Scotland is a small country, with a huge cultural footprint. It’s the home of haggis and bagpipes, tartan and tweed, the famed Scottish Highlands and the birthplace of the wizarding world of Harry Potter. As part of the United Kingdom, it has a long & complicated history which reverberates through the ages and continues to be felt to this day. We visited Scotland for the first time this summer, spending 3 days in Edinburgh and a day in the Scottish Highlands. Our trip was short, but filled with incredible history, stunning landscapes and iconic Scottish experiences.
Why visit Scotland? Why choose Edinburgh?
Our trip to Edinburgh was the second stop on our 1 month trip around Europe & the UK. We’d just spent three days in Dublin, and after Edinburgh, we spent five days in London.
Like Ireland, we added Scotland to our itinerary because it was close to our original trip starting point in London, and it was a country we’d never visited before. I’ve been curious about seeing more of the UK, so this was a natural fit! It also helped that we’d be visiting in summer, which seemed like a particularly good time to visit notoriously cold and rainy Scotland.
It’s always very difficult to decide how to spend just a few days in a country you’ve never visited before. It was our first trip to Scotland, and while I was tempted to try and squeeze in a couple of nights in Glasgow or in the Highlands, I’m glad we spent all three nights in Edinburgh. Writer and resident Alexander McCall-Smith has described Edinburgh as “a city so beautiful it breaks the heart again and again,” and it is certainly one of the most uniquely beautiful cities I’ve ever visited.
Day 1: The Royal Mile & Holyrood Palace
Royal Mile
We arrived in Edinburgh around 11am, so we started sightseeing as soon as we dropped off our bags at the hotel, Leonardo Royal. Our first stop was the Royal Mile, which is the centrepiece of Edinburgh’s Old Town. The Royal Mile is unlike anything I’ve ever seen in the world. It is so well preserved, and the sheer scale of it is incredible. The Royal Mile starts at Edinburgh Castle, and continues downhill until it reaches the Palace of Holyroodhouse at the other end.
The Royal Mile has been a processional route for kings & queens for more than 500 years, and is an architectural marvel with well-preserved medieval streets and historic architecture. Small laneways and alleyways, called “wynds” and “closes” split off from the Royal Mile, making it a unique and defining feature of Edinburgh.
The Royal Mile is beautiful, but unfortunately it’s also overrun with tourist tatt. A bit is expected, but the Royal Mile is almost exclusively lined with shops hawking mass-produced tourist tatt. A lack of reasons for locals to visit, means that you’ll rarely hear a Scottish accent here. Oddly, most of the tourist shops repeat themselves, with multiple outlets along the way, so it can be a bit disorienting.
Palace of Holyroodhouse & Gardens
Holyrood Palace, as it is also known, is still a working palace and has been the home of the royal monarch in Scotland since the 16th century. It’s best known for its associations with Mary, Queen of Scots, and Bonnie Prince Charlie. The palace began as the guest house for Holyrood Abbey, which was founded in the 12th century by David I of Scotland, and is in ruins today.
The Palace, Abbey and Gardens are open to the public, as a ticketed self-guided tour. I really enjoyed this tour, especially the rooms concerning Mary Queen of Scots, which are very well-preserved. It’s very easy to imagine some of the plots & intrigues from her tumultuous reign, playing out in these rooms.
Because it’s still the monarch’s residence, you can’t take any photos inside, unfortunately. Despite many of the rooms, such as Mary Queen of Scots chambers, clearly not being used for personal use by the royal family. Afterwards, we did a lap of the gardens, which have a gorgeous view of Arthur’s Peak and Holyrood Park.
It was a sunny, if not warm, afternoon so we sat on the balcony at The Devil’s Advocate for a pub lunch before heading back to the room. Nearly every Scottish person we spoke to asked us what we’d be doing with this wonderful weather, and seemed very disappointed when we said we were going back to the room after lunch! We’d been up since 5am for our flight, so we were a bit wrecked by the late afternoon.
