Edinburgh Attractions

Edinburgh is a great city just to walk through enjoying the atmosphere. It also has some particularly attractive and interesting outdoor attractions. If the unpredictable weather lets you down you might well want to head inside - fortunately there's also a wealth to see and do under cover. The city has some of the best and most famous of Scotland's attractions.

Since the city has historically been rather, a large number of its best known locations are in or within walking distance of the city centre. In particular a visitor with limited time can find plenty of interesting stuff in the old town along the Royal Mile. The Mile also has a large number of pubs and restaurants.

I don't claim the following list of attractions and places to visit to be complete but it should give you some ideas for what to do in Edinburgh, whether you're a tourist or a local:

Things to See and Do

Royal Mile

•  Camera Obscura / World of Illusions
•  Edinburgh Castle
•  Ghost Tours
•  Gladstone's Land
•  Heart of Midlothian
•  Holyrood Palace
•  John Knox's House
•  Loch Ness Exhibition (now closed)
•  Mary King's Close
•  Museum of Childhood
•  People's Story Museum
•  Royal Mile Walking Tours
•  Scottish Parliament
•  Scottish National War Memorial
•  Scottish Storytelling Centre
•  St Giles Cathedral
•  Whisky Centre
•  Writers' Museum

Off Royal Mile

•  Arthur's Seat
•  Botanic Gardens
•  Bus Tours
•  Cockburn Street
•  Edinburgh Dungeon
•  The Elephant House (Coffee Shop)
•  Greyfriars Bobby
•  National Museum of Scotland
•  Nelson Monument
•  Scottish National Gallery
•  Scottish National Portrait Gallery

Further Out

•  Butterfly World
•  Edinburgh Zoo
•  Jupiter Artland


You can save money on some of these with the Edinburgh City Pass.