Having lived in York for 5 months I think I'm just about qualified enough to give a little information to my fellow dooyooers.

I was born in York at the city has always been a favourite of mine, even before I started living here I have stayed here quite a few times with family and my partner.

*pubs*
One of the key points that most people like about York is that there are 365 pubs so your never short of finding somewhere to stop off an have a drink and even better if you live here it lets you set yourself a challege of a different pub every night. Some notable pubs are;
* The Golden Fleece - supposedly one of the most haunted pubs in Britain and although its a little bit expensive its worth it for the atmosphere.
* Vudu Lounge - quite a good cocktail bar which is full of booths and a pretty cool sparkly wall.
*Evil eye - yet again another bar for the younger people which again serves cocktails and the best thing about this bar is the fact that the seating for the bar is beds which is pretty surreal.

*restaurants*
As well as pubs, every budding tourist needs a good restaurant and York is hardly lacking. The most famous place to chow down has to be Betty's but as I've never been there I can really comment. Some better restaurants are Oscars and Akbars and of course we have Mcdonalds and Pizza Hut. I would like to add more about the restaurants but I never really visit them so unfortunatley I cant give any more details.

*shops*
Of course with York being quite a mojor city it has all the normal shops like New look, Hmv and Rymans but because of laws in York the city has kept its historic look as it is not possible for any building to be built taller than the Minster. This is amazing as it means you can see the Minster from all around the main centre. Some stores that are key features in York are The Disney store, Browns department store and of course all the little independently owned stores that can be found dotted around the back streets.

As well as the city centre stores there are three local outlets;
Clifton Moor - Good Cinema, Normal stores like Tesco's and Lots of Restaurants.
Monks Cross - Lots and Lots of stores! has a lot of industrial estates around and has a brilliant Go-Karting track there too if your feeling like being an adrenaline junkie for the day.
Designer Outlet - Cheap designer brands, this place is always bustling and its no wonder. I managed to get a dior handbag for £50 down from £300 so a brilliant saving. Well wrth a look if you like your brands.

*Tourist Attractions*

-- York Minster--
Construction on York Minster began in the 1200's making it over 800 years old, this is very impressive considering that its survived the reformation, civil war and both world wars. The Minster is one place I would reccomend to everyone it's not one for anyone to miss.
Regular addmission to the Minster is around £8 which is good value as the ticket lasts for a year. Inside the Minster it is possible to enter the Crypts and Undercroft (which has a museum about the history of the Minster) and to walk around everywhere, there are not many places that are off limits and even if they are its just for safety purposes and you can normally see whats going on anyway. For an extra £4 it is possible to climb the tower of the Minster. I really do reccomend this as the view is phenomenal and you can see the whole centre and the expanse of the city walls.

--York Castle Museum--
A museum which actually has nothing to do with castles but its still worth a visit. Queues are normally quite expansive so either get there early or in the afternoon when the queues have died down. York residents get in free but my mom brought a pass for York Castle Museum and the Yorkshire Museum for £14 and again the ticket lasts for a year so its good value for money. One part of the museum focuses on the more traditional histories of the georgians and victorians. There is a pretty phenomenal victorian street which is brilliant for kids and big kids alike (not great if your a history student though because its not really very historically accurate). The other side of the museum is much more fun looking at the history of toys, the 60's and even exploring the history of the old castles dungeon (where Dick Turpin was locked up before he was killed for his highwayman activities).

--Yorkshire Museum--
The path to the museum is magnificent. The Yorkshire museum is situated in the Museum gardens which I consider to be the most beautiful place to walk in the city. The museum itself looks at the history of York from pre history through to medieval times. There is a lot of focus on the Romans which I enjoyed as York was originally the Roman city Eboracum before the Vikings were even though of. The yorkshire museum is more of a traditional museum with lots of artifacts so its quite difficult to state much different from other museums.

-- Railway Museum--
Good news!!! ITS FREE!!!! I love this museum and me and my partner always end up going for a walk to have a look at the trains. Its such a good place to go to let out your inner child. From looking at the Hogwarts Express (which is absolutley huge!!) to just pretending to be a train driver its great fun. Christmas is always a good time to goo as the team work really hard to make the museum a winter wonderland. This is a brilliant place to go and let the kids run wild because the trains are so big there is no way they could possibly break anything and if a big kid like me can run around then a little kid has no problem.

--York Dungeon--
Unfortunatley because of my fear of the dark I am yet to pluck up the guts to go here yet but I can tell you what my friends have said. The Dungeons are run by Madame Tusaudes and each one is unique to the area. York dungeons are full of witches being burnt, the evil Dick Turpin and of course plenty of Vikings!. Its advertised as a family attraction but I've only ever seen adults or teenagers going in so im not sure how children would react.

-- Jorvik centre--
Yorks major Viking Centre. the place stinks to high heaven and thats the first thing you notice when you get near it. Its £13 per person to get in and I think this is a rip off considering what it is. Its a replica viking village which is supposed to be 100% realistic and it is but it's very expensive. If your going to the Jorvik centre Its one to only do once, I'd even look for a voucher if possible.

Some other things to note are
*the Richard III museum which a cute little independently museum about the 'hunchback king' and it even has the final remaining portcullis which is quite a sight.
*the city walls - something everyone has to do. Its totally free and is just the most amazing way to see the whole of the city and you can always see the Minster which is a bonus.

*Getting there*
I always travel to York from the South and find the easiest thing is to follow the signs to Leeds then get onto the A64. Leeds to York is abut 25 minutes by car. North Wales to York is about 2.5 Hours and London to York is about 4 Hours so its not too far.
Nationwide coaches stop off in York but its probably easier to get one to Leeds as there are more of them and then get the train to York which takes about 20 minutes and the train station is right by the centre of york.

*near to*
*Leeds - 20 - 30 mins
*Scarborough & Whitby - 40/50ish mins

*Hotels*
Some good Hotels are
*The Hilton
*The Royal York Hotel
and if you dont mind a 10 minute walk int town there are some amazing bed and breakfasts to be found in the Fulford and Acomb areas of York.

If your after any particular information on York that I havent involved, feel free to contact me and I'll be more than happy to try and help you out =)