Things to do in York when the sun is out
A dry day is for the city walls, a boat on the Ouse, the Museum Gardens and, with a car or the bus, Castle Howard.
12 picks that fit, best first. The order assumes the conditions in the title; the live forecast only nudges it.
York city walls
Bootham Bar
Two miles of medieval wall to walk around the city, with the best views of the Minster, free.
Clear skies for the view. Free.
- Free
- Outdoors
- Under 2 hours
Museum Gardens and the Yorkshire Museum
Museum Street
Botanical gardens with abbey ruins, a Roman tower and peacocks, free, with the Yorkshire Museum inside.
Clear skies, and this is best outdoors. Free.
- Free
- Outdoors
- Under 2 hours
- Good with kids
Gardens free; museum ticketed
The Shambles and Shambles Market
City centre
The overhanging medieval street of butchers’ shops, now sweets and wizard shops, with the market beside it.
Free.
- Free
- In and out
- Under 2 hours
- Good with kids
Rowntree Park
South Bank
The chocolate family’s gift to the city: a riverside park with a lake, a café and a skate park.
Clear skies, and this is best outdoors. Free.
- Free
- Outdoors
- Under 2 hours
- Good with kids
The snickelways
City centre
The alleys, ginnels and passages that thread the medieval centre, free to explore with a map.
Clear skies, and this is best outdoors. Free.
- Free
- Outdoors
- Under 2 hours
- Good with kids
Castle Howard
Day trip
The baroque palace of Brideshead Revisited, with a thousand acres of gardens, lakes and temples.
- Over £25
- In and out
- A full day
- Good with kids
Fossgate and Walmgate
Fossgate
The restaurant street: independents from tapas to Yorkshire ale, beside the Foss.
- £10 to £25
- In and out
- Under 2 hours
- Fine in rain
Clifford's Tower
Tower Street
The keep of York Castle on its grassy mound, with a new roof deck looking over the whole city.
Clear skies for the view.
- Under £10
- In and out
- Under 2 hours
- Good with kids
River Ouse cruise
King’s Staith
An hour on the river past the Guildhall, the Museum Gardens and the bishop’s palace, with commentary.
Clear skies for the view.
- £10 to £25
- In and out
- Under 2 hours
- Fine in rain
- Good with kids
York ghost walk
The Shambles
The most haunted city in England does its ghost stories every night, by lantern, from the Shambles.
Comes alive in the evening.
- Under £10
- Outdoors
- Under 2 hours
- Good with kids
Micklegate
Micklegate
The Georgian street of pubs from the bar to the bridge, and the Micklegate Run that ends at the river.
- Under £10
- In and out
- Under 2 hours
- Fine in rain
Yorkshire Air Museum
Elvington
A wartime bomber base kept as it was, with a Halifax, a Victor and engine-run days.
- £10 to £25
- In and out
- Half a day
- Fine in rain
- Good with kids
Good to know
Where should I go in York when it is sunny?
A dry day is for the city walls, a boat on the Ouse, the Museum Gardens and, with a car or the bus, Castle Howard. This page keeps 12 outdoor and open-air picks, with viewpoints and parks pushed up the list when the forecast is clear.
What if the weather turns?
The list is re-ranked with the live forecast. If rain is on the way, mixed indoor-outdoor places move up and the fully outdoor ones move down, so you can still pick something that works.