York

In 2019 we truly enjoyed Guy Fawkes Inn. Great pub and restaurant as well and right by the York Minster. Enjoyed an evening concert there, and just walking around including the Shambles market. Great town!

We stayed at The Minster Hotel, walking distance from the North Gate. A great small hotel, with parking for your car and great breakfasts.

Do not miss walking the ancient walls; visit the National Railway Museum; and especially the Minster (Cathedral).
Also, there are more museums worth visiting.

• Ann,

York is amazing town and I am sure you will enjoy your time. We were there in May this year and stayed at the Grand York which is a five minute walk from the train station and about an 8 minute walk from the York Minster. It is the only 5 star hotel in York and we were able to stay on points. It was Grand, however, expensive.

You have already received some great suggestions. Here were our favorites:

Restaurants

• The Rise Restaurant High Tea. I have had high tea in London and Bath and this was the equivalent of a high-end London tea at the fraction of the London prices. This was especially nice for us as they had wonderful savory selections, so we substituted the tea for dinner one evening.
• Yemen Heaven. This Yemeni restaurant is a little outside the city center, but worth the walk. In good weather, it has a courtyard garden. The food includes amazing slow-cooked stews (I had the Lamb Stew), My husband had the chicken. It was spicy, fragrant served with warm hospitality. They even had a French fry special with Zatar that we have since tried to replicate at home.
• Rustique. Excellent French food served in a vibrant and lively environment. Must try are the mussels and any fish special. It Reminded us of the boutiques in Paris.
• Guy Fawke Restaurant. Great pub food, loved the steak and ale pie and fun atmosphere.

Things to Do.

• Castle Museum: a collector compiles the most interesting Victorian artifacts and recreated an entire town. They had a special exhibit on mechanical arcade games that you can actually play. Super fun and engaging. They also had a demonstration kitchen where we ate prison food from the 19th century jail and surprisingly they had the recipes.
• York Minster: take the tour if you are able
• York Walking Tours: we enjoyed the Association of Voluntary Guides to the City of York walking tour. It provides an excellent introduction to York History. Without that tour, we would have walked by important Roman and Viking sights and would not have even known that they were there. On the tour, you walk the walls, so if you are on a short-trip, you can combine two sights in one.
• Ghost Tour: York is reported to be the most haunted city in Europe and we had an engaging and fun ghost tour with Mad Alice. It was wonderful to see the Shambles in the evening when the streets are empty and to learn about the underbelly of York.

National Railway Museum:>https://www.railwaymuseum.org.uk

There is so much to do and see in York - everything from the National Railway Museum to the York Dungeon (via the Chocolate Story,... ) SandyO has given some suggestions. You could also add in a boat trip, walk around the walls, Treasurer's House, Barley Hall,Cliffords Tower, Museum gardens and the Yorkshire Museum, Holy Trinity Church, off Goodramgate, Jorvik...

So what sort of things do you like doing and seeing?

If you want somewhere different to stay, think about the Bar Convent on Blossom Street.

I sometimes go to York for work and always stay at the Premier Inn Blossom Street. It's a chain but very reliable and comfortable.

If you are a cat-lover, you must do the York Lucky Cat trail to find the cat statues.

Thank you so much! I appreciate all of your suggestions. I made an itinerary to include many of the recommendations.

We were back there two weeks ago, and it's a wonderful city.
There are several free tours in the minster, focusing on different aspects of its history - well worth waiting for one to start or just tag along with a passing tour.
A couple of quirky places - the pub on the top floor of "The House of Trembling Madness" on Stonegate. The building dates back to around 1200. Food is decent, particularly the "stew of the day", decor is interesting.
The York Tap, at the station - art deco bar, excellent Pork pies, normally have 20+ beers on hand pull if you like that sort of thing.
Restaurant - We were impressed with Los Moros, serving North African inspired food.

We also ate at Los Moros last time we were in York and enjoyed it. I second the recommendations for House of the Trembling Madness and York Tap. Once we were changing trains in York and booked our second train an hour later than we needed just to have some time at York Tap! If you like beer then Brew York is also very good.

Nobody has mentioned Bettys (yes, no apostrophe). Fab for afternoon tea, or just a slice of something any time, or a nice lunch, or just a nice cup of tea.

https://www.bettys.co.uk/cafe-tea-rooms/our-locations/bettys-york