A Winter Adventure: Receiving a frosty reception, but in a good way at JORVIK Viking Centre
SNOW outside, and now snow inside too, as Norse god Skadi brings snow and ice to AD960 Coppergate at the JORVIK Viking Centre, where sub-zero temperatures are forecast to take up residence until February 22 2026, the official end of the Viking winter.
A Winter Adventure brings a new wintery experience to the underground York visitor attraction, where the 10th century Vikings are preparing to celebrate Yule with natural decorations hung on their houses, mirroring modern York’s preparations for the festive season.
JORVIK Viking Centre is run by York Archaeology, whose director of public engagement, Gareth Henry, has directed this year’s displays and technological innovations.
“We changed the season inside JORVIK for the very first time last winter, and the public’s reception was amazing. Everyone loved seeing the 10th century inhabitants of Viking-age York coping with a cold winter, so we’ve brought it back for this winter season – and added more changes too” says Gareth.
“This year, our Ljósálfar – Norse elves – have a few more tricks up their sleeves to make the whole JORVIK experience even more immersive as we introduce a brand-new ‘wow’ to the experience.
“For the first time ever, visitors will be able to peer through a time portal, into the blacksmith’s house that we excavated on this site in the 1970s, seeing what it would have been like to live there, even before they get on board a time sleigh to travel back in time for themselves.”
Festive chat at A Winter Wonderland at JORVIK Viking Centre
York company Bright White’s new interactive Time Portal now opens the visit to JORVIK, once visitors have descended to stand at 10th century street level. This introductory show, using the most up-to-date time vortex technology, provides a window to the city populated by Nordic settlers 1,000 years earlier.
The portal takes visitors to the Viking-age dwelling on display under the glass floor beneath their feet when it was still the home and workshop of a 10th century blacksmith.
Visitors then alight a Time Sleigh for a tour around the backstreets, transformed into a winter wonderland by Wetherby set dressers EPH Creative, who have covered streets and houses in a thick blanket of snow. Cold blue lighting adds an extra frisson of excitement, as mist rolls in off the river and onto the quayside.
The Viking-age residents are wearing their extra-warm woollen cloaks and knitted hats, while the produce on the market stalls on Coppergate now offers winter fare for the residents’ stew pots.
“Once off the ride, visitors can warm themselves by the fare in our storytelling Skald’s house, to hear about how the hardy Vikings survived in the winter months, and hear sagas and tales of Yuletides past,” says Gareth.
In the cutting-edge upgrade to JORVIK’s existing time travelling technology, “time engineers” Bright White have worked with the JORVIK team since March to create the virtual world to be seen behind the interactive temporal portal, making the buildings and interiors of Viking-age Coppergate as authentic as possible.
No end to winter conditions at JORVIK Viking Centre until February 22
Research and development was conducted in the R&D lab at the Guildhall, in tandem with York company XR Stories, inviting schools and families to give feedback, complemented by the training of the JORVIK actors by Gordon Meredith that enables each live interpreter to bring their own interpretation to the Skald storytelling.
“Everything you hear and see at the Time Portal comes through our collaboration with the JORVIK Viking Centre team and York Archaeology,” says Bright White founding director Chris Walker.
“This is the first time we have worked with the trust [York Archaeology], but we have created other very popular attractions, such as Yorkshire’s Jurassic World at the Yorkshire Museum, which also uses XR [Extended Reality], combining Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality.”
Pre-booking is essential for all visits to JORVIK at jorvikvikingcentre.co.uk. Tickets cost £17.50 for adults, £14, students, £12, children or £49 for a family ticket (two adults and two children) or £56 (two adults and three children), with under–fives admitted free of charge.
Tickets are valid for unlimited repeat visits for a whole year, enabling visitors to enjoy A Winter Adventure as well as a more conventional visit when the JORVIK snow melts away in late-February.
“This is a brilliant add-on for anyone visiting York for the Christmas markets, providing a winter wonderland experience to boost the Christmas spirit – and, of course, we also have a great range of wines and spirits, as well as unusual jewellery and drinking horns, that make perfect gifts,” says York Archaeology head of operations, Mark Jackson. “It’s also a brilliant option for children celebrating birthdays – a great treat for them and a group of friends.”
Keep an eye on what will be happening at JORVIK Viking Festival 2026
As ever, the 2026 Jorvik Viking Festival will mark the traditional end of winter, running from February 16 to 22 in the latest Viking invasion 1160 years after they first arrived.
For seven days, Norse influence will be spread across the city centre as Viking enthusiasts from around the country and beyond descend on York for Europe’s largest Viking Festival. Around 500 Viking re-enactors are expected to help welcome as many as 50,000 residents and visitors for living history, crafts and combat within the city walls.
“Funded by York Archaeology, JORVIK Viking Festival has become one of the anchor events in York’s tourism calendar, bringing in the crowds during what would previously have been a very quiet time for the city,” says Mark Jackson.
“We will be celebrating the end of winter with our traditional blend of February feasting and fighting – and invite everyone to come along to join us.”
Mark continues: “We know that there is always high demand when we release tickets, especially for events like the Feast, which make brilliant Christmas presents, so we’ll be releasing tickets for different events at different times over the coming weeks.
“Of course, there are a host of events at the heart of the festival – including a large Viking encampment in Parliament Street and the traditional March to Coppergate – which are entirely free to attend with no tickets required. But be sure to mark the date in your diary!”
For more details of JORVIK Viking Festival 2026, visit jorvikvikingfestival.co.uk. Please note, A Winter Wonderland was sold out for the 2025 festival week, so festival visitors are advised to book early for A Winter Adventure to avoid disappointment.
For more details of JORVIK Viking Festival 2026, please visit jorvikvikingfestival.co.uk.
On the march: JORVIK Viking Festival’s traditional march to Coppergate
Did you know?
COPPERGATE takes its name from being the Viking street of cup makers.