Little Vikings - Issue 52 - Easter 24

Hello!

The sun is shining, the days are longer and there’s a scent of chocolate in the air. Yes, it’s Easter, which means it’s one of the best times to visit York. There’s a whole host of things going on this springtime, from Easter egg hunts to sculpture trails and new exhibitions. It’s a great time to get out and about for a walk, too. Be sure to follow us over on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and TikTok for inspiration all year round.

Wishing you all a very Happy Easter!

Best wishes

All at Little Vikings HQ

Since last issue, we've….

• Booked a mini encounter with armadillos at Askham Bryan Wildlife and Conservation Park, which was so fun.

• Bounced, run and climbed at Oxygen, York’s new trampoline park - it’s awesome

• Loved seeing the daffodils blooming on the city walls and Clifford’s Tower, an epic York sight

• Really enjoyed the free Colour and Light spectacular at York Art Gallery, thanks to The York Bid.

Little Vikings was founded and is run by a York family. Contact us at hello@little-vikings.co.uk. Content © Little Vikings 2024. Little Vikings is a registered trade mark. Every effort has been made to ensure that this guide is up-to-date and accurate, but some things are liable to change. Always check details before you travel.

Oxygen York open

Kids climbing the walls? Head to York’s new trampoline park and let them burn off some energy there instead. Oxygen York is now open at Clifton Moor, and it’s great fun. As well as trampolines, there’s soft play, climbing and more.

oxygenfreejumping.co.uk

The Snooks Trail is on now

The long awaited Snooks Trail is now on! Hosted by Make it York, and raising funds for St Leonard’s Hospice, there are 21 sculptures to find throughout the city. Make a special detour to Delta Hotels by Marriott on Tadcaster Road to see the Little Vikings Snook that we’ve co-sponsored with the hotel!

Goddards garden are open

The pretty gardens at Goddards on York’s Tadcaster Road are open again for the 2024 season. The former home of the Terry family, renowned for bestowing the joy of the Chocolate Orange upon the world, the five acres of gardens are open to the public (charges apply; free for National Trust members). The takeaway on the terrace is back. Note that there’s accessible parking only, so arrive on foot or by bike

More info - www.nationaltrust.org.uk/goddards

Now Booking

There’s a Monster in Your Show at York Theatre Royal

There’s a monster in your show, and he can’t wait to meet you! Tom Fletcher’s interactive adventures for big imaginations are leaping from page to stage, as the beloved ‘Who’s in Your Book?’ series makes its debut as a brand-new musical show.. York Theatre Royal - 26th to 28th March 2024 www.yorktheatreroyal.co.uk

Zog and the Flying Doctors at the Grand Opera House

Zog, super keen student turned air-ambulance, still lands with a bangcrash-thump. Together with his Flying Doctor crew, Princess Pearl and Sir Gadabout, they tend to a sunburnt mermaid, a unicorn with one too many horns and a lion with the flu.

5th to 7th July 2024 - atgtickets.com

Tractorfest at Newby Hall

Tractor Fest is the UK’s largest vintage tractor & engine show, and it’s back at Newby Hall this summer. With over 1,600 exhibitors and a host of entertainment, crafts and food and drink, it’s a fun day out. Admission includes access to Newby’s award winning gardens and adventure playground.

What’s On

Piglets Easter Egg-stravaganza

There’s lots to enjoy at Piglets Adventure Farm this Easter, from the Great Easter Egg Hunt to indoor play, lambing live, entertaining live shows, baby animals and much more. The Beach will be open too!

23rd March to 14th April 2024 - pigletsadventurefarm.com

Easter Wonderland at Mother Shipton’s

This Easter, EVERY BUNNY is invited to Mother Shipton’s for an unforgettable springtime adventure in the whimsical woodland WONDERLAND! Hop along to explore the Easter Bunny Tipi Trail where CRACKING surprises are waiting to be found.

Saturday 23rd March to Sunday 14th April. Booking is essential - www.mothershipton.co.uk

Star Carr: Life After the Ice at The Yorkshire Museum

Experience the world of Star Carr, a famous Mesolithic site, at the Yorkshire Museum. The interactive exhibit features artefacts from 11,000 years ago, just after the Ice Age. An immersive mural, soundscape, and children’s story make this exhibit enjoyable for all.

From 22nd March 2024, included in admission - www.yorkshiremuseum.org.uk/

The Rowntree Park Legendary Easter Trail

Head to the park on Thursday 28th March and search for clues to help the Easter Bunny solve a mystery and earn a reward for all your help. Bring a picnic and make a full day of it! You can start as early as 10am or as late as 12.15pm. £2.50 per child for members and £3 otherwise.

