You’ll find all the big high street names in York, making its main shopping streets a good base for your shopping expedition.
Betty's Tea Rooms near Parliament Street and Coney Street in York
When I was at school I was told that Marks & Spencers always located on a city’s main shopping street – which, if true, means that Parliament Street is York’s main shopping street. It certainly hosts a lot of the big names including New Look, Accessorize, the Disney Store, Thorntons and more.
But fans of Coney Street, which runs parallel to Parliament Street, would probably argue its case: here you’ll find Next, Warehouse, Mango, Zara, H&M, Miss Selfridge, Principles, Boots, Hotel Chocolat, La Senza… the list is almost endless.
The two main streets are joined by St Helen’s Square (home of Betty’s Tea Rooms), High Ousegate (where there’s a Levi Store and Ann Summers) and Coppergate, where you’ll find more big names: Top Shop, Dorothy Perkins, another Marks & Spencers and Fenwicks (whose Newcastle shop was the first-ever department store to open in the UK – a fact that perhaps should belong in our history pages!).
With plenty of cafes and coffee shops around for a rest, there’s a good day’s shopping on these few streets alone – but don’t forget to check out the other shops in York.