Hello Alison, can I thank you for two excellent pre-booked tours. The people on both tours really enjoyed it. The people on your tour were very impressed with both the tour and the information that you gave to them. They found your comparison of the history of York with the history of the country fascinating. So much so, that one of our members, who only lives in Leeds, plans to come back and do the public tour again! I went on the second tour with George, not that I needed to, but felt that I should be with what could be the more difficult group! They thoroughly also enjoyed it. George’s commentary was very different from when I did the public tour in December, so I learnt a lot more. He also made it both informative and amusing. Excellent. Thank you very much indeed for arranging this. We really appreciated it.

Came for a day trip to York 25/3/15. Had a tour with Alison. She was very enthusiastic and knowledgeable about York and English history. Learnt a lot but not like being in school. Will definitely recommend AVG tours, though free was very informative and thorough

We would like to let you know how much we enjoyed our walking tour with Kevin. He was everything a Tour Guide should be – informative, educational and entertaining! We really felt like we knew the city by the time the tour had finished. – Kevin brought the story of York to life! We will be recommending this tour to friends and family and indeed to anyone who is visiting York

I just wanted to offer a few words of praise for our guide on yesterday’s walk, Colin. As I occasionally accompany students from my department on their two-week study trip to York, I have in years past had the pleasure of participating on a number of these guided walks. I always find them enjoyable, but yesterday’s tour was a real standout. Colin was highly knowledgable and his warm and engaging style of presentation ‘ humorous without being flippant ‘ held the students’ interest throughout. I especially appreciated his ability to impress upon the students how the various structures evolved in response to practical considerations ‘ whether imposed by political circumstance or environmental factors ‘ and he succeeded in establishing a sense of historical continuity to often scattered and fragmentary remains. In a sense, it is a thankless task to cover almost two millennia of history in two hours (while walking along freezing parapets), addressing foreign students who often lack a basic knowledge of both Roman and British history, and I have over the years certainly seen my share of both students losing interest along the way and guides being flustered by imbecilic questions about Henry VIII and his six knives (and so on). Colin took it all in stride, however, and his obvious enthusiasm for York and its history, along with his friendly and easy manner, made the whole tour an educational, pleasant, and even inspiring experience. I hope you will be able to convey our gratitude to Colin and I wish your oranization every success in the years to come.

John gave us a fascinating tour this afternoon. He not only told us so much about York that we did not know but filled it with humour. It was a wonderful treat and he is a real asset to York, Regards

Hello, Just a note to say thank you to Rod, our guide last Sunday morning for the walking tour of York. It was very enjoyable indeed, despite cold weather and we learned more about York and its rich history than we imagined we might. Rod was very knowledgeable indeed and kept our interest throughout, answering a variety of questions along the way. We wanted to be able to pay for his services and understood not possible, so kindly pass our thanks on! Kind regards

Saturday 3/1/15 me and my boyfriend went on the 10.15 tour with Doug. We had such an interesting time, was very Impressed with his knowledge, I really learnt a lot, I didn’t want it to end!! Was very impressed, so wanted to say thank you very much. Absolutely brilliant

It was a lovely and truly enriching experience. Our guide introduced us to the history of York with a charming and interesting narrative, Gabriele and Federica

To Ian – I liked the tour it was fun. The Minster is massive and the wall goes forever and you were great at telling us about the history of the City. I also really liked the coffins and how they reused them, from Callum aged 10. To Ian – Thank you for the tour it was very interesting I liked all the amazing facts. My favourite place was the little old church with the little wooden boxes and angled windows. My favourite fact was about the cheeky stonemasons who carved rude statues, from Annabelle

My wife and I did the morning tour with Colin on 4 September, a lovely sunny day which showed York at its best. Our group was well led around the sites with great historical information and anectdotes. Colin encouraged questions and happily expanded on points raised. He also suggested things to revisit after the 2 hour tour. Excellent and free. Thank you for a delightful morning

Just to say thank you to our guide today 31/8/2014, 10:15 am. I’m afraid I do not remember his name but be had a straw hat and sun glasses, from Yorkshire . The guide was excellent from start to finish and was told in a fascinating manner that made the 2 hour trip seem like 20 minutes. I would highly recommend anyone that visits york to participate in this great free service

Hello, we have been on the Free Walking Tour to-day Friday at 2.15. Our excellent guide Val was a delight, so much knowledge she passed on to our group of six people. The walk lasted two and a half hours and enthralled us all thank you so much for a great afternoon with such a lovely lady.

