York Residents' Festival back this weekend
It's all to say thank you to the people of the city for being so welcoming to visitors
A 'festival of thanks' is currently underway in York city centre.
York Residents’ Festival has returned this weekend with over 70 attractions, events and offers.
It's put on every year in York to say thank you to locals who welcome over 8 million people into the city annually.
Sarah Loftus, Managing Director at Make it York who are behind the event, said:
"People have spent their money and had a lot of fun during Christmas and they're just watching their pennies so we really want people to come out into the city centre to support their local businesses and have some fun.
"People really do want to support their local city so I think it's really important that we keep putting on events like this but make them slightly different each time so people come back again and again.
"There's lots of discounts for restaurants and attractions and there are lots of family friendly, fun things to do in the city centre so we're encouraging people to support local businesses following Christmas because it does get a bit quiet for some at this time of year."
Announced earlier this month, there has been huge demand for the offers, with many attractions already sold out. Don’t miss out, here are 10 attractions still available to pre-book and walk-up:
- City Sightseeing – Hop on City Sightseeing York's open top bus for a free guided tour! The tour takes about an hour from Exhibition Square. One tour per customer. Saturday 29th January between 10am – 3pm.
- York Dungeon - Get ready for a thrilling time as you journey through 2000 years of York's darkest history. Free entry on Saturday and Sunday from 10am to 12:30pm for York residents. Tickets must be collected in advance from York Visitor Information Centre.
- York Dungeon Walking Tour - Join us on the York City Walking Tour, 60 minutes of heart-thumping fun and thrills! Free to York Residents, tours will depart at 10:30am, 12:00, 1:30pm and 3:00pm. Tickets must be collected in advance from York Visitor Information Centre.
- York Astronomical Society - Activities include air rocket launches, cosmonaut selfies, Solar System model, astrophotography, safe viewings of the Sun and an observatory tour. On Saturday evening, once it gets dark and weather permitting, there will be a free stargazing event with talk. Sat 29th and Sun 30th, 10am – 4pm.
- Fairfax House - Explore the finest Georgian Townhouse in England. Limited tickets still available for Saturday 29th January.
- York Army Museum - Free talk about the Yorkshire Soldier at Gallipoli. Saturday 29 Jan - 10am-4pm and Sunday 30 Jan 10am-1pm.
- York Castle Museum - Come and see hundreds of years of York’s history in one place – from 18th century prison cells to the world famous recreated Victorian Street, Kirkgate. York Castle museum’s galleries hold thousands of historic York objects that bring the past to life! Limited tickets available on Saturday and Sunday.
- Yorkshire Air Museum – Experience more than a century of aviation, all in one historic location. Sat 29 and Sun 30 Jan, 10.00 - 16.00.
- York Art Gallery - Free admission to the major exhibition ‘Young Gainsborough: Rediscovered Landscape Drawings’. Sat 29 and Sun 30 Jan, 11.00 - 16.00.
- Get Cycling – Discover the city by bike with free hire for 4 hours. Fri 28 Jan 08.30 - 17.50. Sat 29 Jan 10.00 - 16.00.
There are also limited tickets still available for York Minster, JORVIK Viking Centre and Barley Hall.
There are also attractions that don’t require pre-booking such as Grand Opera House, Joseph Rowntree Theatre, Holgate Windmill, City Cruises, Merchant’s Adventurers Hall and several others.