We decided to celebrate hubby’s birthday on an overnight stay in York. But if you wanted to tour all areas of this town, a full day is not enough! I reckon you need at least a week to enjoy this historical town. We decided to go on a Monday-Tuesday quick getaway. We took the train from our town to Manchester Victoria, and from there we boarded a Transpenine express train. It took about an hour or so to arrive in York train station. We stayed in Elmbank Hotel. After we’ve settled in the hotel, we went to the nearby bus stop. The first bus that stopped was the ‘hop on hop off’. We just decided to try it so at least we’ll have the chance to tour the town and listen to the interesting facts the guide/bus driver has to offer. The tour fares are listed below:
Adult – £14
Child (5-15 years old) – £7
Family (2 adults + 3 children ages 5-15 or 1 adult + up to 4 children) – £32
Concession/Student – £11
The tickets are valid for 24 hours from the time you buy them. I find it convenient as you can hop on or hop off on any stops as many times as want during the duration of your ticket validity.
The bus driver/tour guide was nice and funny. I honestly enjoyed the ride while listening to the recorded interesting facts. We got off near The Shambles; it was a really narrow road with old structures. I was surprised to see the 3 Harry Potter shops situated near each other when in London I only saw 1 shop in Kings Cross station! Like why?
We had a wander around the Shambles market. It was around 3PM when we decided to have a super late lunch in the Shambles Tavern located in No 44. As usual, I’ve had a fish and chips (in most times we’re out, I always order fish and chips!). It was nice with a relaxing atmosphere.
After lunch, we decided to wander again to different shops and attractions. There was a Christmas shop in the Shambles market. Yes, they sell Christmas decorations and anything related to this joyous occasion. We passed Monk Bar Chocolatier. Of course, I wasn’t able to resist and got a box of their handmade chocolates.
When we got tired shopping, we went to Clifford’s tower. It reminded me of Tower of Joy in Game of Thrones. Be careful of the stairs though! When we got to the entrance, the cashier gave us 2 options: to pay the entrance fee or to pay the entrance fee and make a donation. Of course, we’re too tight to spend too much money and just chose the former and paid £5.40 each. That tour lasted 15 minutes around the tower. If you’re not a fan of historical places, you can just skip this.
So other things we visited were:
Other tourist attractions
York Minster
Ghost walk posters
The 100 Gins Bar
And more shops!
We went back to the hotel at around 8PM and knackered from the entire trip we did. What a nice way to celebrate a birthday. We totally enjoyed it and if we have plenty of time to explore the town, I’m sure it could’ve been a lot better! Before you leave York, please try the cookies in West Cornwall Pasty located in the train station. It’s heavenly good!