Day 2: Arthur’s Seat, Scotch & Haggis
Climbing Arthur’s Seat
Like Rome, Edinburgh is a city built on seven hills. The most famous is Arthur’s Seat, a magnificent peak which is part of an ancient volcano. Arthur’s Seat forms part of Holyrood Park, and offers breathtaking views over Edinburgh. The unique flora and geology also marks it a site of special scientific interest.
We left the hotel and found a very cool, and very overcast morning. We hadn’t yet realised that the cloud cover burns off over the course of the day. In true Australian fashion, we planned to do the hike early, before it gets “too hot” around 11am. Not an issue in Edinburgh!
We didn’t want to be shrouded in fog at the top of the peak, so we decided to wait out the weather for a little while at Edinburgh Larder, an adorable cafe just off the Royal Mile. Once we actually started on the hike, we warmed up pretty quickly – I was glad I wore three layers (a tee, a long sleeve & a jumper). The hike isn’t technically difficult, it’s just 30-45 minutes up hill. The views along the way were just as beautiful from the view from the top in my opinion, especially with the beautiful yellow gorse flowering against the bright green grasses on the hillside.
Edinburgh Old Town: West Bow St & Grassmarket
After freshening up back at the hotel, in the early afternoon we wandered along the Royal Mile towards Grassmarket. One of the most beautiful streets in Edinburgh is West Bow St, which peels off the Royal Mile and curves down to Grassmarket. This is real Harry Potter territory! It feels like a street straight out of the books (or movies), I hadn’t realised that so much of the wizarding world aesthetic is Edinburgh-inspired.
We stopped in at Oink, a small chain that serves hog roast rolls, AKA a pulled pork sandwich. I ordered the smallest size (I think it was a kids size), and it really hit the spot! Once we got down to Grassmarket, we stopped for a drink at the White Hart Inn, which is the oldest in Edinburgh. Once again, I struggled a little bit to find something I liked (wine, a spritz, a cocktail…) at the pub. Much like in Ireland, pubs in Scotland are first and foremost about beer and spirits.
On our way back to the hotel, we stopped at the Tempting Tattie, a tiny takeaway joint that serves baked potatoes. David used to live in the UK, and misses the baked potatoes – and now I can see why! We might have Spud Bar at home, but as I found out, they’re not on the same playing field as British baked potatoes. These things are huge! We shared one filled with baked beans and cheese, which was the ultimate comfort food.
Scotch Whisky Experience
After visiting the Irish Whiskey Museum in Dublin, we thought it only made sense to hear the other side of the age-old rivalry in Scotland. The Scotch Whisky Experience is also a guided tour with tastings, much like its Irish counterpart. There is an overwhelming number of tour options at the Scotch Whisky Experience, so we decided to go on the Silver Tour (21 pounds per person), which included a short tour & a single tasting.
Compared to the Irish Whiskey Museum, this tour was a bit more high tech, a bit more serious and a bit more polished. I found the Irish Whiskey Museum a bit more entertaining, fun, but I’m glad we visited the Scotch Whisky Experience too.
We were each given a scratch & sniff card, which had a map of Scotland, where you could scratch away each of the five whisky producing regions to determine which region you’d like your tasting to come from. The five regions are the Highlands, Islay, Campbeltown, Lowlands and Speyside. I chose the Highlands, and David chose Islay, which is very smokey. The tour kicked off with a very short film in a mini theatre, introducing the regions of Scotch whisky, followed by the tasting, in a very high tech tasting room. In the centre of the room, a light show cast onto an empty bottle of whisky illustrated the short lecture, and lent the talk some Harry Potter-esque magic.
The finale was a visit to the Whisky Vault, which is the most valuable whisky collection in the world. It was curated by a private collector, and later sold to Diageo who own the Scotch Whisky Experience.
Dinner & drinks with Lauren
A real highlight of my time in Scotland was catching up with my friend Lauren, who used to work with me in Australia. Lauren, and her husband David, lived in Australia for the better part of a decade, and moved back home to Edinburgh with their two little girls during the pandemic.
