York's Forbidden Chronicles- Terrors from the dark side.
Recommended by 95% of travelers
Badge of Excellence
York, England
- 1 hour 10 minutes to 1 hour 30 minutes (approx.)
- Mobile ticket
- Offered in: English
Explore our promoted experiences
Overview
York’s dark past offers more than ghost stories—but don't worry, there's plenty of those on this tour too. On this guided walking tour, hear about witchcraft, legends, plague victims, persecution, and the chilling reality behind medieval torture as entertainment. It's perfect for history buffs and fans of spooky stories alike.
- See and hear about a whole new side of York
- Dogs are welcome on this city walking tour
- Discover dark legends and witchcraft stories you'd easily miss
- Navigate the city’s winding streets with your guide’s help
What's Included
- Live guide
- Coffee and/or Tea
Meeting and Pickup
Meeting point
- Clifford's Tower, YorkTower St, York YO1 9SA, UK
Meeting at the Steps of Clifford’s Tower.
End point
- The Perky PeacockBarker Tower, North St, York YO1 6BE, UK
5 minutes from the city centre.
Itinerary
1
Clifford's Tower
5 minutes • Admission Ticket Not Included
York (Pass By)
Additional Info
- Confirmation will be received at time of booking
- Wheelchair accessible
- Stroller accessible
- Service animals allowed
- Near public transportation
- Transportation is wheelchair accessible
- Surfaces are wheelchair accessible
- No heart problems or other serious medical conditions
- Most travelers can participate
- We Recommend Children be aged 8 or over
- This tour/activity will have a maximum of 20 travelers
Supplied by
Cancellation Policy
You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.
Traveler Photos
Reviews
4.8
based on 130 reviews
Sarah_V, Oct 2025
Really good tour around the city, the guide was excellent, definitely worth the money!
Very enjoyable evening!
Response from Host, Oct 2025
Thank you for this great review. Delighted to hear you had a great time.
Kate_C, Jul 2025
Our guide was super knowledgable and really friendly. Our children (age 10 and 13) who love Horrible Histories, really enjoyed the tour.
Response from Host, Jul 2025
Thank you for a great review. Glad the children enjoyed it too , and it showed in their questions!
Eden_W, May 2023
My wife and I had a fantastic time with the charismatic Sophie. Her stories were told with passion and a real sense of theatre.
I would definitely recommend this tour and thanks again to Sophie for making it so enjoyable.
Response from Host, May 2023
Thank you for this great review
Donald_L, May 2023
Jack gave information about the town that was unfamiliar to us and he made it very interesting. It was a good way to be introduced to Stratford-Upon-Avon.
Response from Host, May 2023
Thank you for the amazing review
Georgina_W, May 2023
Jeanine was great! Really interesting & engaging tour. Our dog came along and enjoyed it too! Would definitely recommend.
Response from Host, May 2023
Thank you so much for your review we’re glad that everyone had a great time!
David_O, Apr 2023
Great tour - very glad we picked this over other tours. Janine is a great story teller and her genuine enthusiasm for local history and knowledge added real value over the other tours. Can’t recommend enough. Added real magic to our visit.
Response from Host, May 2023
We pride ourselves in being Stratfords best. Thank you for your review we are pleased you enjoyed the experience
Paul_M, Apr 2023
Janine our guide was very knowledgeable, the tour was entertaining and we were fully engaged from the start. I would highly recommend this tour.
Hayley_P, Apr 2023
Janine was a great guide, very knowledgeable and likeable. Walk was pleasant and stories were informative
Response from Host, Apr 2023
Thank you so much for this brilliant review we a re so pleased that you enjoyed the experience
Keith_T, Apr 2023
The guide Wes first rate very informative and entertaining learnt a few new things particularly about Edmund Ironside
Response from Host, Apr 2023
Thank you for the review.
Claire_M, Mar 2023
Janine was a great descriptive guide, very informative and we had a great time! Glad we booked and would recommend
Response from Host, Mar 2023
Thank you so much for your kind review.
Cassie_M, Mar 2023
Had the best night with my mum on the tour with Janine(?) (tour was on 23rd March). She was such an amazing story teller who really bought all the stories to life and made you see the humanity behind the historical ‘characters’ we hear about at school etc. Thank you for a great tour Janine, it was lovely meeting you and best of luck with your 100th tour!
Response from Host, Mar 2023
Thank you so much for this great review. We are so pleased you had a great evening.
Leslie_S, Mar 2023
Our guide Jess was wonderful! He was professional, engaging and very knowledgeable. He also braved the weather to take the two of us on a tour.
Response from Host, Mar 2023
Thank you so much for taking the time to review us.
Arun_G, Feb 2023
Extremely gripping stories. Jack is a very natural story teller. Was interesting to know that Stratford Upon Avon had interesting stories apart from the ones connected to Shakespeare
Response from Host, Mar 2023
Thank you for this amazing review we are really delighted to hear you had a great experience with us
Hanna_N, Feb 2023
The doctor's house and learning how they practiced medicine back in those days and generally getting a feel for stratford upon avon and what it has to offer tourists.