Just wanted to leave a wee message about our guided tour on Tuesday 22nd July with Shaun. It was a great start to our York trip – the lad was enthusiastic and really well informed taking us around the main areas. That 2 hour tour basically set us up for what to do the rest of the week – a really big thank you to him for giving up his time.

Just a quick message to say how wonderful Colin, our tour guide on the 2.15pm tour, was yesterday. A really enjoyable 2 hours spent in the company of some fascinating people from all over the world. Just the right pace, both physically (on a really hot day) and historically – I was taking notes and photos along the way for my blog. I’ve spent today looking through the photos and notes I took and not only can I recall what Colin said, but the route we took and the wonders we saw. The whole experience was truly captivating! I thoroughly recommend going on one of your tours which I stumbled on by chance – I am so pleased that I did. Many thanks and best wishes

My wife, sister, and I did your walking tour yesterday (the guide was a Scottish gentleman whose name, I think, was Frank) and I just wished to let you know how much we all enjoyed it and how grateful we were for the opportunity. We saw so much that we would not have seen without the excellent guide and even had we chanced upon it, would not have understood, that the tour added greatly to the enjoyment of our stay in your beautiful city. Many thanks.

I am writing to express my gratitude for Alan’s interesting account of York’s history and relaxed approach to the tour today at 2pm. Alan guided myself and 8 foreign students visiting York for the summer. The students were very positive about the tour and albeit nervous to ask questions, took in a lot of the information Alan offered which is fantastic and a testament to Alan and his thorough knowledge of York’s history. Thank you again for an enjoyable afternoon.

Jen, our tour guide was wonderful. She was very knowledgeable about the city and kept everyone engaged. It is great that the guides volunteer to show visitors around. Now we want to come back and learn more.

Thank you so much to the Association of Voluntary Tour Guides and to John who gave a score of other tourists and me an informative, insightful, and thoroughly enjoyable tour, accompanied by the best of weather, on 17 May 2014. John was surely a masterful guide.

My friend Francesca and I would like to thank you and John, the guide, for the wonderful walk in York on Sunday, 27th April. York is a \dqlittle jewel\dq and John was able to transmit us his enthusiasm and deep knowledge. Thank you!

A message of huge congratulations for your excellent tour, which I took this afternoon at 2.15. Apologies that I’ve forgotten your guide’s name. His commentary and care of our group was tremendous, and I could not have wished for a better introduction to York. Your volunteer guides offer a tour that would attract a big cost elsewhere. And over 2 hours of detailed background and walking exploration. Thanks again from a grateful Aussie!

Hi, I would just like you to pass on my thanks to Pat, the wonderfully bubbly and bright tour guide who took us around York this morning. Her knowledge of, and love for her home city came across loud and clear throughout the walk, and the whole group hung onto her every word. It was an absolutely wonderful introduction to the history of York, and was the highlight of our visit.

Just a note to say thank you to Rod and the Voluntary Guides for the very insightful tour of York on Easter Sunday. Rod’s passion, knowledge and love of York shone through and we learnt more in 2 hours from Rob than a week with a book. Thanks to Rod and all the volunteers for being so generous with their time.

Delightful – most enjoyable afternoon. Who said you get what you pay for, it was a marvellous introduction to York

I would like to express our thanks for the excellent tour provided by John on Wednesday 12th March at 5pm. Our colleagues from across Europe thoroughly enjoyed it and it was very much the highlight of our team meeting. The English members of the team also loved seeing the city in a new light. I will be recommending your services to family, friends and colleagues alike.