I hadn’t seen Lauren since 2021, so it was SO lovely to catch up and hear how she’s settled back into life in Edinburgh. We met up in Edinburgh’s New Town, at St Andrew’s Place. It was a sunny day, so we made the most of the warm weather with a drink at Tiles Bar, right on the square, and then walked to The Keller, followed by dinner at Rollo.
Rollo is a small wine bar, serving share plates & tapas. It was cosy, warm and the food was lovely – including the haggis! Rollo serves haggis bon bons with whiskey marmalade, which makes them pretty hard not to like. I’ve only been eating meat for a few months, after 5+ years of being pescatarian, so I thought haggis might be a bit intimidating. It was actually quite enjoyable, as long as I didn’t think too closely about what I was eating, while I was eating it. We had a lovely night catching up with Lauren, and she invited us over to her place the following night, for a BBQ for her husband David’s birthday.
Day 3: Leith, Stockbridge & Edinburgh Castle
Leith
Leith was named the “coolest neighbourhood in the world”, and while I take those lists with a grain of salt, it was good enough reason for us to hop on the bus and get out of the city centre.
Our first stop was on the Shore, at Mimi’s Bakehouse. Mimi’s is a popular cafe & bakery chain that started in Leith, and has since expanded to 7 locations around Edinburgh. David had a full Scottish breakfast, which included white pudding (don’t ask) and another serve of haggis.
We walked from the shore down to Leith Walk, which is the neighbourhood’s high street. Leith Walk is definitely the coolest part of Leith, with lots of independent stores and bars – including an excellent bookshop, Argonaut Books. We wandered for a while, before hopping back on the bus to the city.
Dean Village & Waters of Leith
One of the prettiest pockets of Edinburgh is Dean Village, former home of Edinburgh’s water mills. The historic village is tucked away below street level, but is just a short walk from Princes Street.
Dean Village is residential, so there isn’t much to do here once you’ve strolled around the precinct, which is quite small. We wandered through the village, and then found a pretty pathway along the Waters of Leith, which took us to Stockbridge, our next stop. The Waters of Leith is a long walk, and you can follow it all the way out to the Leith shore.
Stockbridge
Stockbridge is one of Edinburgh’s loveliest neighbourhoods. Cobblestone streets, Georgian architecture and lots of independent boutiques and shops make it a great neighbourhood for a shop, a stroll and a bite to eat. We didn’t have too long here as it was getting quite late in the afternoon. We stopped in at I.J. Mellis Cheesemongers, a gorgeous little shop & a must for cheese-heads like me. We found a nice cheese to take to Lauren & David’s that night, and had a drink afterwards at the Scran & Scallie, a cosy gastropub. I would have LOVED to have a meal here, as it is the perfect cosy pub, but we nearly ran out of time to go to Edinburgh Castle! We raced across town, all uphill from Stockbridge, across New Town, and up the Royal Mile to get to the Castle with just an hour until closing.
Edinburgh Castle
Edinburgh Castle is the most iconic and significant site in Edinburgh. Established in the 12th century, it has borne 26 sieges in its 1,100 year history, including the Wars of Scottish Independence and the Jacobite rising of 1745. It’s the most besieged place in Great Britain and has played a critical role in Scottish history.
Edinburgh Castle looms over Edinburgh from its perch on Castle Rock, a volcanic plug that rises 130 m above sea level and 80 m above the surrounding landscape. There has been human settlement on Castle Rock since the Iron Age, even though a castle wasn’t built until the 12th century. It was a royal residence until 1633, when it started to be used more as a military barracks with a large garrison.
It’s the most visited tourist attraction in Scotland, and the second-most visited in the United Kingdom. Edinburgh Castle is also the backdrop to the Scottish Military Tattoo, during the Edinburgh Festival every year.
You could spend half a day or more here. My favourite parts were the 12th century St Margaret’s Chapel, which is the oldest building in Edinburgh, the view over the city from the castle walls, and the Great Hall. The line to see the crown jewels was far too long for the limited time we had, but we visited the Scottish National War Memorial which was very moving.
