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York

45 Things to Do in York

York is an inviting city, appealing to visitors with its beauty and charm, as well as its wide range of exciting (and sometimes a tad gruesome) activities and attractions. Its chequered history is well expressed in its many museums and cultural pursuits, and the estimated seven million people who visit each year come to soak up the city’s fascinating past at attractions such as York Minster and The Shambles. 

York
York

Top Tip

Treat a true rail buff to the Mallard experience, a simulator ride recreating the experience of being aboard a Mallard, the world’s fastest steam train. 

York
York

Top Tip

Clifford’s Tower sits atop an imposing mound, and on a clear day you can see as far away as the North Yorkshire Moors!

Wildlife Tip

At Yorkshire Museum Gardens, you’ll find the tansy beetle, an endangered species that only lives along a tiny 30-kilometre section of the River Ouse’s banks.

York
York
York
York

How bizarre

Turpin, determined to look his best for his execution, bought a new frock coat and shoes. And as he knew few people would be sorry to see him hanged, he also hired five mourners to attend his execution.

Fancy fact

The prestigious Grand Hotel is Yorkshire’s only 5-star hotel.

How curious

Among the items you’ll find in the cabinet of curiosities are a mummified cat and an 18th-century shoe!

Ghostly sightings

As well as Lady Peckett, there have also been sightings of a 17th-century man called ‘One-Eyed Jack’, and a Canadian airman who died after he fell out of a second-storey window!

York
York
York
York
York
York

Georgia Thwaites

By Georgia Thwaites

Lead Copywriter at Virgin Experience Days.

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