IN THE MIDDLE
I love York and if you have never been I highly recommend it. But if you dislike crowds - I advise avoiding bank holidays, school holidays, Christmas etc as it can very busy. Especially down the 'Shambles'. But don't let this put you off because this truly is a beautiful city with so many stories to tell...
For example Visityork.org says that "York is a city with a dark past, its history is rife with tales of guts, gore, torture and ghosts. The International Ghost Research Foundation even declared York as the most haunted city in Europe due to its bloodstained history and over 500 hauntings within the ancient city walls."
And then there's The Shambles, which is (now) a quaint little cobbled shopping street with overhanging timber-framed buildings, some dating back as far as the fourteenth century (around 1350-1475) but it definitely has a different feel and vibe to it today than it did back then...
The street used to be full of butchers', shops and houses and the name 'Shambles' is thought to of derived from the word 'Shammel', an anglo-saxon word for 'the shelves' which were featured in the windows and I believe it used to known as 'The Great Flesh Shambles' because it was full of butchers, displaying meat on those shelves.
There wouldn't of been much waste sewerage disposal back then, and the butchers' had a slaughter houses at the back of their shops so the street would have been full of blood, guts and poo! Very different to today! indeed!
It is said also that at particular parts of the street if you stretch both your arms out you can touch both sides at the same time! Me being 5ft 4 I doubt this is doable - but worth a shot if you're down there one late evening when it's quiet and you're not Hobbit sized?!
I read somewhere that this, along with the overhanging timber framed fronts was to give the street shelter from direct sunlight as they'd hang the meat on hooks on the front of the shop or shelves in the window to entice people in to buy and if you look closely some hooks are still there today.
The street now comprises of jewellery, gifts, clothes and tea shops. It also has a slight resemblance to that of Diagon Alley from Harry Potter - so there are about 3 Harry Potter themed gift shops also selling wands and potions etc. and these are very popular and might require queuing to get into! But totally worth it!
Also dotted around on some of the older buildings are cat statues. These were originally placed to scare away rats and mice which were thought to be carriers of the plague in 1665/1666. Some have had to be removed, or replaced over the years - but it's still fun to try and spot them. More info can be found here.
As with most tourist places, there are open top tour buses you can book on, or even a Ghost bus tour if that's more your thing! Or The Dungeons!
But even without knowing the history - just walking around and seeing all the old buildings made of wattle and daub, the Cathedral (one of the largest of its kind in Northern Europe), the Castle / Clifford Tower, parts of the remaining City walls, and visiting the Viking museum is truly a magnificent day.
WHITBY
Whitby is a gorgeous place, full of character and history. It is famous for several things, such as the Whitby Jet precious stone jewellery, pirate ships, old buildings and many many ghost stories from the past. The
199 steps leading to the Church Yard, the Abbey that inspired Bram Stoker's Dracula – and the
bench he sat on to do so is still there today – not forgetting the many other famous writers that have been inspired by Whitby for example Elizabeth Gaskell, Charles Dickens, Wilkie Collins and Lewis Carroll.
It was also famous for its whaling industry, and there are two whalebones formed into an archway which makes an excellent photo opportunity as you can see the abbey in the background. If you're lucky you may even spot the odd whale in the distance.
There is a long pier/promenade you can walk along, and two accesses to the sea. The left side is not dog-friendly in peak season (May to September) but the right side is. There's a row of arcades, chip shops, candy shops, leading to the beach and tea, cakes, and souvenir shops up the hill and across the bridge.
I highly recommend a trip to the Sherlock cafe, which is small, yet full of character and dog friendly. There is also a Sherlock themed escape room on the top floor, but this is accessed by some steep and narrow stairs.
The majority of pubs are dog friendly, however only in specific areas so best to check before ordering food as this caught us off guard once and we were asked to cancel our order and leave as the dog-friendly area was full.
If it's a nice day you can take a boat trip out on the sea. We opted for the 'Pirate boat' ride which cost us £4 for a short 20 min trip out into the bay (2020). They had a recording playing facts all about Captain Cook, who was one of the greatest circumnavigators and his maritime career started in Whitby. Unfortunately, this was quite quiet and due to everyone chatting on the boat hard to hear. There is however a museum and statue if you did want to know more about James Cook R.N., F.R.S.
No visit to Whitby is complete without visiting the Abbey.
The Abbey is an English Heritage site and can be quite expensive if you're not a member. It is viewable from a distance, but due to being surrounded by a wall, you can't see it up close or access the museum/shop without paying. More information can be found here.
On special occasions, such as the famous October 'Goth Weekend' the Abbey gets lit up at night and various arts/activities are put on. 2021 saw Ghosts, Zombies and Victorian characters showing you around the Abbey whilst telling you a mythical story of a sea monster that attacked the town. There were food and drink stalls dotted about and it was all family and Dog friendly. So if you're about at this time of year, I highly recommend it as it's not much more expensive than a standard entry and you get a lot more for your buck! Just wrap up warm!!
Lastly - whether it's your kind of thing or not - I recommend doing a ghost walk. We did one that cost £7 and it wasn't scary at all, more fascinating and a little bit silly, but we learnt so much about the history of the town too.
There are various car parking areas, and at the time of writing, it cost £7 for the full day.
There are a few two public toilet blocks. The two I know of that were open 2020-21 are one across the road from the Co-op car park (here) and one down by the start of the pier (here). Both require payment but accept cards.
Lastly - be on the lookout for seagulls – they can be quite aggressive and will try and steal your food.
