Spring into the Easter holidays with happiness in your heart and a box of chocs in your bag. For the full lowdown check out our awesome What’s On guide.
Easter egg hunts
Jorvik Viking Centre
This is the Lord Mayor’s Easter egg hunt, no less. Set out on a city-wide quest for chocolate – solve the puzzles to visit historic locations around York; play games and gather the treats, with a special prize when you reach your final destination.
York Castle Museum
Can you follow the special Easter Trail around the museum and solve all the clues to be in with a chance to win a special chocolate egg?
Yorkshire Museum
Eggs are hidden around the old museum. Can you find them all?
Treasurer’s House
Follow the clues to find the prize, and explore this amazing historic house at the same time.
Beningbrough Hall
Explore an Easter egg trail fit for princes and princesses, have photos taken with the Easter Bunny, and decorate an egg in the artrageous workshop.
Fulford Cross Allotments
Organised by York’s intercultural group YUMI, this is a family friendly quest for eggs which also involves a picnic, games and storytelling.
Piglets Adventure Park
An Easter egg hunt is only part of the fun at Piglets, on Towthorpe Moor Lane. There’s also lambing, egg decorating and tractor rides…
Castle Howard
The Easter egg trail is only one part of the Castle Howard holiday offering. There’s also a traditional fairground, a chance to meet Molly the rabbit and a magician.
Chocolate treats
York Chocolate Festival
It’s Easter, and the home of chocolate goes cocoa-bean crazy with workshops, tastings, walks, music – anything and everything, so long as it tastes of chocolate. Hurrah!
York’s Chocolate Story
Find out how Rowntree’s, Terry’s and Cravens made some of Britain’s most famous Easter confectionery, and how you make a 3ft tall chocolate egg.
York Dungeon – Death By Chocolate
Like your chocolate dark? The Dungeon has a pop-up Easter shop of sweet treats – but be careful because there’s a poisoner on the loose…
Giant chocolate bar unwrapped in York – only 140,000 calories…
Chocfest at Goddards
At the former home of confectionery supremo Noel Terry, take a Terry’s chocolate trail, try a Chocolate Lemon for a change and take a blind taste test.
Shopping
York Does Vintage, Merchant Adventurers’ Hall
Take a trip back in time. Stalls will be selling everything from vintage clothing to homeware, while there is afternoon tea, a beauty parlour and live music.
Get in for half price if you quote ‘YorkMix’ on arrival.
Living North Fair
Nothing says “holiday” like a shopping spree. And there’s no bigger lifestyle and shopping exhibition in these parts than the one at York Racecourse hosted by Living North. Lots of lovely stuff for your home and garden, plus gifts, food and drink.
Spring Into Shambles Market
To celebrate its £1.6 million relaunch, Shambles Market stages its first event. As well as the stalls there’ll be face painting, an Easter Bunny trail and entertainers.
26 reasons why Shambles Market will change York for good
History
Richard III Experience
A new exhibition to mark the reburial of York’s favourite dead royal. Includes the skeleton of a War Of The Roses soldier and the barrel of the oldest gun in Europe.
Oldest gun barrel in Europe revealed at Richard III museum
Yorkshire Museum goes Medieval
The museum goes all medieval over Easter. Find out how people celebrated festivals – including Easter – during Richard III’s reign.
York’s new Richard III exhibition looks afresh at king and country
Eden Camp – WWII Living History Weekend
These wartime weekends really do evoke a time of blitz spirit, austerity and community, thanks to the commitment of the reenactors involved.
Stories and crafts
York Literature Festival
Loads more events over the last weekend of this year’s Lit Fest, including the results of the poetry competition co-organised with YorkMix, and a showing plus Q&A of York movie The Knife That Killed Me.
York Castle Museum
Easter themed arts and crafts, plus the egg and spoon race. And try your hand at making Victorian hot cross buns in the Castle kitchen.
York Explore – Spring stories and crafts
Perfect fun for everyone, but especially those aged eight and under, Make a bunny and listen to stories.
Fairfax House – The Town House Mouse Trail
Gregory the mouse has left a trail around the various grand rooms. On the way round you’ll be able to hear stories and have your face painted.
Acomb Explore – Eggtastic Storytime Fun
A free event for the under fives, featuring stories, activities and a singalong.
Fairfax House – All Fools Day event
Listen to stories of fools and try to keep a straight face while playing a game of Sausages. (We’re not sure either.)
Transport fun
National Railway Museum – Playing Trains
What is it that children love about trains? In this new interactive exhibition young and old can have fun finding out, with stories, track building, toy engines and more.
York Model Railway Show
There’s something irresistible about the miniature world of model trains. Forty working layouts and more than 100 stands are at York Racecourse to showcase the best in scale railways.
Yorkshire Air Museum – Rolling Thunder Day
A chance to see hear the engines of some amazing old aircraft roar into life as they rumble down the runway.
Shows and cinema
Hairspray – Grand Opera House
Welcome to the Sixties! One of the best musicals of modern times gets the York Stage Musicals treatment, as we follow Tracy Turnblad’s attempt to become a TV star in Baltimore.
Lord Mayor of York’s Charity Gala Concert, York Barbican
A wealth of local talent line up to entertain you while raising money for the Lord Mayor’s charities.
Beauty And The Beast, York Barbican
Bobby Davro and Tracy Beaker star Dani Harmer return to the Barbican for another Easter panto. Expect music, jokes and general silliness.
Swan Lake Ballet
Put a spring in your step this, er, spring with some outstanding artistry from the internationally acclaimed Moscow City Ballet.
Magic Hatter
Spring has sprung and there’s magic in the air in this family show.
Shaun The Sheep Fancy Dress Eggstravaganza, City Screen
Not just a chance to watch this classic dialogue-free movie by Aardman, but also the opportunity to scoop a prize for best costume.
York Minster – Inheritance
The biblical passion retold with a dramatic new narrative by Riding Lights Theatre.
Church services
York Minster
Various
All of York’s churches will be celebrating Easter with services over the holy days. Services in the Minster include Choral Matins and outdoor baptisms by the Archbishop of York.