Things to see and do at Goddards House and Garden

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Take a walk through the chocolate heritage of York or imagine life in the former home of the Terry family. You are invited to take a seat and make yourself at home when we re-open on Thursday 27 February 2020.

***Now closed for winter conservation work and re-opens on Thursday 27 February 2020***

Relax like a Terry

Sit back on a comfortable sofa in the drawing room overlooking the gardens. Pick up the paper and toast your toes by the open fires on cold autumn and winter days. Enjoy a sherry before lunch or a lavish Goddards afternoon tea while you relax and soak up the atmosphere in this glorious Arts and Craft house and feel right at home.
 

Tranquil garden rooms to explore

The four acres of gardens were designed by the renowned George Dillistone to complement the house. As well as the formal bedding displays there are yew-hedged garden rooms, intricate water features, rockeries, lawns, trails and hidden pathways. The gardens also feature a bowling green, tennis lawn and an original glass house which is used to this day by the gardening team. There's a young orchard with promise of yields to come and for now has wonderful views over the racecourse to the site of the old factory and the iconic clock tower. The latest addition is a fragrant garden, restoring some of the historic features that would have been around at the time the house was built.
 
Goddards House and Garden Side view in the autumn

The gardens at Goddards  

Discover the five acres of garden rooms of the former Terry family home with views over York racecourse towards the iconic Terry factory clock tower.

 

Dine in Style

Enjoy a slice of 1930s decadence and take your seat in the Terry family former dining room . Here you can indulge in a stylish lunch with friends, or enjoy refreshments on the terrace overlooking the gardens on a warm day. Sample the seasonally changing  menu and of course try an indulgent slice of chocolate orange cake......it's becoming something of a favourite on the menu.

Visitors enjoying a meal in the Terry family dining room

Eating at Goddards 

Indulge yourself in the Terry’s dining room and enjoy a morning coffee or afternoon tea in the drawing room. Simply relax as you enjoy your refreshments on the terrace overlooking the garden on sunny days.

The story of Terry's chocolate in York

Goddards is at the heart of York's chocolate heritage. Visit the three factory display rooms, sit at the desk of the Terry partners and find out more about the staff from the managing directors to the packers on the factory floor. Read the story of the business, why it grew in York and why it is no longer. Find out what it was like to be a worker at the Terry's factory and discover historic pictures of the Terry's factory.
 

The art of design

  • Discover what the arts and crafts style is
  • Marvel at beautiful details and designs
  • Leaf through some of the architect's letters to Noel Terry
  • Download the design trail for your visit
Goddards The Art of Design leaflet (PDF / 0.728515625MB) download
 

Extend your visit

Goddards is just a pleasant stroll from central York, it's an easy walk to the city centre that will take you through years of Terry family history. Download the Goddards Easy Walk (PDF / 0.3MB) download

Make a day of it and head to Treasurer's House in the city centre - next door to York Minster. Just a short bus ride or pleasant walk away.