York Vacation Guide

York is an ancient cathedral city with a history that dates back to before Roman times. A county in its own right for hundreds of years, York is now in North Yorkshire, England with some of the best preserved historical buildings and structures in Europe.

York is frequently ranked with Manchester as the second most visited city in England after London and is, of course, famous for giving its name to the city and state of New York in the United States.

York is a fairly small city – four days is enough to see the major sights although York is a city that reveals its charms to explorers with curiosity and patience.

York is known as England’s “City of Festivals” as there are regular cultural festivals every year. The official festivals are the Viking Festival, the Festival of Angels, Early Music, Late Music, Horse Racing (the “Ebor Race Meeting”), Multicultural Food and Arts, Chinese New Year, Mystery Plays, Christmas St Nicholas’ Fair, and the Food and Drink Festival.

It’s a romantic city for a weekend break. York is full of magic and a wonderful place to bring children!

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About

York quickly became one of the most important cities in Roman Britain, and after 211 became the capital of the province Britannia Inferior. Constantine the Great—later responsible for making Christianity the official religion of the Roman Empire—was first proclaimed Emperor in the city. After the Romans York was taken by the Angles and was renamed Eoforwic c. Captured by the …

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York Vacation Guide

History

As York was a town in Roman times, its Celtic name is recorded in Roman sources (as Eboracum and Eburacum); after 400, Angles took over the area and adapted the name by folk etymology to Old English Eoforwīc or Eoforīc, which means “wild-boar town” or “rich in wild-boar”. The Vikings, who took over the area later, in turn adapted the …

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York Vacation Guide

See

The one place that everybody visits. Stay for Evensong service if you can, especially if you’ve never been to a church service before. If you want to climb up the tower please note that there are 275 steps on a narrow and steep spiral staircase and you’re given a specific time when to climb. JORVIK Viking Centre, One of the …

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York Vacation Guide

Do

About an hour’s walk: if short on time or energy, the best views are conveniently from the shortest section, from Bootham Bar to Monk Bar, around the Minster (about 15 minutes). Discover the Snickleways. Walk the York snickelways, the famous medieval (and later) alleys and narrow streets that thread the center of the city. Alternatively walk downstream to the the …

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York Vacation Guide

Climate

Precipitation is frequent but not abundant because we are to the east of the Pennines, the low mountains that run through England from north to south like a backbone and partially block the wet currents from the Irish Sea. Winter is not very cold, but the sky is often cloudy, the humidity is high and there are periods when the wind …

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York Vacation Guide

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