East
Edinburgh
Palace of Holyroodhouse
At the foot of the Royal Mile, Holyroodhouse brings abbey, palace and living monarchy onto the same historic site.
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Compass Collection
In the City: Edinburgh
Follow Edinburgh across centuries of living history. From royal palaces and ancient volcanic crags to planned Georgian avenues, historic closes, graveyards and the maritime heritage of Leith.
Featured Places & Stories
12 selected places in this curated collection
East
Edinburgh
Arthur's Seat & Holyrood Park
At Holyrood Park, Edinburgh's built city gives way almost immediately to the remains of an ancient volcano.
East
Edinburgh
The New Town
Crossing into the New Town changes the scale of Edinburgh: streets widen, views lengthen and the medieval city gives way to a deliberately planned capital.
East
Edinburgh
Dean Village & Water of Leith
A short walk downhill from the New Town reaches another Edinburgh: river, old milling ground, workers' housing and modern art gathered along the Water of Leith.
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East
Edinburgh
Craigmillar Castle
Craigmillar sits close enough to see Edinburgh, but far enough away to show a different kind of power: a fortified noble residence on the edge of the capital.
East
Edinburgh
Grassmarket & Cowgate
Below the High Street ridge, the Grassmarket and Cowgate show another Edinburgh: markets, inns, craft, punishment and movement compressed into the lower streets of the Old Town.
East
Edinburgh
University & Meadows
South of the Royal Mile, the University and the Meadows show Edinburgh growing through learning, medicine and public space rather than royal or commercial power alone.
East
Edinburgh
Princes Street Gardens & The Mound
The valley between Edinburgh's Old and New Towns is not empty space: gardens, railway, The Mound and national galleries turn the gap itself into part of the city's story.
East
Edinburgh
Calton Hill
Calton Hill is where Edinburgh turned a city-centre hill into a place for views, science, commemoration and civic ambition.
East
Edinburgh
The Royal Mile: Old Town & Canongate
The Royal Mile makes more sense as Edinburgh's old spine than as a line of attractions: castle to palace, with closes, tenements, kirk, markets, law, trade and everyday life between them.
East
Edinburgh
Edinburgh Graveyards
Edinburgh's historic graveyards record the city through its people: belief, work, status, argument, migration and the different ways generations chose to be remembered.
East
Leith, Edinburgh
Leith: Casks, Rope & Sail
In Leith, the old port can still be read through the things it needed to make and move: rope, sailcloth, bottles, casks, ships and the infrastructure that connected them.
Private Guiding in Scotland
Shaping a private day around what interests you
Ross can weave these stories and visits into an unhurried private journey designed around your party.