Kings Arms

I found the Kings Arms to be exactly what I imagined a British pub to be like: Short ceilings, old dark timbers and great beer. I sat inside and enjoyed the warm fire and cool lager. Then I went outside and enjoyed a beer sitting by the river. I will be back on my next trip to York!

Very famous York pub, because it floods on a regular basis! Located on King’s Straith right by the river Ouse, it floods so regularly that the cellar is upstairs and the floor of the bar is stone with no fittings! There is a gauge on the wall by the door which indicates the flood levels inside the pub over the years. I would imagine the latest floods must have been right up to the ceiling judging by the photographs! In term time, the Kings is a popular student haunt, but it is also popular with tourists too. Hearty Yorkshire food is served, so if you are feeling hungry try lunch. There is outside seating by the river, but this is very popular in the warmer weather and there are often no seats available. This is a must see pub!

Very fun Northern pub with a cool view of the river, especially when it floods I’d imagine!

Do go here. You won’t get many better pubs than this one (in the summer anyway). It’s very small and quaint inside — which is fine on a quiet day. The summer is brilliant, because of the seating right next to the river.
It’s a Sam Smiths (Yorkshire) pub — so it’s very cheap & very strong ale.

Found hair in drink. When I informed bar maiden, she spilled my drink out and insisted I was lying. DO NOT GO HERE!

Really nice pub, inside and out. It’s right next to the Ouse, so outdoor seating in nice weather is highly recommended. Inside is quaint and comfortable. Dark, low ceilings, and not flooded the day we visited.
THE PEOPLE ARE SO NICE.
The usual pub menu, and lots of Sam Smith on tap.

A great place to sit outside in summer and watch the boats go by. I seem to remember that it gets flooded by the river most years.

Top Tip for the Kings Arms:
If in winter the river does look a little high, don’t be put off — use the side entrance on King St.
The staff are so good at sand-​bagging during the flood seasons, that there has been many-​a-​lunchtime I’ve had a quiet lunchtime watching the river in flood lappng just below the window-​ledge.
Urban myth has it that their ‘cellar’ is actually upstairs
Always been an excllen pub, only the tourists drag my mark down to 4*

I Love this place! My fave pub to drink at!!! Especially in the summer as you can sit outside inthe sunshine next to the River. it is a really oldy worldy pub that get flooded every winter and that is why it has always had stone floors and measurements as to the flooding levels inside! The staff are lovely, very polite and the drinks are really quite cheap as it is a Sam Smiths pub. Recommended ***

One of the nicest places in York to spend a long summer’s evening. As a Sam Smith’s pub it serves very cheap drinks, and as a riverside drinking establishment it attracts huge numbers of people to its outside picnic tables, giving it a really nice atmosphere.

The Kings Arms is the pub that’s situated next to the River Ouse that you often see on the news — Yes, it’s the pub that floods!
Once inside you can see on the wall where they measure where the water level came up to, and next to it the date of the flood! and you will see that it has become quite a regular occurrence!
Another thing that The Kings Arms is famous for is serving relatively cheap beer! it also has available a variety of wines and spirits. There isn’t much seating inside but on warm summers days it’s wonderful to take your drink outside and sit by the river watching the world go by, and on a weekend Evening a lot of revellers descend on the place and spill out onto the riverside. (Don’t drink too much, you might fall in!)
It’s well worth a visit to the Kings Arms, see the flood marks! and take a drink and sit outside — lovely

Great little pub on the banks of the river — prone to flooding and has done in the past — there are photos and a large measure inside to show the height of the water
Cheap beer! food looks good but I havent tried it yet
This is my most favorite pub in york — landlord is very welcoming makes everyone feel at home — always very busy!

Any visitor to York should put this pub on their stop off list.
This place is famous as the pub that always floods as it is situated on the side of the river Ouse. The highest being in the year 2000, less than a foot from the ceiling, but all the years are marked on the plaque just inside the door.
The other great thing about here is its another of Sam Smiths pubs so a pint of Bitter will only set you back about £1.50 and lager not a lot more, no alcho-​pops either so that eliminates the teeny bobbers.
The pub is a great location and is usually quite busy but the bar staff are efficient and friendly and get to you quickly.

the kings arms bar is a 16^th century building with very low ceilings and stone flooring, which is a good thing as the pub floods when the river comes up.
there is a wall inside the pub where you can find markers showing the water levels over the years.
In the middle of the bar is a wooden viking statue, presented to the bar from the viking longboat guys who do the viking longboat race along the river Ouse each year as part of the viking festival.
when it is not submerged in water, and during hot summer days, it has a lovely waterfront beer garden where you can sit for hours on end watching the world go by up and down the river on the boat cruises.
It has the sun all day and there is never any rush to get away.
It is very popular with locals and very popular with the tourists in the summer and can get very very busy.
It is also extremely packed on a weekend whatever time of year.
They serve good beer so who cares how busy it gets.
worth a visit.

The Kings’s Arms
Possibly holding the record for the only pub visited by a canoe, this pub will probably be underwater a good deal between November and March. Yet their spirits are never dampened and nor are their beers, the brewery being kept upstairs, and the little pub seems positively enthusiastic about their flooding susceptibility. A famous chart narrates the watery invasions of the past, and it’s a quiet local despite its tourist attraction.

This is a traditional pub located right on the river front in York. It offers a good choice of real ales. During the summer you can sit outside and enjoy the river view, whereas in the winter you can relax in front of a traditional open fire. The staff are always friendly.