We have arrived to Kings Cross station at 6:30am to depart at 7am. Some snack for the road in Waitrose and good to go.
Virgin Train wasn’t very comfortable, but it was really fast. Also the heat was blasting in the train, that I could barely could breath.
Once we arrived, we’ve got coffee in the station. It was so cheap compared to Paris and much stronger!
Check-in at Airbnb was smooth and appartment really close to Scottish Parliament and Palace of Holyroodhouse.
We just dropped our things in Airbnb apartment and went sightseeing.
Just a stroll in the old town is impressive, even though the weather was not great, but old dark bricks and old buildings do the trick.
On our way to hotel I stop and look inside into one of the restaurants. They have a whole roasted pig in the window! It looks and smells so good!
Really tired after early morning to catch the train and then walking all day, so early night for me.
Here is the list of place worth visiting in Edinburgh:
- Edinburgh Castle: One of the most iconic landmarks in the city, the castle sits on a hilltop overlooking the city and is over 1,000 years old.
- The Royal Mile: This is a famous street that connects Edinburgh Castle to the Palace of Holyroodhouse, the official residence of the monarch in Scotland. It is lined with historic buildings, shops, and restaurants.
- The Edinburgh Festival Fringe: This is the largest arts festival in the world, which takes place every August in Edinburgh. It features thousands of performances of theater, comedy, music, and dance.
- Scotch Whisky: Scotland is famous for its whisky, and Edinburgh has many distilleries and tasting rooms where you can try different types of whisky.
- The University of Edinburgh: This is one of the oldest and most prestigious universities in the world, and is known for its research in a variety of fields.
- Scottish Parliament: The parliament building in Edinburgh is where the Scottish government meets and makes decisions about issues affecting the country.
- Arthur’s Seat: This is an extinct volcano that sits in the middle of Edinburgh, and provides stunning views of the city.
- The Royal Botanic Garden: This is a beautiful garden that features a wide variety of plants from around the world, and is a popular destination for locals and tourists alike.
Another place worth visiting is to climb to Arthur’s Seat hill overviewing Edinburgh city.
This globe next to Scotish Parliament looks really cool!
The regular paved path was closed due to falling stones so we had to go around it on a wet slippery grass.
We had to make a choice to go onto higher hill called Arthur’s seat or smaller one – Crags hill. It tooks us 45 min to climb it and go down. The views were stunning and pictures talk for themselves! Just had to be careful not to go too closely to the edge, since the wind gusts were really strong and also it was really cold!
After a hike we went back to our appartment and took a short nap and then ventured back to the town. Everything looked so much better in sunlight!
Though the Sun was almost setting we decided to go on Calton Hill, where the National Monument is.
Ahead of us were long stairs called Jacob’s ladder!
After a short hike we were on the top of the hill. Just in time to see the last phase of the sunset.
Here it was- the National Monument!
After seeing the National Monument we went down to see the Christmas Market. I must say it was quite big and not so crowded as London’s Winter Wonderland.
It even had a train going around shining garden. Awesome!
The other day same views of Edinburgh were 100 times better on the sunny day!
View from the Edinburgh Castle entrance:
In the second part of the day we went to the Ocean Terminal. The sky was almost blue!
This bridge seems to be closed for cars, only pedestrians can cross on the side trail.
Just before going to the train we got back to Edinburgh old tow for Burgers &Beer Grillhouse diner. We also had £5 discount per diner from our first lunch, so £10 in total! Bargain! Spicy chicken wings, Johny cash burger with a goat cheese and good to go for the trip to go back to London.
Walked down the narrow stairs to the train station, enjoying the last minutes in Edinburgh.
And here it is – across the street Waverley Train Station, from where our train to London Kings Cross departs.