This historic gem, tucked away in the heart of York, offers a perfect blend of fascinating history and beautiful gardens that are sure to captivate both young and old. The guided tours are packed with engaging stories and interactive experiences that make exploring the past an exciting family affair. Plus, the friendly guides know just how to keep kids entertained while uncovering the secrets of this remarkable house.
Where is Treasurer’s House?
Treasurer’s House is really easy to get to if you’re in York city centre. You can walk there from most places, and the building is behind York Minster.
Minster Yard,
York,
North Yorkshire,
YO1 7JL
Telephon: 01904624247
Email: treasurershouse@nationaltrust.org.uk
Opening times
From April to October, Treasurer’s House is open fro 11am – 4pm and closed on Thursdays and Fridays.
At other times of the year, check the National Trust website for detailed opening times.
Admission prices
National Trust members can book for free, as can holders of a Visit York Pass.
Standard prices
| Ticket type | Gift aid | Standard |
|---|---|---|
| Adult | £11.00 | £10.00 |
| Child | £5.50 | £5.00 |
| Family | £27.50 | £25.00 |
| Family 1 adult | £16.50 | £15.00 |
Prices for November and December
| Ticket type | Gift aid | Standard |
|---|---|---|
| Adult | £12.10 | £11.00 |
| Child | £6.10 | £5.50 |
| Family | £30.30 | £27.50 |
| Family 1 adult | £18.20 | £16.50 |
Booking a guided tour
Between April and October you can visit Treasurer’s House by guided tour only. Pre-booking is recommended, although there are a few walk-up slots available every day. During bad weather or school holidays, these slots get booked up quickly.
Tours last for 1 hour, with the last one running from around 3pm.
Facilities on site
At Treasurer’s House you’ll find toilets as well as a small café downstairs. Unfortunately, both are these are not accessibility friendly as they are both downstairs.
Visiting Treasurer’s House, York, with children
Although we go to National Trust properties on a regular basis, thanks to our membership, there aren’t many places that offer guided tours. We weren’t sure how much Erin would enjoy a guided tour so this was a good place for her to start, with it only lasting 1 hour.
A bit of history
The building was bought in 1897 by Frank Green, who was the grandson of a wealthy industrialist. By 1900 he had transformed it, ready for a visit from Edward VII, into an elaborately decorated town house. Over the years, Frank Green’shouse became more and more eclectic, with a collection of antique items as well as anything that took his fancy really.
Frank Green gifted 8 buildings to the National Trust. Not far from from the house, you’ll find the National Trust shop around the corner as well as holiday apartments on the first floor.
Experiencing the tour
Firstly, it’s hard to not be impressed by such a historic house. It’s not often you get to really go behind the scenes and hear stories about the property. Our tour was led by two wonderful women, who were so welcoming and friendly. Moving from room to room, we were given loads of information about Frank Green, the house and who past residents might have been over the years.
You only get a little bit of time in each room but it’s enough to listen to the history and take a few pictures if you want to. You cannot film the guides though, which I think is an absolutely fair rule for the tour.
Although all guides differ, ours were fantastic. There was Erin and a younger boy on the tour and they were each made to feel part of the tour, asked questions and were even involved in showing some items around to the group. Even in such wonderful period rooms, children were able to sit on the floor if they wanted to, which was a great help.
Mr. Green was quite particular in what the National Trust should do with his donation, which came with a lot of the original items in the house. Around the house, you’ll see markers were certain furniture must stay and guides can explain where Frank Green said some things have to stay. He sounds like he was quite a strange man but knew what he wanted well! He created his version of his perfect home in this house and wanted it to continue that way as, I guess, a show home.
Something that we took away from the tour, was a piece of information about a set of chandeliers in the house. There are replicas in York’s Assembly Rooms, which is now an Ask Italian restaurant. We went there for dinner and it was fun to see something the same as in this house!
The gardens
As well as going on the guided tour, you can also explore the gardens which are open to the public. Unfortunately, we had really bad weather during our visit so didn’t get to enjoy the garden for as long as I would have liked. It’s a lovely green space though and you get a great view with it being next to York Minster. The gardens are free to enter on open days too so you don’t have to do the tour to enjoy them.
Is it worth visiting?
As a family, we all really enjoyed visiting Treasurer’s House in York. It was interesting to see today how the house is and to learn why Frank Green wanted things a certain way. Guides are able to showcase the best parts of the house, including stories about visits from royals over the years. As it’s only a short walk away from York Minster, it’s easy to pair this with a visit to the cathedral either before or after.
This is a great way to introduce children to guided tours and they can explore the green space outside afterwards too!
More National Trust properties to visit
- Blickling Hall (Norfolk)
- Felbrigg Hall (Norfolk)
- Oxburgh Hall (Norfolk)
- Sheringham Park (Norfolk)
- Anglesey Abbey (Cambridgeshire)
- Belton Estate (Lincolnshire)
- Treasurer’s House (York)
