Two new initiatives are set to launch at DIG: An Archaeological Adventure this autumn, as the family-friendly attraction which offers hands-on archaeology widens its appeal to younger and older visitors!

“This time of year is normally busy with school groups, who love the hands-on, interactive elements of the archaeology, but as schools continue to acclimatise to working in bubbles and social distancing, far fewer are planning trips at the moment,” comments manager, Chantelle Williams. “This has given us a great opportunity to look at widening the appeal of the attraction to both our younger and older audiences – and the feedback from our trial sessions has been fantastic!”

Tiny Diggers is designed for pre-school children – babies and toddlers – and their parents and will run in six week cycles every Monday morning from 2 November. Sessions run from 10am to 11am for the youngest visitors (who have not yet learned to walk) and from 11am until 12 noon for mobile pre-school children, with free coffee and biscuits of parents and carers to enjoy. The group will run on a six week cycle, with different themed content each week to introduce varied stimuli, from treasure hunts to messy play, created by DIG’s Early Years team to help develop fine motor skills and engage all the senses.
“As a visitor attraction with ‘We’re Good to Go’ accreditation from Visit England, we’re well prepared to manage social distancing and all the relevant safety measures to keep everyone safe, and we’re limiting numbers in each session, too,” explains Chantelle.
Tiny Diggers costs £5 per session (child and their carer), bookable in blocks of six for £30 https://digyork.com/visit-dig/tinydiggers
Meanwhile, adult visitors will also enjoy new tours taking place every afternoon. “DIG appeals particularly to primary age, children, with hands-on activities that they can enjoy, but with all our tours run by archaeologists, we’ve redesigned the last tour of each day so that it appeals specifically to an adult audience, when we can share more detail about specific archaeological projects and techniques, and handle real finds rather than child-friend replicas,” explains Chantelle. “We’re keeping some of the hands-on activities, so for example, our adult visitors will still use the popular digging pits, but with real brushes, and unearthing replica artefacts that have been found in sites around York – but without the cold weather, mud and rain that characterise outdoor archaeology!”
DIG Deeper tours take the last tour slot of the day – 3.30pm on term time weekdays, 4.30pm weekends and holidays – and places must be prebooked online at https://digyork.com/visit-dig/dig-deeper/ or by calling 01904 615505. Normal admission prices apply (£7 for adults, £6.50 for concessions) or visitors can use a JORVIK Group Triple Ticket or York Pass.