Hi Eros,

You lucky thing - Scotland is great!  I've been there a few times, and the last time Edinburgh really stole my heart.  It's a really multicultural city and the people are really friendly.

It's not such a big place so you can feel confident just turning up without having too many plans and figuring it out as you go.

That said, a few suggestions:

If you like art, the Scottish collection at the National Gallery is beautiful and is the best collection in the museum (in my opinion!).

If you get a clear sunny day, you must climb the Scott monument, a tall tower just near the gallery in the Princes St Gardens.  It's a beautiful view which gets better every level up.  The gardens are also really lovely, check out the area around Ross' fountain (google maps will explain all this to you).

Last suggestion would be to just walk around - I think 3 days or so is perfect.  If you have more time you should absolutely go to Glasgow, another place I love.  It is completely different to Edinburgh, but can also be explored easily.

There are lots of cool places to eat in Edinburgh - don't believe what people say about the food.  There is rubbish, if you go to fast food places, but there are also nice places.  I don't remember the name, but there is a cool little vegetarian place on a street called W Bow.  It's near the corner with Grassmarket which is also a nice place for a beer.  But you can just wander around and will find something.

Have a great time!

christina

Christina_J, Sep 13, 2009 @ 19:41

 Hi, I agree, Scotland is really great with friendly ppl. Just a few general remarks. You may need a car... Oktober is a bit late for there, it may rain a lot. As a general rule, the east is much drier than the west. Although the west is definitively more spectacular. If you have time, the northern shore is a great thing to see. Not very much facilities though. Stop in Thurso, go to Orkney, or the outer Hebridies are very wild, but a bit lonely.Enjoy!A
and70, Sep 19, 2009 @ 00:16

 once in Edinburgh you can go towads the castle and visit the the "camera obscura)" which allows you to see a panoramic view of the city from this special room high above the city..

there are lots of really good ethnic restaurants (especially indian) and good "pub" food that you can't find at any pubs in geneva. as you are on the coast, don't miss out on the delicious assortment of fresh fish....even the fish and chips are a real treat ( once or twice a day is pushing it though :-)

if english is not your native language, and even if it is, you may find "ya canna get what they say" but not to worry. partake of a wee dram with a bonnie lassie, and you'll be GRATE, laddie.

epicure, Sep 19, 2009 @ 20:26

 Hey,

From Scotland and heading home next weekend, but am in the North-East I'm afraid, so not much help in Edinburgh.

For food and bars I would suggest Rose Street, it runs parallel to Prince's Street.  There are some really great bars if you are interested in tasting local/Scottish ales, and there is almost always an excellent selection of whiskey, wherever you go!  If you are feeling really brave, you should try to visit every bar in a night, with a drink in each.  nobody I know has gotten further than half-way ;-)

Edinburgh is quite a tourist city, so there is lots to do.  There are lots of tours as well, like a ghost tour, and a tour of the underside of the city that was built over while people still lived there.  And you can learn all about Edinburgh's dark history.

As mentioned above, the castle is worth a visit (although a ticket is pretty expensive), and just walking down the Royal Mile and into the town from there is well worth it.  The Grassmarket is also great, but may be full of students at this time of year. 

If you are there for a weekend, then there is countless things to do in Scotland.  I have lived there most of my life, and I haven't run out of things to do and see!  I hope that you love it there.

skittles

skittles, Sep 19, 2009 @ 21:47

 Thanks TO ALL!!!

E
Sakto, Sep 20, 2009 @ 20:13

 Scotland for two weeks. For my first visit to Scotland I would make sure I covered the following:

Edinburgh - ghost tour of the Old Town at night, visit the Stand Comedy Club, climb Arthur's Seat (small mountain within the citiy) visit the Castle obviously (make sure you are at the Battery before 1.00pm for a loud surprise, drink beer in the Grassmarket,(try Caledonian 80 shilling beer), go for coffee in Harvey Nicols cafe, go to Valvona and Crolla deli, go to exellent Filmhouse cinema. Walk around for ages in the New Town.

Glasgow, go tô Byres Rad and hang out, Kelivingrove Gallery (incredible place), visit GOMA art gallaery


bill morrison, Sep 20, 2009 @ 21:03

 If you are going to Edinburgh and I am from this great City and you love to eat fish you must go to to a place called Fishers in Leith down at the water front, honest the food is out of this world.  If you like a beer I would say also go tothe Grassmarket and walk about its my best part of Edinburgh.  If you would like anymore information contact me I have just came back today after a long weekend.
Braveheart, Sep 21, 2009 @ 18:45

Everyone seems to love Edinburgh, I've never been there but I should echo the opinion of Chritina_J that Glasgow is also worth visit, despite it's rough reputation. There's a lot of grand Victorian architecture, musems & tourist stuff to see. The thing that I was most impressed by though was that the place is just full of music, with countless scruffy basement bars regularly hosting live bands. Worth checking out if you're into that kind of thing.
rich_t, Sep 22, 2009 @ 10:56

For the hotel in Edinburgh, we absolutely LOVED this B&B:
  www.hotelceilidh-donia.co.uk

We also did a 2-day tour of the northern highlands with:
 http://www.timberbush-tours.co.uk/edinburgh_tours/two_days/

Have fun!

hsfaich, Oct 10, 2009 @ 20:26