Edinburgh Sightseeing, Attractions & Activities Guide

recommended places to visit and things to do in or near Edinburgh


  • fortress
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  • museum
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  • family-friendly
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  • open year round
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  • café
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  • guided tours
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  • shop
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  • antiques
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  • architecture
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  • history
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  • military history
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  • politics
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  • royalty

one of Scotland's best known landmarks, a mighty fortress dominating the Edinburgh skyline, with 3 military museums and Scotland's own Crown Jewels

  • museum
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  • family-friendly
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  • all-weather attraction
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  • free admission
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  • café
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  • virtual tours
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  • shop
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  • antiques
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  • architecture
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  • art
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  • ceramics
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  • geology
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  • history
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  • science

cleverly combining 19th Century and 20th Century buildings to deliver light and airy galleries depicting Scottish history from geological beginnings to the 1990s

  • historic house
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  • garden
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  • family-friendly
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  • all-weather attraction
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  • open year round
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  • café
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  • shop
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  • antiques
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  • art
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  • furniture
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  • history
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  • nature
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  • royalty
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  • walking
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  • wildlife

visited by some of Scotland's most well known historic figures, such as Mary, Queen of Scots and Bonnie Prince Charlie. Today it is used by The Queen when carrying out official engagements in Scotland

  • museum
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  • family-friendly
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  • all-weather attraction
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  • open year round
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  • shop
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  • antiques
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  • history
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  • royalty

the favourite royal residence of Her Majesty the Queen. Visit the state rooms, the engine room and even the laundry

  • art gallery
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  • family-friendly
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  • all-weather attraction
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  • free admission
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  • open year round
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  • café
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  • shop
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  • art
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  • history

come face to face with the people who shaped Scotland’s past, present and future

Deep Sea World

Dunfermline

  • aquarium
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  • family-friendly
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  • all-weather attraction
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  • open year round
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  • café
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  • shop
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  • nature
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  • wildlife

a superb array of sea life, now offering divers the chance to swim with Sand Tiger Sharks measuring a cool 12' in length

Edinburgh Zoo

Edinburgh

  • zoo
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  • family-friendly
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  • open year round
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  • café
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  • shop
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  • nature
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  • walking
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  • wildlife

one of the world's leading conservation zoos, helping to save many endangered species. Main attractions include Giant Pandas and the penguin parade

  • historic house
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  • something different!
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  • all-weather attraction
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  • seasonal opening
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  • National Trust
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  • antiques
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  • architecture
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  • furniture
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  • history
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  • local history

a typical example of a 17th Century tenement building with rare hand painted interiors and the only surviving arched shop frontage

  • film/tv location
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  • place of worship
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  • family-friendly
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  • all-weather attraction
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  • open year round
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  • pre-booking advised
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  • café
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  • shop
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  • visitor centre
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  • architecture
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  • film
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  • history
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  • religion

small, but densely decorated, a read through the guide book first is advised.Famously, the denouement for Dan Brown's "The Da Vinci Code"

Arthur's Seat

Edinburgh

  • landmark
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  • natural landscape
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  • family-friendly
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  • free admission
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  • open year round
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  • cycling
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  • nature
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  • walking
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  • wildlife

carved by ice sheets by a long extinct volcano, a distinctive feature of Edinburgh's skyline. The view from the summit is well worth the walk

  • museum
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  • family-friendly
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  • all-weather attraction
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  • free admission
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  • open year round
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  • shop
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  • history
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  • social history
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  • toys & models

described as 'the noisiest museum in the world', a favourite with adults and children alike, crammed full of objects telling of childhood, past and present

  • garden
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  • family-friendly
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  • free admission
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  • open year round
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  • café
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  • shop
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  • visitor centre
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  • nature
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  • walking
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  • wildlife

one of the most respected botanic gardens in the world, with stunning displays, splendid 19th century glass houses and a striking, environmentally friendly modern visitor centre

  • something different!
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  • all-weather attraction
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  • open year round
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  • pre-booking advised
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  • café
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  • guided tours
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  • shop
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  • history

home of The Diageo Claive Vidiz Whisky collection of 3,384 different bottles of whisky and offering a range of whisky tasting experiences

  • museum
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  • something different!
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  • all-weather attraction
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  • open year round
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  • café
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  • shop
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  • antiques
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  • history
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  • science

housed in a grand Ionic temple, providing a fascinating look at surgery from the 15th Century to the present day

  • museum
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  • family-friendly
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  • all-weather attraction
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  • free admission
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  • shop
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  • antiques
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  • archeology
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  • geology
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  • history

exhibits from pre-history to the present, however the most popular being the collar and bowl that once belonged to Greyfriars Bobby, the city's most famous dog

  • historic house
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  • family-friendly
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  • all-weather attraction
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  • open year round
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  • limited opening
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  • National Trust
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  • shop
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  • antiques
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  • architecture
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  • furniture
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  • history

beautifully restored, showing how Edinburgh's elite lived at the end of the 18th Century when those who could afford to, escaped the squalid conditions of the Old Town

  • historic house
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  • something different!
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  • seasonal opening
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  • pre-booking advised
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  • guided tours
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  • furniture
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  • history

this spooky, subterranean labyrinth gives a fascinating insight into the everyday life of 17th Century Edinburgh

  • art gallery
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  • family-friendly
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  • all-weather attraction
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  • free admission
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  • café
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  • shop
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  • art
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  • history

displaying collection of paintings, sculptures and architectural drawings from 1831 to the present and hosting temporary exhibitions throughout the year

  • family-friendly
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  • all-weather attraction
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  • free admission
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  • open year round
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  • café
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  • virtual tours
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  • shop
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  • literature
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  • poetry

premier research library, hosting a major exhibition each summer with a year round events programme, workshops and educational activities

  • farm park
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  • family-friendly
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  • open year round
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  • café
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  • shop
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  • nature

crawl through tunnels, hunt for fossils, explore secret works. A fun day out for all the family

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