The Trafalgar Bay is, apparently, the only pub that bears this name in Britain, which we think is quite nifty.
The inquisitive fellow who might think about how this boozer got such a unique name would probably link it to Nelson’s famous victory over the Spanish and French fleets off the Cape of Trafalgar in 1805. It would be a fair assumption, and one thepubsofyork.com made until having a look at Hugh Murray’s excellent ‘Directory of York Pubs’.
In it, Murray suggests that at about the time the pub started trading, it was customary for alehouses to prefix or suffix a famous or popular racehorse’s names with their colour. Pleasingly for fans of this theory, a horse named ‘Trafalgar’ finished 2nd in the Derby in 1806 and won two extremely valuable prizes at the Knavesmire, just a mile or so down the road the following year, with this in mind it’s perfectly reasonable that this unique name has equine connections.
Anyway, whichever theory you prefer, you could do a lot worse than mull it over in this Nunnery Lane hostelry which is not only a Sam Smiths house, but is rather nice too, unless you want to sit outside.
The beer garden wouldn’t look out of place behind a Bucharest police station, but thankfully you have the choice of three pleasant and comfortable internal rooms to sup in; a pool room which unsurprisingly boasts a pool table and two front rooms which are situated either side of the entrance.
The main room, where you will find the bar, has ample space for you to park your posterior and has a warm and cosy atmosphere which we put down to the traditional decor and real fires.
Whilst the the clientele always seem to be of the more mature variety and the locals a bit, er, local, it shouldn’t put you off visiting this place, not least for the famously cheap bar prices.
And if you get a bit bored of discussing the Horse v Battle pub name debate, then try to find the copy of the Reader’s Digest Road Atlas that is generally located in the bar area. Between the covers you will discover over 100 pages of colourful cartograhic enjoyment, with fancy folding out pages and accompanying geographical trivia. Smashing.
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For one reason or another I found myself in York on a Sunday evening with nothing to do. I had previously that day checked the internet for a decent pub in the area and decided to try a couple out. my first, and as it happened, my only port of call was The Trafalger Bay. I was intrigued by the name and wanted to find out more. I arrived early evening and was greeted by the landlord Dereck and later in the evening his wife Dawn. A friendly smile greeted me with strangely enough a southern accent like my own. A cold pint of lager was swiftly followed by another and then a splendid, dare i say, elderly chap entered. He was dressed in a large floppy Trilby hat, a old long coat and the most magnificent walking stick i have ever seen. Hand craved in the handle was one of the heads of the three headed sea-monster Ghidorah. After a lengthy chat and several more pints of lager he prooved to be a mine of information and had a point of view on most topics. He strongly assured me that the pub was named after the famous local horse Trafalgar and who was i to argue. His name is Bjorn and he turned out to be a Norwegion, living in York who supports Manchester United, need i say more? I would strongly recommend this pub to anyone who is visiting the area, fantastic hosts, warm friendly surroundings, good selection of beers and lagers, and a local character called Bjorn. Should you decide to visit then please buy my new friend a beer and tell him Phill says “hello”. Ps. The local Pool shark is called Felix, he may be only 10 but he plays a mean game!