Whilst visiting York on Friday 21st Feb 2014 myself and 2 friends found our way to Exhibition Square and joined Mike your guide for the escorted walk, and we were very glad we did.I would recommend the walk to any visitor and if they were lucky enough to get Mike as a guide they will get a great tour. Thanks for the well presented informative walk

We joined the walking tour around York today, with our guide, John, and we both found the walk very interesting, informative, and at times even amusing. I could not think of a better way to learn a little of the background and history of York, and would like to say thank you to John for keeping us entertained for over 2 hours.

My husband and I arrived in York at 9.30am on Monday 17th February and by 10.15am were fortunate to just make the start of a brilliant two hour walk with one of your excellent guides. (His name may have been Kevin). We were very impressed with the pace of the tour and his vast knowledge of your beautiful, historic city. He gave us such an interesting time that we were able to return to some of the places over the next few days feeling knowledgeable. Couldn’t recommend the excellent service more highly

We would like to say how much we enjoyed our guided tour with Wendy on Friday. It was one of the highlights of our visit to York. Apart from the tremendous knowledge that Wendy has of York she was very friendly and made the tour really memorable. Please pass on our thanks to her.

I would like to say thank you to Colin for an enjoyable walk on Sat 8th Feb. My husband and I thoroughly enjoyed the walk and thank Colin for sharing his knowledge of the city. A well recommended tour.

We took the 10.15 walk on 2nd Feb, Steven was a very well informed guide making it interesting and enjoyable we learnt a lot. I would recommend it to anyone

Just like to express our thanks and appreciation to Roy for the informative but relaxing tour this morning (Saturday 1st February). A great job well done.

Last week I had the possibility to go on one of your city tours in the morning. It was amazing how John, the guide, explained the historical things with so much enthusiasm and heart. He seems to know where each pebble stone in York came from. There are many small details that I wouldn’t have seen without him. Thank you!

Just wanted to say a big thanks to the guide for this tour (unfortunately I missed his name, as we had to changed groups due to numbers, but he is from the south of England). It was an excellent and informative tour; he was friendly and injected life into the history of York. I can’t fault his enthusiasm for his subject matter. I am a Green Badge ITC guide from Manchester and marveled at the range and depth of his knowledge and indeed the fact that this can be done for free is a miracle in itself. A credit to the city. Thanks again and best wishes.

We arrived in York yesterday, 23 May 2013. On the strong recommendation of our B&B owner we took part in the 2:15 pm historical tour of the city with John. He was excellent, friendly, knowledgeable and a credit to the Association of Voluntary Guides and York. This was a great introduction to our visit and we have no hesitation in recommending this tour to others.

It was my pleasure to be toured with Jenny last Wednesday. Despite the very cold weather, the tour was a total pleasure. Jenny just covered enough detail to ensure we were all engaged, but when asked for more information, or asked about ‘side-issues’ or totally unrelated topics she had such a deep body of knowledge that she was unfazed every time. Jenny is a true gem, and we look forward to visiting York again and enjoying another York tour with your organisation. Please pass my thanks onto Jenny.

I would like to thank Richard our guide for last week’s tour of York (Saturday 1 March). We were a group of 7 and Richard had to cope with a tour group that was at least 25. I have been to York several times now but have never really understood its historical context. Richard’s highly informative, stimulating and amusing tour was the best possible introduction to this wonderful city. Richard’s love of York and the enthusiasm he showed for the history of the place were nothing short of wonderful. It was fascinating and the 2 hours sped by. For all of us, it was the highlight of the weekend. Thank you very much Richard and thank you AVG tours.

We recently enjoyed one of your tours through York on the 3rd of February. Our guide, John, was just the nicest guy and really knowledgeable about the city’s history. We spent a nice few hours, learned quite a bit about York’s amazing heritage and got to discover some nice corners we wouldn’t have seen on our own. AVG’s tours are really a must-do in York! Thanks so much!

