Tr avel report EDINBURGH
selection of bars and restaurants including Dishoom and Wagamama. Just a few minutes walk further you will find the main shopping street in Edinburgh New Town, where you can window shop for hours.
Turn right from the hotel entrance to enjoy an afternoon of wandering through quaint streets and discovering smaller, boutique stores.
Further along you might also stumble across the foot of Calton Hill - to walk up to the top takes about half an hour and believe us when we say it’s well worth the climb, as the peak affords its visitors brilliant views of the city and the sea in the near distance.
Cross the gardens into Old Town and you will find the older, more traditional Edinburgh. With cobbled streets, narrow alleyways and steep staired inclines, this is the Edinburgh that we’ve read about. After some pacey uphill walks you reach the top of the city - perhaps slightly out of breath - along with the famous Royal Mile. This historic street is now filled with traditional tartan Scottish shops and bagpipes on every corner, it’s the main tourist district so if you’re wanting to swerve run-ins with huge gangs of tourists, perhaps avoid this area. Saying that, it’s good for a leisurely stroll and is great if you want to pick up some authentic souvenirs and enjoy some classic street entertainment.
Taking an expert tour around the city is the best way to get to know the real Edinburgh. It reveals its long history, traditions and retells stories dating back to the 1800’s. Gareth (from Edinburgh Expert) also had his iPad to hand which had old pictures of the different areas of the city, so you could really picture what it used to be like back in time.
The walking tour was tailored to what you wanted to know about the city, and which areas you’d like to explore. So even if you’ve visited before, you’ll be sure to find out something new - such as, did you know the city is built around three extinct volcanoes?
The next morning we woke to the beautiful Scottish sunshine streaming through the giant Georgian windows. We headed down to the hotel restaurant where we were treated to a very filling, traditional Scottish breakfast; including free range eggs made to order, sausages, bacon, black pudding, grilled tomato, mushrooms, tattie scone and of course, haggis. Along with fresh juices, coffee and tea, pastries, fruit and cereals - what more could you ask for?