Egg-cellent

28th March 2024 - Pre-booking is advised. www.rowntreepark.org.uk/events/booking

Prehistoric

Wonderful

Egg Hunt

What’s On

Discover a hidden medieval gem

Barley Hall is a picturesque medieval townhouse tucked away down one of the oldest streets in York. Don’t miss your last chance to see The Bard at Barley Hall – have a go at shadow puppet theatre, guess the Shakespeare play from the smell box, join in dress-up fun and see costumes worn by famous actors, like Al Pacino and Kate Winslet.

Barleyhall.co.uk Medieval

Royal

Explore the history of York’s walls this Spring

Take the kids to visit one of the historic gateways into the city – and discover 2,000-year stories involving battles, imprisonment and near destruction of the walls! Learn about some of the characters whose stories are intertwined with Micklegate Bar: a princess, a Royalist in the English Civil War and an early 20th-century policeman who made the gatehouse his home. yorkcitywalls.com

Easter at Beningbrough

Join in the Easter adventures at Beningbrough: pick up your trail map and bunny ears before tackling 10 challenges around the garden: how low can you limbo? Let your imagination roam in the storytelling den, have a go at hula and try your hand at egg rolling, and enjoy a dairy or vegan/ free from chocolate egg at the end of the trail. Afterwards, head to the wilderness play area or head inside to the hall and to see the latest art exhibition, Inspired by Italy.

23rd March to 7th April, 10am - 4pmnationaltrust.org.uk/visit/yorkshire/beningbrough

What’s On

Cute!

Fun

Dig Dig Dig

Meet Vikings

Easter at Castle Howard

Enjoy a fantastic family day out during the Easter holidays at Castle Howard. Take part in the Easter Animal Trail for children and embark on an animal adventure around the Gardens; step into the magnificent House which reopens on the 29th March, and indulge in seasonal delights and Easter treats in the cafes and shops.

23rd March to 7th April. Castlehoward.co.uk

Easter at Raby Castle

There are so many egg-cellent reasons to be hopping up and down with egg-citement this Easter, as Raby Estates becomes an Easter egg-plorers paradise. Join the Easter activities at Ruby Castle’s Plotters’ Forest and Deer Park. Find colourful eggs, play puzzles, explore the farmyard family fun trail and spot beautiful wildlife such as ducks, swans, and red and fallow deer.

29th March to 14th April, raby.co.uk

Dig into some archaeological fun

At DIG, kids get to discover only the most exciting archaeological artefacts from the 2000 years of history hidden under the streets of York. Four excavation pits are filled with Roman, Viking, medieval and Victorian finds, so you can grab a trowel and dig up the clues that show how people lived in these times.

digyork.co.uk

Experience Viking-age York this Easter

Take the little Vikings to discover York’s Viking legacy at the award-winning JORVIK Viking Centre. Take in the sights, sounds and even the smells – including rotting fish and cabbages - of Jorvik. Discover a rare collection of 1,000-yearold-artefacts whilst talking to friendly Viking hosts. Ask them what Vikings had for tea or if they did homework! This Easter, you can also see the Herefordshire Hoard up close. Open daily. Jorvikvikingcentre.co.uk

Review - A Mini Encounter with armadillos at Askham Bryan Wildlife and Conservation Park

Kids wild about animals? Then Askham Bryan Wildlife Park is just the place. Long gone are the days when you had to travel for an hour from York to see anything more exotic than a fluffy lamb. Askham Bryan Wildlife and Conservation Park, on the site of Askham Bryan College, is just ten minutes’ drive from York city centre and we love it. We’ve visited many times for a look at the animals, but we visited to try one of their Mini Encounters for the first time. Here’s what to expect.

About the Mini Encounters - Mini Encounters are just one of the animal experiences on offer at Askham Bryan. Just 15 minutes long, they’re a great chance to get close up to one of the resident creatures and learn all about them from a knowledgeable keeper. If you’d prefer to stay a little longer, the full animal encounter is an hour long and is available for up to four people. Children need to be aged 7 or over, and must be accompanied by an adult. The Mini Encounters are £20 for two people.

Who you can meet - So you’ve decided you’d like to do a Mini Encounter? Now for the big decision: who would you like to meet? Choose from reptiles, meerkats, goats, sulcata

tortoises or - the one we picked, and the most popular - armadillos! There’s something adorable about armadillos, so we couldn’t resist the opportunity to see them in their home.

Behind the scenes - Our mini encounter started outside the armadillo enclosure, where we met one of the keepers, Becky. Becky took us through to the back rooms and showed us some of the creatures they keep behind-the-scenes, from giant snails to scaly reptiles.

Introducing the armadillos - Armed with a little torch in case we needed it, Becky then took us through to the dark, desert-like environment of the armadillos’ home. That’s

where we met Hansel and Gretel, the cutest couple in the whole of the armadillo family (probably). They scooted about our feet while Becky told us all about them: their habits, their history (they’ve had six sets of twins!) and their personalities. It was absolutely fascinating and a real treat to meet them, and even to feed them their lunch (butternut squash and mealworms - delicious!). It’s a short but sweet experience that we’ll always remember.