On our way back to the hotel, we spent a bit more time exploring the pretty streets off the Royal Mile, including Victoria Street and West Bow Street. Dinner at Lauren & David’s that night was so much fun. We spent most of the evening outside, making the most of the sunshine and very late sunset, before eating a late dinner inside. When we left, it was nearly midnight but it looked as if the sun had only just gone down!
Day 4: Scottish Highlands
As we did in Ireland, we wanted to spend a day outside the capital & explore some of the Scottish countryside. A day spent in the Scottish Highlands was an easy choice!
The Scottish Highlands evoke the most romantic landscapes in Scotland. We joined Discover Scotland Tours’ Glencoe, Loch Ness & Scottish Highlands tour which had a pick up & drop off in Edinburgh’s New Town. It was a small, luxury mini van with approximately 10-12 people on the tour.
Loch Lubnaig & Rannoch Moor
Because we were in a small mini van and not a giant tour bus, our drive & guide had some flexibility in where we stopped. For example, rather than making our first stop in the town of Callander, which is where all the tours stop, he took us for to Loch Lubnaig in the Trossachs National Park. Loch Lubnaig is a pristine freshwater loch in the Trossachs National Park. Nearby Loch Lomond is larger & more famous, but our small group had the picnic area at Loch Lubnaig almost entirely to ourselves.
We drove across the scenic and formidable Rannoch Moor, a gorgeous expanse of bogland which is home to a vast diversity of wildlife. Our guide & driver warned us of how dangerous the moors can be, despite their beauty. They look quite shallow and easy to cross, but they’re deceptively deep, and will bog down anyone who tries to cross on foot. There was another break & photo stop here, at a lookout with views across the countryside.
Glencoe
Glencoe is the most beautiful place we saw in the Scottish Highlands, and also has the most terrible history. Glencoe is a dramatic valley, surrounded by the Munro Mountains. In the 17th century, Glencoe was home to the powerful MacDonald clan. In January, they offered shelter to a regiment of 120 British soldiers, as was the custom in the Highlands. After two weeks of living amongst the MacDonalds, on the night of February 13th, the soldiers murdered the entire clan, in a single, bloody massacre.It was a very dark chapter in Scottish history, and became controversial as it was often presented as inter-clan warfare, rather than a government-sanctioned massacre.
Fort Augustus & Loch Ness
Our major stop of the day was in the town of Fort Augustus, which is located on Loch Ness. Loch Ness is one of the most famous places in Scotland, and is the home of the mythical Loch Ness Monster, affectionately known as Nessie. Our tour included a cruise on Loch Ness, but we had an hour or so to ourselves before the tour started, so we had an impromptu picnic of fish & chips on one of the jetties. This cruise was very popular and crowded, and initially we were stuck in the middle of the lower floor of the boat (not ideal), but as the tour continued, space opened up on the top deck to get a better view.
Loch Ness is very beautiful, and being out on the water is always lovely – regardless of Loch Ness’ mythical claim to fame, it’s a beautiful destination in its own right.
Our final stop of the day was a short break in Pitlochry, a quaint town in Perthshire. We lined up for ice cream, like proper tourists, despite the overcast and damp weather, and stocked up on some Scottish sweets for our backpack, for the next leg of our trip: to London!
Practical Details
Getting there & away:
We flew to Edinburgh from Dublin, which was a short flight. Edinburgh airport is tiny, so it took no time at all to get through the airport. We took the bus from outside the airport to New Town, which was so much simpler and cheaper than getting a cab.
We took the train from Edinburgh to London, which I loved! It is a 4-hour trip, but it honestly felt so much faster. Comfortable, simple and so much less fuss than going through an airport.
Getting around Edinburgh:
We walked most of the time we were in Edinburgh. We took a public bus from the Royal Mile to Leith and back, but otherwise we got around on foot. We only need an Uber once, to get to our friend’s place one night.
Accommodation in Edinburgh
We stayed at the Leonardo Royal on Jeffrey Street, which I’d highly recommend. The rooms are newly renovated and very stylish, the hotel is very well run, and there’s breakfast available at an on-site restaurant if you want it. It’s well located, just off the Royal Mile.
New here? Join thousands of readers and subscribe to The Wanderbug via email.