The next Pubsgalore crawl.

[gillhalfpint]

Based on 20th for us £36.80 each 2 singles each way, or £30 each 2 singles each way if we go Thursday and come back Friday. Will check next week, but Ray is going to start checking knee replacement and has his first hospital appointment to see what they can do for him next month so we won't be getting advance tickets till we know whether one, both or neither of us will be joining you. We love York to bits, and have caravan booked in up there for fest in September. That can be cancelled at no cost if health issues a problem though.

[Mobyduck]

I see no cheapies (from London) for 27th yet, but £14.60ew available 20Mar, or overnighting 19-20Mar, so hopefully something similar will become available next week for target dates...

Horrendous prices for me at the moment ,will have to see what turns up.

[Aqualung]

Horrendous prices for me at the moment ,will have to see what turns up.

East Coast Trains like East Midlands Trains only update their cheap fares future date at the Weekend (I'm not sure which of the three days it is) and it is always up to the Friday. This means the 27th of March will appear after next Friday. You really need to use the train company site to keep an eye out for the cheapest fares even if you don't book with them.

I've noticed that East Midlands Trains cheapest tickets don't seem to be bookable at all through National Rail and they also appear to have increased in price considerably for 2015. Additionally I noticed they cost more though Southern who give you the option of having the tickets posted for free.

Virgin's cheapest prices remain the same so I'm already booked to the West Midlands in March at a discounted £4.95 each way.

The Southern "go anywhere" ticket has gone up to £17.90 from £15.00 last year and £12.00 the year before so I almost certainly won't use it again after February. With a railcard it's cheaper to get discounted advance singles to two stations plus a strategic discounted day return or two or if you've got free bus travel add that to the mix.

[Mobyduck]

East Coast Trains like East Midlands Trains only update their cheap fares future date at the Weekend (I'm not sure which of the three days it is) and it is always up to the Friday. This means the 27th of March will appear after next Friday. You really need to use the train company site to keep an eye out for the cheapest fares even if you don't book with them.

I've noticed that East Midlands Trains cheapest tickets don't seem to be bookable at all through National Rail and they also appear to have increased in price considerably for 2015. Additionally I noticed they cost more though Southern who give you the option of having the tickets posted for free.

Virgin's cheapest prices remain the same so I'm already booked to the West Midlands in March at a discounted £4.95 each way.

The Southern "go anywhere" ticket has gone up to £17.90 from £15.00 last year and £12.00 the year before so I almost certainly won't use it again after February. With a railcard it's cheaper to get discounted advance singles to two stations plus a strategic discounted day return or two or if you've got free bus travel add that to the mix.

Thanks.

[rpadam]

East Coast have held a January seat sale in recent years, so that may be worth looking out for (although I've not seen anything yet; and, it does happen, it may not extend far enough into March to help some of us).

[sheffield hatter]

Sheffield Hatter and myself have already discussed some options, I'll let Will propose his non-touristy itinerary (which I mainly agree with). We may wish to start at The Maltings rather than the Tap as the Maltings will be rammed on a Friday evening but should be relatively quiet at noon, that leaves the Tap as the last pub with little risk of missing the station for those overcome by the delights of York. There are of course many start/finish options with probably the Micklegate Punch Bowl (JDW) as the early arrivals breakfast venue of choice. Obviously a lot depends on who is coming and their familiarity with York.

Yes, starting at the Maltings may be a good idea, with the Tap for a swift half before leaving the station, and for a final one before the train home. The route I'm thinking of, and have discussed with OB, starts on Lawrence Street and visits several decent pubs that are only short walks apart.

My thinking is that the more touristy and popular pubs in the city centre are likely to be too crowded for a large group of us to suddenly descend upon. For example, the House of the Trembling madness has quite a low safety limit and we couldn't guarantee getting in; the Blue Ball is certain to refuse us entry if we all arrive at once. I would suggest that anyone who hasn't done York city centre should stay an extra day, Thursday or Saturday, to do them on their own or in a smaller group.

The route will need a bit of tweaking, for example the Phoenix doesn't open until 4.30pm, so if we agree to do the route I may try phoning or emailing the pub to ask if they wouldn't mind opening a little earlier for us. The approximate list (including wild cards [in brackets] for those who like going off piste) would be something like this:

York Tap
Maltings
Rose and Crown, Waggon & Horses and Rook & Gaskill [Beeswing]
[Sea Horse], Woolpack (opens at 3), [Masons]
Phoenix (4.30 but earlier if poss)
Across the river (10 minute walk) to Slip Inn & Swan
Old Ebor, [Victoria Vaults],Golden Ball,
[Ackhorne], Brigantes and back to the York Tap.

There are buses from the station (get Plus Bus when you buy your train tickets) and from near the Maltings to get us to the starting point in Lawrence St. Any comments or suggestions?

[ROBCamra]

As we're in York and some people won't have been, would it not be an idea to have a York Brewery pub on the trail?

The Rook & Gaskill has been known not to open at 12 on a Friday despite what the opening hours say
as I've found out to my cost in the past. May be worth a phone call to confirm.

