Attractions in Edinburgh

Welcome to Edinburgh and the Lothians, where the buzz of Scotland's capital city sits in perfect contrast to the peaceful tranquility of the surrounding Lothians region. Edinburgh has one of the most beautiful cityscapes in the world, making it the ideal city break destination. With Scotland's most famous castle dominating the city skyline, there is plenty to see and do with the perfect balance between all things traditional and contemporary. Discover world-class museums and galleries, take a tour on an open-top bus or even visit the city's own zoo. From the world famous Festivals to top-class restaurants and bars, not to mention fabulous shopping, you'll be spoilt for choice.

City Art Centre
City Art Centre, 2 Market Street, Edinburgh, EH1 1DE

Dynamic Earth
Holyrood Rd.
About a decade ago, a beer distributor donated its Edinburgh brewery to the city with the provision it be used for a permanent attraction with educational benefits for the community at large. The result is a stone amphitheater capped by a translucent tent. An interconnected series of galleries celebrate the natural diversity of the physical earth, with emphasis on the seismological and biological processes that led to the physical world we know today.

Edinburgh Castle
Castlehill, at the western end of the Royal Mile
No place in Scotland is filled with as much history, legend, and lore as Edinburgh Castle, one of the highlights of a visit to Edinburgh. It is believed the ancient city grew up on the seat of a dead volcano, Castle Rock. The early history is vague, though it's known that in the 11th century Malcolm III (Canmore) and his Saxon queen, later venerated as St. Margaret, founded a castle on this spot. The only fragment left of their castle is St. Margaret's Chapel, built in the Norman style, an oblong structure dating from the 12th century.

Edinburgh Zoo
134 Corstorphine Rd.
This zoo is Scotland's largest animal collection, 10 minutes from Edinburgh's city center on 80 acres of hillside parkland offering unrivaled views from the Pentlands to the Firth of Forth. It contains more than 1,500 animals, including many endangered species: snow leopards, white rhinos, pygmy hippos, and many more. The zoo contains the largest penguin colony in Europe, with four species, plus the world's largest penguin enclosure. April to September: a penguin parade is held daily at 2pm.

Georgian House
7 Charlotte Sq
Architecturally, the most interesting district of New Town is the north side of Charlotte Square, designed by Robert Adam. Together with his brother, James, he developed a symmetrical but airy style with an elegant reworking of Greek and Roman classical motifs. Their influence was widespread in Britain and America, especially in the U.S. South. Georgian House has been refurbished and opened to the public by Scotland's National Trust. The furniture in this Adam house is mainly Hepplewhite, Chippendale, and Sheraton, all from the 18th century. In a ground-floor bedroom is a sturdy old four-poster with an original 18th-century canopy. The dining-room table is set with fine Wedgwood china and the kitchen stocked with gleaming copper pots and pans.

Gladstone's Land
477B Lawnmarket
This 17th-century merchant's house is furnished and kept in its original style. On the ground floor is a reconstructed shop booth displaying replicas of goods of the period, and an upstairs four-room apartment is furnished as it might have been in the 17th century. It is one of the stops as one walks along the Royal Mile. the house makes clear the crowded living conditions, even for those who were reasonably well off, before the construction of the New Town.

Grassmarket
Grassmarket is one of Edinburgh's nightlife centers, with numerous restaurants and pubs. An open area hedged by tall tenements and dominated by the castle, it can be approached from George IV Bridge, via Victoria St, an unusual two-tiered street clinging to the ridge below the Royal Mile. There are also some excellent shops in the area. The site of a market from at least 1477 to the start of the 20th century, Grassmarket was always the focal point for the Old Town. This was the main place for executions and over 100 hanged Covenanters are commemorated with a cross at the east end. The notorious murderers Burke and Hare operated from a close off the west end. Around 1827 they lured at least 18 victims there, suffocated them and sold the bodies to Edinburgh's medical schools. Leading off from the southeast corner, Candlemaker Row climbs back up to the George IV Bridge and Chambers St with the Royal Museum of Scotland and the University of Edinburgh's Old College.