What to do in Edinburgh

Edinburgh Castle, Arthur’s Seat and Grassmarket – Here is your bucket list for Edinburgh.

Scotland is one of my favourite countries to travel to and Edinburgh should be definitely on your bucket list for its beautiful architecture and history.

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Best of Edinburgh

Edinburgh was one of my favourite places to visit and here is why:

📍 Edinburgh Castle:

Of course, visiting the beautiful castle is a must. It also offers a nice viewpoint over Edinburgh. From Monday to Saturday, you can hear the one o’clock gun – a time signal that was established in 1861. The entrance fee is £19.50 for one adult.

📍 Royal Mile:

The Royal Mile is a famous street full of historic and cultural attractions that stretches from Edinburgh Castle to the Holyrood Palace.

📍 Holyrood Palace:

You can find the Holyrood Palace, also called the Palace of Holyroodhouse, at the end of the Royal Mile. It is the official residence of the British monarch in Scotland. Nowadays, you can visit the castle and the gardens, the entrance fee is £18.00 for one adult or £11.50 for young persons from 18-24 years.

📍 Arthur's Seat:

If you are up for a hike, then you should head to Arthur’s seat. The ancient volcano is with 251m (823ft) the highest point of Edinburgh and allows you a panoramic view over the city. It is located at Holyrood Park, close to the city centre.

📍 Calton Hill:

This is another place for a fantastic panoramic view you should not miss. Additionally, Calton Hill also offers several monuments like the National Monument.

📍 Grassmarket:

Nowadays, it’s a historical marketplace full of restaurants, pubs, and cute little shops. The place was used for public executions until the 18th century, which makes the pub ‘The last drop’ a bit of a morbid name choice. Another pub is named after Maggie Dickson, who survived her execution and after was allowed to live on because her survival was understood as God’s will.

📍 Dean Village:

Also worth a visit is the nearby Dean Village, which offers architecture and gardens from the 19th century in a really scenic surrounding.

About Whiskey, the worst poet and unicorns

Besides:

🥃 Scotland is famous for its Whiskey, so don’t miss to give it a try if you are into alcoholic beverages.

🖋️ The Scottish poet William McGonagall born in Edinburgh is known as the worst poet of all time. You can visit his grave at the cemetery of Grayfriars.
And that the name of the poet reminds you of Harry Potter is also no coincidence. The character of Minerva McGonagall was named after him.

🦄 One more funfact: Did you know that the national animal of Scotland is a unicorn? Apparently, the Scots didn’t know that the unicorn is a mythical creature when they chose it. My tour guide told me that the unicorn has two enemies: elephants (but no one knows why) and the lion (because of England).