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BEVERLEY , nine miles north of Hull, ranks as one of northern England's premier towns, its Minster the superior of many an English cathedral, its tangle of old streets, cobbled lanes and elegant Georgian and Victorian terraces the very picture of a traditional market town. Over 350 buildings are listed as possessing historical or architectural merit, and though you could see its first-rank offerings in a morning, this is one of a handful of places in this part of the world that you might want to stay in for its own sake. Approaches to the town are dominated by the twin towers of Beverley Minster (March, April, Sept & Oct Mon-Sat 9am-5pm; May-Aug Mon-Sat 9am-6pm; Nov-Feb Mon-Sat 9am-4pm; plus Sun year round, depending on services, but usually noon-4pm; GBP2 donation requested), visible for miles across the wolds and airy flatlands. Initiated as a modest chapel, the minster became a monastery under John of Beverley, who was buried here in 721 and canonized in 1037 - his body lies under the crossing at the top of the nave. Fires and the collapse of the central tower in 1213 paved the way for two centuries of rebuilding, funded by bequests from pilgrims paying homage to the saint, and the result was one of the finest Gothic creations in the country. The west front , which crowned the work in 1420, is widely considered without equal, its survival due in large part to Baroque architect Nicholas Hawksmoor, who restored much of the church in the eighteenth century. Similar outstanding work awaits in the interior, most notably the fourteenth-century Percy Tomb on the north side of the altar, its sumptuously carved canopy one of the masterpieces of medieval European ecclesiastical art. Other incidental carving throughout the church is magnificent, particularly the 68 misericords of the oak choir (1520-24), one of the largest and most accomplished in England. Much of the decorative work here and elsewhere is on a musical theme. Beverley had a renowned guild of itinerant minstrels, which provided funds in the sixteenth century for the carvings on the transept aisle capitals, where you'll be able to pick out players of lutes, bagpipes, horns and tambourines. Beverley's train station is beside Station Square, just a couple of minutes' walk from the Minster; buses pull into Station Square. The tourist office is at 34 Butcher Row in the main shopping area (June-Aug Mon-Fri 9.30am-5.30pm, Sat 10am-5pm, Sun 10am-2pm; rest of year closed Sun; tel 01482/391672). There's plenty of local accommodation , including the Eastgate , 7 Eastgate (tel 01482/868464; no credit cards; GBP40-50), close to the Minster. Among the hotels, the top town-centre choices are the Beverley Arms , North Bar Within (tel 01482/869241; GBP70-90), and the North Bar Hotel , 28 North Bar Without (tel 01482/881375; GBP50-60). Of the pubs, try the Windmill Inn , 53 Lairgate (tel 01482/862817; GBP40-50), which has a dozen rooms for rent. The youth hostel (tel 01482/881751, ; closed Nov-March) occupies one of the town's finer buildings, a restored Dominican friary that was mentioned in the Canterbury Tales . It's located in Friar's Lane, off Eastgate. For food , Cerutti's 2 , in Station Square (tel 01482/866700; closed Sun), is a sister brasserie to that in Hull. Or you can eat in the pubs - the celebrated White Horse on Hengate, near St Mary's, is a thoroughly atmospheric traditional drinking den with folk music nights.
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