Having been to York 2 or 3 times per year for the last 25 years I suspect there may well be quite a bit of off piste for me.

Especially to some of the places that Ms CAMRA won't go in.

As a member of York Brewery club I may well have to have a half or two in there as well depending on what they've got on the bar.

[Bucking Fastard]

Yes, starting at the Maltings may be a good idea, with the Tap for a swift half before leaving the station, and for a final one before the train home. The route I'm thinking of, and have discussed with OB, starts on Lawrence Street and visits several decent pubs that are only short walks apart.

My thinking is that the more touristy and popular pubs in the city centre are likely to be too crowded for a large group of us to suddenly descend upon. For example, the House of the Trembling madness has quite a low safety limit and we couldn't guarantee getting in; the Blue Ball is certain to refuse us entry if we all arrive at once. I would suggest that anyone who hasn't done York city centre should stay an extra day, Thursday or Saturday, to do them on their own or in a smaller group.

The route will need a bit of tweaking, for example the Phoenix doesn't open until 4.30pm, so if we agree to do the route I may try phoning or emailing the pub to ask if they wouldn't mind opening a little earlier for us. The approximate list (including wild cards [in brackets] for those who like going off piste) would be something like this:

York Tap
Maltings
Rose and Crown, Waggon & Horses and Rook & Gaskill [Beeswing]
[Sea Horse], Woolpack (opens at 3), [Masons]
Phoenix (4.30 but earlier if poss)
Across the river (10 minute walk) to Slip Inn & Swan
Old Ebor, [Victoria Vaults],Golden Ball,
[Ackhorne], Brigantes and back to the York Tap.

There are buses from the station (get Plus Bus when you buy your train tickets) and from near the Maltings to get us to the starting point in Lawrence St. Any comments or suggestions?

That looks like a very good route and selection of pubs,and if as ROBCamra suggests a York brewery pub can be included on the way around,it seems to tick all the boxes.Point taken about the Blue Bell re.arriving en masse ,just wondering which pub on your itinerary is closest to the Blue Bell if a small groups wants to pop in,as I cannot stay overnight and would like to take a look in if possible.

Thanks also for the reminder to do PlusBus.

[Al 10000]

Yes, starting at the Maltings may be a good idea, with the Tap for a swift half before leaving the station, and for a final one before the train home. The route I'm thinking of, and have discussed with OB, starts on Lawrence Street and visits several decent pubs that are only short walks apart.

My thinking is that the more touristy and popular pubs in the city centre are likely to be too crowded for a large group of us to suddenly descend upon. For example, the House of the Trembling madness has quite a low safety limit and we couldn't guarantee getting in; the Blue Ball is certain to refuse us entry if we all arrive at once. I would suggest that anyone who hasn't done York city centre should stay an extra day, Thursday or Saturday, to do them on their own or in a smaller group.

The route will need a bit of tweaking, for example the Phoenix doesn't open until 4.30pm, so if we agree to do the route I may try phoning or emailing the pub to ask if they wouldn't mind opening a little earlier for us. The approximate list (including wild cards [in brackets] for those who like going off piste) would be something like this:

York Tap
Maltings
Rose and Crown, Waggon & Horses and Rook & Gaskill [Beeswing]
[Sea Horse], Woolpack (opens at 3), [Masons]
Phoenix (4.30 but earlier if poss)
Across the river (10 minute walk) to Slip Inn & Swan
Old Ebor, [Victoria Vaults],Golden Ball,
[Ackhorne], Brigantes and back to the York Tap.

There are buses from the station (get Plus Bus when you buy your train tickets) and from near the Maltings to get us to the starting point in Lawrence St. Any comments or suggestions?

Yes is does look like a good list but only one new one on there for me to do,the York Tap.

Fridays are also a problem,this is my short working day only 5 hours but get paid for 8 because of the extra hours worked Mon to Thur,so i will never book a Friday off as an holiday,shame.

[sheffield hatter]

As we're in York and some people won't have been, would it not be an idea to have a York Brewery pub on the trail?

The Rook & Gaskill has been known not to open at 12 on a Friday despite what the opening hours say
as I've found out to my cost in the past. May be worth a phone call to confirm.

As a member of York Brewery club I may well have to have a half or two in there as well depending on what they've got on the bar.

Good idea about the York Brewery pubs - unfortunately, according to their website, these are the Last Drop, the Three-Legged Mare and the Yorkshire Terrier: all situated in the heart of the tourist quarter! What about the Tap Room at the brewery itself, though? This appears to be fairly close to Brigantes and could possibly be included towards the end of the route, or conceivably as an alternative start point - it's not far from the bus stop on Rougier St (about 5 mins walk according to Google Maps).

Thanks for the tip about the erratic opening at Rook & Gaskill - I'll add it to my To Do list.

Point taken about the Blue Bell re.arriving en masse ,just wondering which pub on your itinerary is closest to the Blue Bell if a small groups wants to pop in,as I cannot stay overnight and would like to take a look in if possible.

That would be the Phoenix - I make it about 8 to 10 minutes walk.