 9am to 5pm (last admissions) throughout the summer. Tickets are £17.50 for adults, £12 for children and free for under 5s, and include free return visits for 12 months! For more information, or to book, please visit our Plan your Visit page.
JORVIK Viking Centre is owned and operated by York Archaeology, an educational charity. It sister attraction, DIG: An Archaeological Adventure, also has big plans for the summer, with a new exhibition based on the How To Train Your Dragon School books by Cressida Cowell, opening on 21 July.