We went on a walk with one of your guides, Paul last Saturday 26th January. We had a most enjoyable time even though snow was still on the ground. Paul was very knowledgeable and gave us a real feel for York and its history. Please pass on our thanks to him.

We spent a lovely couple of days in York, last weekend, in which we had a 2 hr plus guided tour around parts of the city, old and new. Charlotte, our guide, was so knowledgable and interesting, that the time went by so quickly. This is an excellent, free tour, and I wish I had the chance to buy her a coffee, at least. Thank you for the extremely friendly education.

My partner and I were very glad to have made it to the walk with our guide Simon. Not only was he very knowledge and interesting, his enthusiasm and humour opened our eyes to the amazing history of the city. Thank you Simon.

Just a note to say a very big thank you for a most enjoyable and interesting tour of your beautiful city. We all enjoyed your company and listening to all your facts and stories about York. The tour was exactly what we hoped for and proved to be the beginning of a very successful trip. With thanks and best wishes,

Dear All,_I just want to say: thank you very much for your fascinating voluntary tour! I had today a great city tour with Monica and enjoyed it very much! I noticed directly, that you do this tour from the love to your beautiful city, its history and culture. I’m very grateful for this!_ All the best,

Wow!! We joined AVG’s free tour on Thursday 25th October with our guide John and thoroughly enjoyed the whole two (and a bit) hours. John brought York’s history to life with his down to earth insight into its historical events. Although we were a large group (35 ish) John catered for all ages and also the many nationalities excellently. John’s pace and use of humour kept the group engaged. We were really impressed with the quality and knowledge of our volunteer ‘ well done, please ensure this valuable, informative, educational and humorous service continues.

My wife and I visited York August 27th and 28th, 2012 as part of our travels between Scotland and France. We joined Keith on the morning of the 28th for a wonderful and entertaining tour. An excellent window into the history of the community and area helping to connect to some of what we had seen and heard in Scotland. It was our first time to York, although I had heard many tales of York from my father who was based at Linton-on-Ouse during WW2 (RCAF426). History can be dry but Keith brought it alive with his knowledge and wit. We went back to several of the sites and explored more deeply off the side streets and alleys. Thanks again. We hope to be able to return to York and the country side surrounding some time in the future.

My wife and I are visiting from New Zealand and have been told by many folk we have met, that… \dqwe must visit York!\dq By chance we arrived on the correct day and time (10th September 2012) to meet with Roy, one of your excellent guides. We can’t speak highly enough of his knowledge and memory for historic facts and dates – and especially for his enthusiasm of the subject matter. One could perhaps expect some indifference from someone who may have conducted many tours of this sort, but Roy was always expressing his excitement and this infected us all ! It was so very much appreciated and we can’t wait to be able to visit York again and continue on the ‘discovery trail’ which Roy has introduced us to. Please convey to him our deep appreciation for his time, research and study he has obviously been involved in. We will be back!!

Hi. We would like to thank you for the guided tours by Roy, Ian and Malcolm you arranged for us last week. Everyone was more than pleased with their guide. We all felt the tours were very well paced in that: we were not physically rushed from place to place, the information we were given covered so many facets of York’s history, this information was given in a way that kept our interest with a mix of anecdote as well as fact, all our guides spoke with great confidence and humour too Many thanks, although I have visited York on other occasions, I now feel much more at ease in your beautiful city knowing more of its origins and how it grew and changed over the years. Please extend our thanks to our guides, it was a privilege to share in their great knowledge of York. Best wishes

Well, just to say thanks for the great tour we had! It was raining a little, but our guide made the tour the most interesting thing in York! We loved it! I don’t remember very well when we went, but I think it was 7th, aug. Thank you very much!

My partner and I went on a walking tour last Tuesday. I felt I just had to put into words how wonderful it was! The 2.5hrs + flew by and we both learnt so much. Many thanks to our brilliant guide Ray. I would heartily recommend to anyone visiting York. Regards