Response from Host, Mar 2023
Thank you for your review
Maxine_W, Feb 2023
Jez was absolutely wonderful. Loved the way he shared the stories that were factual and involved people in the group. I really felt like I had learned something new in a great way. Would definitely recommend. Jez You need a brighter lantern 😂😂😂
Response from Host, Mar 2023
Thank you for this great review. I’ll send Jezz some batteries!
Joseph_L, Feb 2023
The graveyard and story of the woman found in the river the starts where nice too although quite cold so wrap up and a torch would be a hood thing to bring with you
Response from Host, Mar 2023
Thank you for this review. It’s great to hear you loved Jacks debut. A real assets to our team!
Lisa_S, Feb 2023
Jack the tour guide was very knowledgeable and as it was his first ever tour so well done to him we really enjoyed it.
Response from Host, Mar 2023
Thank you for this great review. Jack will be pleased to hear you had a great time.
Samantha_K, Feb 2023
Good tour, our tour lady was so lovely and full of interesting storys. Thank you 😊 we all had good time
Response from Host, Feb 2023
Thank you so much for this great review.
Sean_P, Dec 2022
This was our first time in Stratford and jez was amazing from start to finish, he brought the story to life, alot of it was all new to us, very informative, I would definitely recommend and when we come back next year we will be bringing our son, so hopefully we get jez.
Response from Host, Dec 2022
Thank you so much for this amazing review. Jez is delighted to hear you had such a great time.
Selwyn_E, Dec 2022
Great stories and interesting historical facts. Enjoyable walk and great value for money. Excellent story teller in Jez.
Response from Host, Dec 2022
Thank you so much for your lovely review. It really is appreciated!
Leona_S, Nov 2022
Guide was excellent, high energy, concern for safety of the group, informative.
Would have liked more stories.
Enjoyed lamp post detail.
Response from Host, Dec 2022
Thank you for your amazing review.
hilary_s, Nov 2022
Well where do I start. From the moment we started the tour to the moment we finished. We were gripped by the way janine told us the stories of what happened long ago in the streets of Stratford upon Avon. She told the tales with such enthusiasm we could have listened to her all night. She was so knowledgable!!! My only complaint is it was over too soon even though it was an hour and half it went so fast. Well done janine you were absolutely amazing 😊😊.
Hilary and Chris sherwin
Response from Host, Dec 2022
Thank you so much for your amazing review. We are delighted to know you had such a good time.
christopher_b, Nov 2022
I wouldn't recommend this tour it was a South African woman and I hated it it wasn't scary it was too long It was boring should have done the ghost walk
Response from Host, Nov 2022
Dear Visitor. We are aware our tour is not for everyone. 1 star may be a little harsh as the nationality of the guide should NOT be an issue, but we value every opinion. We deliberately do not call it a ghost walk as we try to give a more historic and accurate portrayal of the cities Dark side. I have requested the post removed due to unpleasant undertones.
Claire_M, Nov 2022
Our guide Jez was fabulous and so knowledgeable. Even the cold and rain didn't dampen our spirits and we really enjoyed it.
There was myself, my husband and another couple so it was a small group but I think this made it more immersive.
Would definitely recommend if you would like to know more of the history of Stratford-upon-Avon
Response from Host, Nov 2022
Thank you so much for this amazing review. We are so pleased you had a great time with us.
Owen_T, Nov 2022
Excellent knowledge and exciting stories told about the dark history of Stratford! Throughly recommend for an evening of entertainment.
Response from Host, Nov 2022
Thank you for this amazing review. It's great to know you enjoyed Dark Chronicles. We run the same event in York too.
Kate_T, Oct 2022
Waiting in the cold for 35 mins for a tour guide who never turned up. Please take me off your mailing list.
Response from Host, Nov 2022
Dear Kate.
We have investigated the reason behind the tour not operating and have taken action. We can only apologise for this rare occurrence. As you can see our reviews are really good fora reason and we strive to avoid this situation.
petermyrants, Oct 2022
Janine was an excellent narrator and guide. Only sorry that not carrying cash around these days we couldn't tip her afterwards.
Elizabeth_B, Sep 2022
Fabulous tour and Janine was fantastic! I highly recommend this tour to anyone in the area. Our tour guide brought the stories alive, thankyou !
RIP Olive ❤️
Response from Host, Sep 2022
Thank you for this lovely review. We are glad you enjoyed the experience.
Look out for British Routes- Dark Chronicles York!
Lindsey_E, Sep 2022
What a super way to spend a couple hours. Our guide, Jez, was entertaining, brought Stratfords horrors alive for us. Got to see parts of the town we wouldn't have got round to visiting, the story in the churchyard was my particular favourite. A birthday sing song at the end of the tour, although embarrassing was a lovely personal touch. Would highly recommend.
Susan_P, Aug 2022
We met with Janine ,who did a really good talk and run through on safety advice .. she was a lovely enthusiastic story teller and she really engrossed us with all the tales of horror locally !!! We started the walking tour with rain spots and pretty soon it was thunder and lightning now and then and rained heavily the whole of the walk … she did keep asking if we wanted to continue and asking if we were okay , our group all wanted to stay and continue to the end ..highly recommend this one and a half hour walk and gained a lot of information on history of the Shakespeare family and other events … thanks to our brilliant guide !!
Response from Host, Aug 2022
Thank you so much for this amazing review we really aim to give a fantastic experience for all. Thank you for braving the rain, sounds really atmospheric!
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