MEMORIES of their honeymoon in a York hotel brought romantic couple Robert and Nina Woodfield back to the city to celebrate their silver wedding.

Their break at the Viking Moathouse Hotel in October 2001 has been made all the sweeter when staff there decided the couple could stay at 1976 prices.

Robert and Nina, from Preston, came to York after getting married on October 2, 1976, and stayed in the Viking Hotel, as it was then called, on the banks of the Ouse.

Nina said: "We'd never been to York before - we were only 22 and 23 and we hadn't been to many places. We hadn't got much money so we pushed the boat out to come here."

After their stay the couple kept a pile of mementoes of their visit to York, including 1970s Viking Hotel leaflets and even sugar packets, along with their wedding photos.

Nina said: "We found all these things and we were thinking 'What shall we do for our silver wedding?'

"I thought I'd write to the hotel and send them all the old brochures."

The hotel responded by offering them a room at 1976 prices - £18.50 per room per night. If they had paid the full price, the weekend would have cost them £66 per person per night, with a half-price rate on Sunday.

The couple, who have three children aged 20, 18 and 13, were welcomed with champagne when they arrived in York yesterday afternoon.

Nina said: "The hotel's very different - it's kept up to date."

"This time we want to do York properly - we didn't see much of it on our honeymoon!"

Updated: 12:29 Saturday, October 06, 2001