The City Walls Walk (Bar Walls)
About 3.4km (2.1 miles) for the full circuit · Rampart-top path reached by steep historic stairs at each Bar; not step-free elevation
About
England's longest surviving town walls: about 3.4km of rampart-top footpath circling the old city, free to walk and open daily from roughly 8am until dusk. The circuit strings together the four great medieval gateways, Bootham Bar, Monk Bar, Walmgate Bar and Micklegate Bar, plus the brick Red Tower of about 1490, Fishergate Postern and the Baile Hill mound, with two short street-level gaps where the walls never stood because the King's Fishpool marsh defended the city instead. The stretch between Bootham Bar and Monk Bar, behind the Minster, is the most photographed hundred metres in York, especially over the daffodils in spring.
Highlights
- ✓The Minster view from the stretch between Bootham Bar and Monk Bar
- ✓Walmgate Bar, the only town gate in England with its barbican intact
- ✓Micklegate Bar, the monarch's ceremonial entrance to the city
- ✓Daffodils on the ramparts every spring
Tips
- →The walls close at dusk and in icy weather; the path is narrow with historic (low) parapets, so hold small children's hands.
- →There is no step-free access on most stretches; the stairs at the Bars are steep.
- →Walk it clockwise from Bootham Bar to get the Minster views early; allow detours down to street level for the two gaps in the circuit.