Hi beautiful people and welcome back to a new blog post. Today’s post is a travel guide, recently I visited my lovely friend in York and travelled up for the day only. A two hours train, direct journey from London makes It the perfect weekend day trip. It truly is a magical and beautiful city with so much to see.
Keep reading to find out my recommendations of what to do, see, buy and where to eat…
Hi everyone, welcome back to a new blog post. Today’s post is a UK travel guide, recently I visited my lovely friend in York and travelled up for the day only. A two hours train, direct journey from London makes It the perfect weekend day trip. It truly is a magical and beautiful city with so much to see.
I’ve noted my recommendations after a lot of researching and exploring for the day. I got there nice and early at around 10 and left before 5. I felt that was plenty of time to see the main attractions however, I am already planning my next trip back soon! There’s so much to do and see!
Start off your day with a delicious brunch in York’s Instagrammable cafe.
Of course, I managed to find a pretty in pink, floral brunch spot in York. The pancakes were some of the best I have ever had with edible flowers and delicious fresh fruit. My coffee was delicious too and they had plenty of milk alternatives. Enjoyed on a swing with flowers above my head, it was a truly magical and enjoyable brunch. With some lovely company to being my friend who I had not seen in far too long…
If a city has a castle or some kind of castle ruins, count me in! You should know by now if you’re a regular reader of my blog that I love a big of magic and anything that makes me feel like a true princess. York is full of castle themes, including a castle wall (that you can walk on) around the city.
The above photo is the Castle Gardens. Free entry and to walk around. Bear in mind, I went in winter. However, in summer there are so many stunning flowers that would be blooming. It’s quite small but you could probably spend half an hour to forty-five minutes wandering around here.
“York’s medieval City Walls (or “Bar Walls”), a scheduled ancient monument encircling the historic City of York, comprise 3.4km (2 miles) of surviving masonry. They are the longest town walls in England. They were built mainly in the 13th century of magnesian limestone and, uniquely in England, were set on earthen ramparts. York’s City Walls offer a splendid elevated walk around the city. The accompanying moats have largely disappeared but the slopes of the ramparts are well known for the display of daffodils in March and April.” – https://www.yorkwalls.org.uk/
Below, is a map of the city walls taken from the York Walls website. I had a small walk around and was fascinated by the details and historically dated markings around the wall. There are a few entry and exit points. Also, it’s a unique way to see the city and beautiful surrounding landscapes.
The York Minister is a must-see, I was speechless as soon as I entered inside. The intricate details and stained glass windows were like nothing I have seen before. Hogwarts vibes were given off from the tall, carved out ceilings. I felt so small against the high minister and like I said before, just speechless at the beauty and sense of calm I felt inside the minister. You can light a candle for free and pray for someone or something if you so wish. Me and my friend Emma both lit one for friendship. Enter was quite expensive however you can visit unlimited times that year again. It was worth every penny, I promise!
The York Market located by the shambles is a lovely place to wander around and shop. Full of magical feeling flower shops, yummy food stalls and handmade goods. It feels quite medieval and very unique, the stall owners are very friendly and it’s a great place to shop for souvenirs or gifts. I wished I could have brought some dried flowers home with me on the train!
Next up, located right by the market is the famous York shambles. Some say that Harry Potter was inspired by this and it gives off Diagon Alley vibes. As a Harry Potter fanatic myself, I of course had to visit the Shambles. It truly did feel like Diagon Alley and give off such magical vibes. Shops such as a ghost merchants where you can buy your own spirit, potions shops and a Harry Potter shop itself.
Get there early, even at 9 o’clock, there were queues for the Ghost Merchants and quite a few people getting their photos. Annoyingly, I forgot to take one of myself! I was so blown away exploring…
That was all I had time for that day as It started snowing, making York even more magical. However, I was definitely not dressed appropriately in white trainers so decided to get an earlier train.
Watch my vlog from the trip below and give the video a thumbs up, like if you enjoyed it!
I will list a few more recommendations below that I didn’t fit in but heard good things about. They are on my list for my next trip up soon…
Coffee / Brunch
- Brew and Brownie
- Gatehouse coffee
- Robinsons cafe
- Plush cafe
- Partisan
- The vintage rose
- Social fuel cafe
- Cocoa Joe’s
Lunch
- Partisans
- Wildwood
- Lucia
- Spark York
- Golden Fleece pub – most haunted in UK
- York shambles market
Bookshops
- Fossgate books
- Stone trough books
Things to do
- York Museum gardens
- The market cat
- York ghost shop
- York city wall
- York shambles
- Clifford’s tower
- York Castle Museum
- Deans park
- York minster
- Harry Potter shop
- Dungeons
- The shop that must not be named
- World of wizardry
- The potions cauldron
Get your Instagram Photos
- College street
- Low petergate and kings
- Clifford’s tower
I hope you enjoyed this blog post and have a wonderful trip to York if you are planning one soon. If you’re not then I hope this blog post inspired you to do so. A lovely day or weekend trip from London!
I fell in love with York and I am so glad I visited finally. I have always passed York on my way to Edinburgh to see family and wanted to explore the magical and apparently haunted city! York, I will be back soon…
Speak soon. Lots of love as always, Lauren xo
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