A trip around the park - After our encounter, we were free to explore the park and see all the other animals. We watched the otters being fed, saw the meerkats going about their business, attempted a chat with the kookaburra, marvelled at the size of the giant tortoises, had a play in the play area and much more.

The verdict - We loved our Mini Encounter with the armadillos, and our kids now want to do one with the meerkats and goats. It’s a brilliant way to learn about the animals and do something a bit different, too.

Good to know - Mini Encounters are popular and need to be booked in advance. There’s loads of free parking, loos and a shop. Annual passes are available and a great option if you think you’ll visit a few times. Askham

Bryan Widllife and Conservation Park, York YO23 3FR - abcwildlifepark.co.uk

Oxygen York

So you’ve heard all the hype, but is Oxygen York all-bouncing, all-playing centre of joyful activity that everyone’s been hoping for? We went along to the opening party of York’s new trampoline park with our 9 and 11 year-olds to check it out for ourselves, and here’s what you can expect.

Parking

Farewell Argos, hello Oxygen! York’s newest activity centre is on the site of the old Argos at Clifton Moor, which is great news because that means plenty of free parking. We found a space without any problems just outside the park, but with so many spaces within a short walking distance, it’s unlikely to be an issue.

First impressions

Wow! A combination of friendly staff, a clean, colourful entrance and lively music made us feel welcome instantly. The site is deceptively large and has been completely transformed from its former guise as a retail store. Every element has been designed for maximum fun.

Socks

Anyone planning on joining in the action (that’s the whole family, right?!) will need grip socks to reduce the chance of injury. Although you can buy them on site, you’re welcome to wear ones you already have (if you’re organised enough to remember them in the rush to leave the house).

Lockers

Lockers are provided free of charge for you to store shoes and anything else you don’t want to carry around, like those sweatshirts that they insisted on bringing…

Activities

Although Oxygen is a trampoline park, there’s a lot more to it than that. The trampolines might be centre stage - and we love the fact that they’re relatively small, discouraging the temptation to share - but there’s a huge variety of other activities on offer. For little ones, there’s a baby and toddler soft play area that will keep younger children occupied for ages (and hopefully napping for ages afterwards, too). Older kids are in for a real treat, with a huge inflatable area, trapeze, parkour area, sports pitch and strike arena. Our daughters spent a full two hours exploring it all, and rated the trapeze and parkour as the best bits aside from the trampolines. There’s also a climbing area that can be booked as an add-on and looks good fun. Not everyone loves to trampoline, so having a mixture of activities is a real winner.

The verdict

It was a solid 10/10 from our girls for their experience at Oxygen York, and we thought it was awesome too. The fact that they keep asking to go back, and asking to have their birthday party there, says it all.

Oxygen York, Clifton Moor Centre, Hurricane Way, Rawcliffe, York YO30 4XU

Dalby Forest’s new Gruffalo Party Trail

A family took a stroll through the deep dark wood. The family did a trail and the trail was good. Ring a bell? Then the chances are that you have fans of the prickle-backed, terrible-tusked Gruffalo at home, in which case the new Gruffalo Party Trail at Dalby Forest is for you. Marking the 25th anniversary of the iconic picture book, the trail is now open and we’ve been along to check it out. Here’s what you need to know if you’re thinking about following in the claw steps of this most misunderstood of creatures.

Getting there

The new Gruffalo trail is located in the Dixon’s Hollow part of the forest, beyond Adderstone Field around a 10 minute drive into the forest from the Visitor Centre. We stopped at the Visitor Centre first to buy a trail pack

(£4) before driving up to the bike trails car park and entrance to the trail. The route

Designed specifically with families in mind, the route of the new Gruffalo trail is flat and fairly smooth (for a forest - don’t expect tarmac or

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pavestones!) so tough buggies should manage okay. The path is flanked on both sides by incredible views into the deep, dark forest that will fire up young imaginations (sshh, was that a Gruffalo I just heard?) and is perfect stick-collecting territory. Thanks to clear signage, it’s almost impossible to get lost (hooray). We completed the trail in just over 45 minutes, but it completely depends on who you’re taking and how quickly they walk/how often they stop.

The activities - The premise of the new trail is simple and sweet: it’s the Gruffalo’s birthday and he’s having a party in the forest. Your job is to search for missing party items, while also doing some activities and learning about what makes the forest special. Although it’s not necessary to buy the activity pack - you could certainly do the walk with out it - we felt that it was worth the price for activities that kept them interested and motivated to keep walking. Our kids enjoyed doing the rubbings along the way, and they loved the stickers too. There’s a party hat and even a woven patch, which is a nice souvenir of a lovely day out. The boards along the way are nice and colourful, with just enough information and images to engage young walkers.

