Places to See in Edinburgh
Edinburgh is such place which wide opens a series of attractions to look for. The city takes you to a journey of its both facet, elegant history and buzzing present, filling in more life to the place. The dominating past of Edinburgh still can be seen in the ancient structures and impressive buildings standing tall narrating its long tale. There are far more to see and explore here.
The city centre is divided in two. North of Princes Street is the elegant neo-classical New Town, built in the late 18th and early 19th centuries to improve conditions in the city. South of Princes Street, across the beautiful Princes Street Gardens, is the Old Town, a rabbit warren of narrow alleys and closes, inhabited by the ghosts of Edinburgh's seamy past, and the inspiration for Stevenson's famous Dr Jeckyll and Mr Hyde. This medieval Manhattan of high-rise tenements runs from the castle down to the Palace of Holyroodhouse. Overlooking the palace is Edinburgh's largest and most impressive extinct volcano, Arthur's Seat which gives a picture-perfect overview of the city. It is an authentic piece of mountain wilderness within a stone's throw of the city centre.
There is something for interest in every street but the best place to start a tour of Edinburgh is the medieval Old Town, the original settlement of medival Edinburgh where you'll find most of the famous sights, from the castle, down through the Royal Mile, to the Palace of Holyroodhouse. South of the Royal Mile is the Grassmarket, the Cowgate and Chambers Street, site of the University of Edinburgh and two of the city's best museums, the Royal Museum of Scotland and the recently opened Museum of Scotland. The New Town also deserves some serious exploration, in particular the excellent National Gallery, Royal Scottish Academy and National Portrait Gallery. A bit further out from the centre are the Royal Botanic Garden and the Gallery of Modern Art. Though in theory you could 'do' the Old Town in a day, you really need several days to do it justice, and to leave yourself enough energy to explore the rest of the city. You should also leave enough time to enjoy the wild, open countryside of Holyrood Park and take a stroll up Arthur's Seat, from where you get stupendous views of the whole city and beyond.
Edinburgh Siteseeing Tours
Bus Tours Exploring the city on a bus tours is a good way to look into the different sites in the city. To offer this facility there are few companies taking you on a bus tour. MacTours conduct their tours on vintage buses, these bus tours departs from the Waverley Bridge, you can buy the ticket and can avail this tour. The tour takes an hour and passengers can alight or joing at any point over a 24-hr time. City Sightseeing (220 0770) Tours In summers every 20mins, 9:30am-7pm daily. Spring, autumn every 20mins 9:30am-5pm daily. Winter every 30mins, 10am-4pm daily. Starts from Waverley Bridge, Tickets ₤9, ₤3, ₤8 family ₤20 and under-5 are free. Credit MC,V MacTours (556 2244) Tours In summers every 20mins, 9:30am-7pm daily. Spring, authumn every 20mins 9:30am-5:30pm daily. Winter every 20mins, 10am-4pm daily. Starts from Waverley Bridge, Tickets ₤9, ₤3,₤8, family ₤20 and under-5 are free. Credit MC, V
Walking Tours The best way to explore the unspoilt beauty of Edinburgh is by walking. There are many way to make this walking tours around the fascinating Edinburgh city more interesting. Enjoy the city's plethora of ghost walks and walk past a lot of place in the dark with many hidden facts revealed. TheEdinburgh Literary Pub Tours takes an array of writers, from Burns through to Welsh. Edinburgh Literary Pub Tour (226 6665) Tours June-Sept 7:30pm daily. April, May Oct 7:30pm Thur-Sun. Nov-Mar 7:30pm Fri. Starts from Beehive Inn Grassmarket, Tickets ₤7, ₤6 Credit MC,V.
Best of the best sights to look for Arthur's Seat, Calton Hill, Edinburgh Castle, Modern Leith, Museum of Scotland, Princess Street Garden, Royal Botanic Garden, Scottish Parliament, Scottish Storytelling Centre and John Knox House, The 3D Loch Ness Experience