Sun seekers emerged across York and North Yorkshire to soak up the rays, chill out and enjoy the soaring seasonal temperatures this weekend.

York hot spots like Museum Gardens, the banks of the River Ouse, and the city's parks, were packed with families and children basking in the sunshine.

Thousands of people rushed to the east coast and the region's water parks to escape the holiday temperatures, which peaked at 26C in York and Selby.

But today, forecasters at the PA weather centre said the weather in North Yorkshire was "not settled by any means" and warned of stormy showers to come.

A spokesman said the county could see three or four isolated showers by the end of today, with more rain to come tomorrow, while temperatures drop from a high of 27C today to the low 20s.

Tuesday may also see heavier rain and more thunderstorms with heavy rain spreading northwards from central and eastern England, while easterly winds will bring a further drop in temperatures.

Over the scorching weekend, the region's traditional tourist routes were busy, according to road monitors, but were not as bad as some predicted.

A spokesman for AA Roadwatch said peak times on the A64 were very busy with long delays around York, but added that this was typical for a summer weekend. York's Tourism Information Centre manager, Della Rhodes, said it seemed as if the historic city was "bursting at the seams" over the weekend. "Virtually all accommodation in the city was fully booked and we were forced to book people in further and further afield," she said.

Mike Wilkinson, of Scarborough Borough Council, said the resort had had one of its busiest weekends of the season so far.

Updated: 12:23 Monday, July 29, 2002