Making a day of it - We can’t visit Dalby without making a pilgrimage to their amazing adventure

playground, out the back of the Visitor Centre. If you’re feeling really energetic, there are more familyfriendly walking trails to tackle, and child-friendly cycling trails too.

Cost - Entry to Dalby Forest is free, you’ll just need to pay to park. We go a few times a year, so it’s been worth investing in an annual pass for free parking. The trail is free to do, but an activity pack will set you back £4. The verdict

Even on a soggy day, we really enjoyed the new Gruffalo Party Trail. Happy birthday, Gruffalo!

Dalby Forest Visitor Centre, Low Dalby, Thornton-Le-Dale, Pickering YO18

7LT - https://www.forestryengland.uk/ dalby-forest/gruffalo-party-trail-dalby

Little Vikings eat at...Dyls

It’s been a pretty soggy start to the year, which has been good news for the ducks but bad news for some of York’s riverside businesses. Us locals are used to a bit of flooding and don’t bat an eye at high water levels, unpassable paths and swans swimming in the park where children should be swinging. For most of us, it’s an inconvenience but for the cafes and bars along the river, it’s a regular, unwelcome hit to their bottom line. That’s why we decided to head to Dyls for brunch one floody day: if they can find the energy and enthusiasm to open while they’re surrounded by

water, the least we could do is tuck into something tasty and help keep them afloat.

In a city full of quirky cafes, Dyls is one of the quirkiest. Housed in the former motor house on Skeldergate Bridge, it’s a tiny gem of a place that’s independently run. There are two entrances: one on the bridge and one at Tower Gardens (opposite Clifford’s Tower). There’s a lovely big terrace with great seating and heaters which was under water when we visited, so we sat in one of the cosy indoor rooms.

The brunch menu is small but perfectly formed, with something for everyone. As well as being an

FAMILY FUN FOR EVERYONE

YORK LEISURE CENTRE

If you’re looking for things to do with kids, York Leisure Centre at the York Stadium Leisure Complex at Monks Cross has a great range of activities guaranteed to turn up the fun. From junior gym, swimming, racquet sports and clip ‘n climb, the whole family will enjoy the great range of fun and affordable activities.

Pre-book your activities at better.org.uk/york-lc

Instagrammer’s dream come true, the avocado toast was the best we’ve had in York, and it was a big thumbs up for the vegan sausage sandwich too. The coffee is delicious, and we’d have been tempted by the cocktail offerings if it hadn’t been so early. Our kids shunned anything sensible and opted for brownies instead, which were gobbled down with gusto. Service was friendly and quick and the vibe was relaxed and welcoming. As long as lovely places like Dyls keep going, we’ll keep supporting them, one coffee, cake or cocktail at a time.

Dyls, Skeldergate Bridge, York YO1 9WJ - dylsyork.co.uk

Catkin & Co. is a York-based small business that creates nature based kits and resources for children.

Little Vikings cook…Easter biscuits

Chock full of chocolate? These biscuits are a lovely sweet treat, without a single cocoa bean in sight. They’re easy enough for children to lend a hand with, too.

Method

1. Pre-heat the oven to 180c/gas 6 and line a couple of baking trays with greaseproof paper/silicone baking sheet.

2. With an electric mixer or by hand, put the butter and sugar in a mixing bowl and beat until light and quite fluffy.

3. Mix in the egg yolk and lemon zest, then add the flour and raisins/currants. Add a splash of milk and mix until it comes together as a soft dough.

4. Flour a surface or board and knead the dough lightly for a minute. Roll out to about 3mm thick and cut out circles of

5/6cm before placing on the baking tray.

5. Bake for 8 - 10 minutes depending on the fierceness of your oven - keep an eye on them. While they’re baking, beat the egg white in a small bowl.

6. Remove the biscuits and brush with the egg white. Sprinkle over a little caster sugar and return to the oven for 3 to 5 minutes - they should be golden and not starting to brown at the edges.

7. Leave to cool on the trays for five minutes, then move to a wire rack to cool completely.

Ingredients

• 200g plain flour

• 100g unsalted butter, softened

• 75g caster sugar (and extra for sprinkling)

• 1 egg, separated

• 50g raisins or currants

• Zest of one lemon

• A splash of milk

• Pinch of salt

Why Little Vikings loves... York during the spring!

Walk along the city walls to see the seasons change

See the daffodils on the banks of Cliffords Tower

Watch the squirrels run among the flowers in York Museum Gardens

Meet animals at Piglets, Askham Bryan Wildlife Park or Beetle Bank Farm

Enjoy a trip along the river on a City Cruises boat