Hi all, I'm traveling to Scotland in August and have a day to "Tour Edinburgh Independently" Does anyone have any recommendations on what to do that day? Do we have any folks from that area that might be available to grab a pint?
When I was out of high school I hitchhiked around Europe and UK area and spent time in Scotland. Didn't hang out in Edinburgh terribly long and plus I was essentially homeless so don't really have lots of recs as far as entertainment goes, but I did stay in a really cool hostel attached to a bar and remember the people being pretty friendly albeit hammered. If you have a chance to go to Inverness, I stayed there several nights and have some fond memories of it. Smaller and laid back. Met a couple of dope fiends with mullets who let me stay at their apartment, and were rabid 80s hair metal fans, despite it being the mid 90s at the time. It was like a trippy time warp, but in a good way.
@pmvines You have the best stories lol This is the last full day of my tour and I don't think Inverness is in the cards. I'm willing to plan another trip for that though!
@KaaGee
I got stories for days, but you're the army vet biker chick so I'm sure you have plenty of your own 😉
@pmvines that I do, but they're best served with alcohol and you don't drink
We were just there in August and there are two amazing things going on…the Fringe festival and the Tattoo. I highly recommend the tattoo…look it up! It’s hundreds of kilt wearing bagpipers and all of the marching bands and entertainment corps of all of the allies of Scotland. Stunning. And then the fringe is a tons of quirky shows going on all over town. Comedians. A cappella groups. Relatively inexpensive and super fun. It’s the best month!!
@VitaminJ one of the reasons I chose August was expressly for the tattoo. AND! This year is the 75th Anniversary. I'm super excited for it. We're (the tour group) seeing the last performance of the year. I didn't know about the other things around town though. Now I'm doubly excited lol Thank you.
@VitaminJ that actually all sounds awesome. I love bagpipe music. Also reminds me of my Renn Faire days. I used to wear a kilt and a leather vest.
Check out Edinburgh castle, and just walk in and around there and have Haggis!
@Ironman294 I believe we get a tour before the performance, thank you!
The Tattoo is wonderful. Check the weather forecast beforehand: short of an actual hurricane it won't be cancelled.
Edinburgh is one of the world's great cities and it's not possible to "do" it all in one day. A common plan is to walk the length of the Royal Mile from the Castle to the Palace of Holyroodhouse. (It's downhill if you do it in that direction.) This is the oldest and most historic part of Edinburgh and takes you past a number of museums and places you can visit, as well as just letting you see what it looks like. You will walk past my old house.
The main part you'll be missing is the New Town but other than shops there is less to see and do there. The whole area - Old Town and New Town - is a UN World Heritage Site.
Alternatively you could read up a bit before you go and see what interests you. For something completely different you could climb Arthur's Seat, which is a small mountain next to the Palace (and the Parliament).
@CuddleDuncan is spot on. Edinbugh is amazing but cannot be done in one day. Do a bit of research and find out the things you are interested in and concentrate on those. Oh and you must see @CuddleDuncan's old house. You can't miss that oppotunity
@CuddleDuncan thanks much for the information. The trip is only 6 days and I think it's a good start, but I'm almost certain I'll want to go back. Shall I knock on your old door and see what they've done with the place?
@cuddlyDavid we get at least 2 days in Edinburgh, probably not enough.
@Bear let's see pics of the kilted bear!
@KaaGee I knew someone would ask. I need to look for the physical photos.
@KaaGee it's a kind offer! However, I know exactly what they've done with the place - nothing. It's a World Heritage Site. You literally have to get permission from the UN if you want to paint a wall. As well as the Scottish, British and European regulators.