Budget?

How many days do you have for York/North Yorkshire? TONS of things to see/do. York itself is worth at least 1.5 days, 2.5 is better. Then Castle Howard, the N. Yorkshire Moors/the railway, Whitby/Robin Hood's Bay, Thirsk, Fountains Abbey (that is another couple of days). . . And if you are talking about the Dales (really wonderful) - at least another couple of days

Two nights, 1.5 days. Would love to see the Moors. Have a car, is the railway a better experience? Places to stay?

medium budget

This is where we stayed. Host was great. Breakfast was wonderful. We took the train from London and then on to Edinburgh. Just a little walk from the train to the B&B.

http://www.abbeyfields.co.uk/contactus.php

Rail travel isn't a better option if you plan to see Castle Howard or the North Yorkshire Moors. You'll have a car anyway, so why not use it?

We stayed very near the place that michele_d recommends above. Our's was a long block further north and I wouldn't recommend it. I didn't love the area because we were on a short visit and there just wasn't any charm or interest in the walk from the center to the bed and breakfast where we stayed. Also, there was no parking, which you ought to look in to. I've read tons of reviews for places in York where the owners said there was on street parking, but none was available or convenient. I wished we had stayed in a central hotel, perhaps near the rail station. Unless a b&b is special, I don't really like them that much, and I found that York was filled with similar looking places. Didn't seem charming to me.

Medium budget is a fairly meaningless category. Medium to me might be sky high or rock bottom to you. If you name a figure, people might be able to give more recommendations.

Medium means next to nothing. What is you budget?

By railroad --I meant the north York Moors steam railway. You'd drive to the train and just take the excursion.

But w/ just 1.5 days (and I suspect it is actually less since you are driving up from Oxford) you don't realistically have time for anything but York.

The Minster, the castle museum, the Railway museum, the city walls, Betty's, the Shambles - that is your 1.5 days.

Castle Howard, the Moors, the Dales, Fountains Abbey . . . will all have to wait til your next trip.

Completely agree that you should stay and concentrate on York itself due to your limited time up here - although I usually encourage visitors to explore the area if they can especially the Dales where I live. There's plenty to see and do in the city itself. The Minster is top of most lists but even as a local I love to visit the Castle Museum with it's amazing Victorian street and the free railway museum which is fascinating even to non train lovers.
There are boat trips some evenings or you can walk the walls.
Lots of good restaurants especially J Bakers and Ambiente tapas. And tea at Betty's is a Yorkshire tradition!

We recommend the Hazelwood B and B just outside the walls in York & 400 yds from the Minster. We spent several nights there in October 2011. We had the king room on the ground floor, a bright, comfortable room. You will enjoy your time in York, and probably leave wanting to return.

I did quite a bit of research for my upcoming trip to the UK and I selected Coach House Hotel on Marygate, right outside the walls. It was also recommended by my cousin who has lived in York for the last 5 years. Unfortunately I won't be staying there as I took too long to book for my April trip to York and will be staying at the Grange Hotel instead.

Thanks everyone! By medium I mean about 100 pounds or less per night.

Since we are doing lots of museums and things inI London, what if we just did a moors kind of thing while in York? We will be seeing castles in Edinburg as well.

Has anyone driven from the Cotswolds? What is the route and how long does it take? Is there anything we should make a point of seeing along the way?