With Homecoming under way and Ryder Cup and Edinburgh Festival just around the corner, it’s a big year for Scotland and its capital. Here’s our choice of the top 10 things to do in Edinburgh.
Edinburgh Castle
Sitting on Castle Rock at the top of the Royal Mile, Edinburgh’s famous castle is Scotland’s number one visitor attraction. It contains Scotland’s crown jewels and the world’s oldest canon which booms across the city every day at 1pm.
See edinburghcastle.gov.uk
National Museum of Scotland
TripAdvisor users voted this the best museum in the UK, sixth in Europe and 18th in the world in 2013 – and it’s not hard to see why. Housed over two buildings, there are more than 8,000 exhibits ranging from Dolly the sheep, the first successful clone of a mammal, to one of Elton John’s extravagant suits and The Maiden, an early form of guillotine.
See nms.ac.uk
Take a ghost walk
Edinburgh’s packed with history and some of it is super spooky. There are dozens of tours, from ghost walks that culminate in the underground vaults at Blair Street to the Real Mary Kings Close, a warren of hidden streets and tenement houses buried under the Royal Mile since the 17th century.
See realmarykingsclose.com and mercattours.com
Edinburgh Zoo
Sitting in parkland, a short bus ride from the city centre, there are more than 1,000 animals in this superb zoo, but the ones you are going to definitely want to see are Giant Pandas, Tian Tian and Yang Guang.
See edinburghzoo.org.uk
Camera Obscura
Edinburgh’s oldest visitor attraction, open since 1835, is an Aladdin’s cave of illusions, tricks, puzzles and hands-on experiences. Kids and adults both love it as you can touch just about everything on display, making for a truly interactive museum experience.
See camera-obscura.co.uk
Climb Arthur’s Seat
The dominant 251m dormant volcano is the highest point in the city’s Holyrood Park, 640 acres of green space on the edge of the city that is home to the 15th century St Anthony’s Chapel and Duddingston Loch bird sanctuary, while the Palace of Holyroodhouse and Scottish Parliament are both on its edge.
See historic-scotland.gov.uk
Scotch Whisky Experience
The barrel ride that takes you through the Scotch Whisky-making experience might be a bit chintzy but for an overview of single malts and the regional variations, this attraction close to the castle is second to none. Learn more about the different types via scratch-and-sniff cards before tasting a dram from the vast collection.
See scotchwhiskyexperience.co.uk
Have a pint in the Sheep Heid
Scotland’s pub of the year in Duddingston on the edge of Holyrood is a beautifully restored inn and the city’s oldest surviving watering hole. There’s great gastro food, top ales, quirky décor and a still-working skittles alley where Mary, Queen of Scots is said to have played.
See thesheepheidedinburgh.co.uk
Royal Yacht Britannia
The royal yacht sailed The Queen and her family around the world for more than 40 years and covered more than a million miles while doing so. You can now take an audio tour of the ship as she sits moored on the city’s waterfront.
See royalyachtbritannia.co.uk
Go rock climbing
The Edinburgh International Climbing Arena, housed in an old quarry, has incredible climbing walls, climbing classes and tonnes of other activities, including an incredible rooftop aerial assault course that will leave your head spinning.
See eica-ratho.co.uk
For more on Edinburgh, see thisisedinburgh.org.uk. For more on Scotland, see visitscotland.com
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