Edinburgh Weekend Escape

Edinburgh is a city that you shouldn’t miss, either for a weekend escape or as the start of your Scottish road trip. This city, surrounded by mountains, greenery and the sea will make you fall in love with the beautiful buildings and hilly streets.

The most touristy area of the city is the old town so most people choose to stay here. However, I really liked the New Town area in particular George St. This area is less touristy but still has a lot of nice shops, restaurants and bars. “Rabble” hotel is a great option in the New Town area.

Day 1: Old Town and Bruntsfield

In Edinburgh you don't need to take any public transport, everything is quite close and you can walk from point to point. The first day start visiting the most famous part of the city, the Old Town.

• Royal Mile: runs between Edinburgh Castle and Holyrood Palace. The total length of the streets between the Castle and the Palace is almost exactly a mile (1.6 km), hence the name.

• Cockburn Street: is a picturesque street created as a serpentine link from the High Street to Waverley Station in 1856. It is one of the prettiest and most photographed streets of Edinburgh.

• Victoria Street: one of Edinburgh’s most recognisable and picturesque locations, it’s a curved street with a series of colourful shop fronts. Constructed between 1829 and 1834, it was one of several major improvements to the Old Town, designed to improve access around the city; previously, the only way to access the Lawnmarket and Edinburgh Castle from the Grassmarket was via an awkward and steep passageway.

• Grassmarket square: a historic market place and today famous square for the numerous pubs and restaurants that you can find here with stunning views of the castle.

• Edinburgh Castle: standing on Castle Rock, Edinburgh Castle’s strategic advantage is clear. Seeing the site’s military potential, Iron Age people built a hill fort on the rock. Early medieval poetry tells of a war band that feasted here for a year before riding to their deaths in battle. As well as guarding great moments in history, the castle has suffered many sieges. During the Wars of Independence it changed hands many times. In 1314, the Scots retook the castle from the English in a daring night raid led by Thomas Randolph, nephew of Robert the Bruce. The castle defences have evolved over hundreds of years.

For lunch, a nice place to stop at is "Scotts Kitchen” with tasty Scottish food and great views over Victoria Street. Make sure that you order haggis!

Once you have finished visiting the Old Town area, you can walk through The Meadows (a very nice large park) to get to you final stop of the day that is the neighbourhood of Bruntsfield. Bruntsfield is a residential area that has very nice little shops and cafes and restaurants to eat or have a drink. It is not very famous and it feels more local that is why I think that I liked it so much there. A place to have a drink is “Montpelier” on the High Street.

Before going for dinner, I would recommend to stop by "The Devil's Advocate”. It is a super cool place with a great selection of whiskeys.

A delicious place to have dinner is “Terra Marique” that offers really tasty Italian food and has not only pasta but also great meat and fish dishes.

Day 2: New Town and Dean Village

This day would be used to explore the other side of the city, starting at Calton Hill and finishing at Dean Village. Calton Hill is a prominent hill where you can find Neoclassical monuments and stunning views of the city.

On the way to your next stop you can grab a sandwich to take away at “The Banh Mi Bar”. Other nice options for a sitting down brunch are “Southern Cross Cafe” or “ Tani Modi Brunch”.

The next stops are the Scott Monument, that is victorian memorial in honour of the writer Sir Walter Scott, and the beautiful Princes Street Garden, from where you will have stunning views of the castle and the Old Town.

Exiting the gardens, take George Street to make your way to Dean Village. I really liked George St, it is full of shops so maybe you can spend sometime taking a quick look into a few of the shops.

Dean Village is your final stop, this area is a bucolic village with gardens, 19th-century buildings and a river passing through. Apart from admiring the pretty buildings, take a walk on the riverside walk and admire the beautiful gardens and wood area. In Dean Village, there are no shops or bars so make sure that you carry everything that you might need with you.

After an exhausting day, I would recommend to go for dinner to “Fazenda”, a Brazilian restaurant, or to “Cafe St Honore”, a French restaurant with a Parisian brasserie decor.

Day 3:Arthur's Seat and Scottish National Gallery

If you have more time in Edinburgh you could also walk to Arthur's Seat or to visit the Scottish National Gallery.

Arthur's Seat is an ancient volcano which is the main peak of the group of hills in Edinburgh. The hill provides excellent panoramic views of the city and beyond, is relatively easy to climb but the easiest and simplest ascent is from the east, where a grassy slope rises above Dunsapie Loch. The walk to the top take around 2 hours but you can also choose a low level for an easier option.

The Scottish National Gallery houses Scotland's national collection of fine art, spanning Scottish and international art from the beginning of the Renaissance up to the start of the 20th century.