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York is an ancient cathedral city with a history that dates back to before Roman times. It is situated in the heart of Yorkshire  in North Yorkshire with some of the best preserved historical buildings and structures in Europe.

Understand

York was known as Eboracum by the Romans, who founded the fortress city on the River Ouse in the year 71. York was home first to the Ninth Legion and later the Sixth. 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.

Captured by the Vikings 866, the city quickly took on a new identity as Jorvik (pronounced "Yor-vik") and experienced a major urban revival as a centre of Viking trade and settlement in northern England. The Coppergate excavations of the 1970s revealed much of this Viking past.

Someone is bound to tell you, so let it be here - in York the gates to the city are called bars, the roads are called gates and the bars are called public houses :)

York is a fairly small city - well worth a visit but anything longer than 4 days and you will probably have had enough.

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 Roman Festival, the Ghost Festival, the Festival of Angels, Jazz, Early Music, Late Music, Digital Arts, Horse Racing (the "Ebor Race Meeting"), Learning Festival, Multicultural Food and Arts, Chinese New Year, Lesbian Arts, 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!

Get in

Most travellers will arrive in York by means of road (car or bus) or rail transport from other UK centres. Parking within the city centre can be a challenge at busy times but is far from impossible although the cost can be prohibitive. If you are not staying somewhere with parking, or driving in for the day, use the Park and Rides, which are inexpensive and have sites all around York's ring road.

By train

York is one of the main hubs of the UK rail network, with a large range of services and destinations to choose from. The station itself is an attraction, and was voted the 'nicest' station in the UK in 2007. Because of the number of lines that pass through, services tend to be frequent. While intercity trains can be expensive, regional services are relatively affordable.

York is situated halfway between Edinburgh and London on the East Coast Main Line. The newly nationalised 'East Coast' run services along this route with trains running approximately every half hour between London Kings Cross and Edinburgh Waverley. Journey time from London is approximately two hours, while Edinburgh is two and half hours away. Trains to London are also operated by Grand Central, but there are only 4 services per day. Arriva Cross Country also run trains from York into Scotland and across the country to Birmingham, Oxford, and Reading and the South-West.

There is an hourly train service to and from Manchester International Airport 24 hours a day. This stops at Leeds, Huddersfield and Manchester, making it possible to have a late night out elsewhere in the North but still make it back to York. Other regional trains run to Sheffield, Doncaster, Hull, Harrogate and Scarborough, Durham and Newcastle.

Train times can be found on the National Rail Planner or by calling 08457 48 49 50 from anywhere in the UK.

By bus

York is served by National Express coaches. The information and ticket office is inside the Tourist Information office at the railway station.

By plane

The nearest major Airport to York is Leeds-Bradford International Airport (LBA) about 30 miles away. Jet2 and KLM are amongst the major carriers at this airport. There is no longer a bus route from the airport to York but passengers could, if they choose, travel by train to Harrogate or Leeds and catch a bus from there.

Manchester Airport is well connected to the York by an hourly direct train service that runs throughout the night. Doncaster-Sheffield, Durham-Tees Valley and Newcastle Airports are also relatively close. Heathrow and Gatwick Airports will require a change in London if using the trains, and probably Leeds if using the National Express coach service.

Get around
On foot

The old city is foot-only access, and many of the sights are only a short walk between one another. Plus, parking is nearly impossible, and where you can't walk, there is always a bus! (see below) Take care walking in the city centre after 16:00 as the roads, still full with pedetstrians, become open to cars again.

By car

The best advice for driving in York is don't as the roads were designed for carts pulled by oxen, and the city council is actively discouraging car use through a combination of high parking charges and traffic-calming measures. The good news is that most of the centre is pedestrianised, and there is an excellent park-and-ride service from the car parks on the outskirts of the city. The car parks are patrolled and monitored, the buses are frequent and rapid and the fares are low in contrast to the eye-wateringly expensive parking charges in the city itself. The city itself is small enough to walk from one side to the other in 20 minutes, so there's really no need to bring a car into the city in the first place. Bikes are also a great option and can be rented in various places, including the train station.

Finally, Parkopedia.com is a free service that allows users to search and compare parking rates and locations for commercial and private parking facilities in York.

By bus

Excellent bus services connect all the points of interest in the city but they are not cheap,