EDINBURGH

Rank 25.

EDINBURGH

 Capital of SCOTLAND

Edinburgh is one place that can prove to be your dream destination.  Situated in Central Belt region of Scotland, Edinburgh is the capital city of the country. It has remained to be Scotland’s royal capital ever since the year 1437. This place is known all over for its unique blend of the ancient and the modern.

Language spoken : Scottish Gaelic,Urdu, Bengali, Arabic, Japanese, Polish, Cantonese and Italian

Currency :  The UK currency is the pound sterling (£), with 100 pence (p) to a pound.

BEST TIME TO TRAVEL:  Edinburgh is a city that is appropriate for traveling at any time of the year.  The best time to travel to Edinburgh is summer season. During summer days in Edinburgh you will find long hours of daylight. So in this elongated expanse you can get more time to visit all interesting places in Edinburgh. In the month of August, Edinburgh is completely packed by visitors because of a number of festivals which organized during this month. If people visit Edinburgh in these days then they will get to know about the historical reasons behind every festival and also go through limitless entertainment.

Spring and autumn season is best time to travel to Edinburgh for those people who prefer to live away from the hustle and bustle of crowd. Since, in these days crowd is less as compared to other days. Arrival of New Year is also good time to visit Edinburgh. On the grand occasion of New Year in Edinburgh many functions are arranged which are center of attraction for people. 

Celebrations

Ø  Hogmanay street party (31 December), Hogmanay now   covers four days of processions, concerts and fireworks, with  the street party commencing on Hogmanay

Ø     Burns Night (25 January)

Ø     Beltane Fire Festival (30 April).

Museums and libraries

Ø  Museum of Scotland,

Ø the Royal Museum,

Ø the National Library of Scotland,          

Ø National War Museum of Scotland,

Ø the Museum of Edinburgh,                                   

Ø Museum of Childhood and                     

Ø the Royal Society of Edinburgh.

Literature and philosophy

Edinburgh is also famous for its literature and philosophy. Some of the famous writers and philosophers are James Boswell, Robert Louis Stevenson, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, J.K. Rowling, and Sir Walter Scott, who all lived and worked in Edinburgh. Recently, Edinburgh hit newspaper headlines with the crime novels written by Ian Rankin

Shopping spree at :

Grassmarket, 

Lothian Road and surrounding streets, 

Rose Street and its surrounds and the Bridges.

Stockbridge and the waterfront at Leith 

Famous Pubs and clubs

Ø Lava & Ignite (formerly Cavendish)

Ø City Nightclub

Ø University of Edinburgh's student union,

Ø Potterrow.

Ø Base,

Ø Faith,

Ø Karma.

Ø Opal Lounge,

Ø Lulu's,

Ø Shanghai

Ø The GRV, Cabaret Voltaire, The Bongo Club, and Sneaky Pete's now host the majority of underground events held in Edinburgh

Ø There are two dedicated gay clubs in Edinburgh, CC Blooms and GHQ

Music, theatre and film

Ø The Royal Lyceum Theatre 

Ø The King's Theatre,

Ø  Edinburgh Festival Theatre, and 

Ø  Edinburgh Playhouse stage large touring shows.

Ø The Traverse Theatre 

Ø Church Hill Theatre

Ø  King's Theatre

Ø  Youth Music Theatre: UK has a regional office in the city.     

Zoos

Located in Corstorphine

The zoo is the only one in Britain to house polar bears and koalas, as well as being the first zoo in the world to house and breed penguins.

HOSPITALS

Ø Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh, which includes

Ø Edinburgh University Medical School

Ø Western General Hospital

Ø Murrayfield Hospital, owned by Spire Healthcare.

Edinburgh Food And Drink

Some well known food items are-

Scottish beef- Aberdeen - Angus breed of beef is famous for its rich and tasty meat. The caterers prepare meat in the same manner as they use to prepare in olden times, but these marvellous chefs have been reduced to very few these days. You will often hear the people say that Scottish beef is no more as delicious as it used to be.

Scotch pies-It is round in shape, approximately of 4’’ in size. Scotch pies are made without a pie tin; these have the filling of minced meat. Though mutton was used in olden days but it has been slowly replaced by beef. Wallace’s pie shop is quite famous for its Scotch pies.

Hotch –Potch – It is made by boiling mutton, beef or chicken. There is no compulsion on the type of vegetable to be added in it, one can put any vegetable of choice like cabbage, leeks, carrots, etc. However if you are using any hard vegetables be sure to boil it first with a pinch of barley in it.

Bannocks - it is biscuit made of barley and oat-flour by baking them over the griddle. Nowadays bannocks are eaten by people along with cheese.

The famous drinks of Edinburgh is -

Scottish whisky- is a very popular whisky; it is prepared by distilling from barley liquor. It is also known by the name ‘water of life.’ There are two categories of whisky.

Malt whisky – it is more costly. It is produced as a single distillery’s product.

Blended whisky – it is of low-price and well-known and is the multiple distilleries’ product.

Restaurants And Pubs

Some famous restaurants are:

Fez Restaurants- it is specialized in exotic and aromatic dishes, much known for its couscous (dish prepared with semolina, vegetables, meat) and tagline. It serves Moroccan and meditterranean cuisine. It remains open from Monday to Saturday, and timing are 12p.m to 2 pm and 5pm to 12am.

Harvey Nichols Edinburgh- the restaurants look like a square so it is known as forth restaurant. Brasserie and bar of restaurants are on the back side on same floor of restaurants.

The famous pubs of Edinburgh are –

Bow Bar is also known as best drinker’s pub as it is famous for its huge selection of ales and whiskeys. One can choose among 140 kinds of available malts.

Cafe Royal Circle Bar-It is near to seafood restaurant, so most of the crowd come here after having their dinner in restaurant. One has to move early in order to get better and less crowded space for enjoying elegant baroque furnishing.

 TOURIST ATTRACTION

Edinburgh - National Gallery of Scotland
 The National Gallery is a very good place to see. This gallery houses the largest gathering of European paintings and sculptures. The collection starts with the Renaissance and still consists of some Post-Impressionists. The foundation stone of this gallery has put down by Prince Albert in 1850 and from 1859 it was open for the viewer 

Edinburgh - Royal Botanic Garden

The second oldest botanical garden in the British atoll is royal botanical garden. It is situated to the north of the city heart. It includes biggest palm house of Great Britain, tropical houses with alien orchids and a herbal garden. There are many other beautiful things in the royal botanic garden such as colorful azaleas in wood land garden, various tropical water plate like pink water lily from India and water lily from South America.

Edinburgh - Royal Mile

Royal Mile is known as a connecting link between Edinburgh Castle and the Palace of Holy Roodhouse. This historic road is lined with well-designed city residential places and existing accommodation, but it is also famous for shops that can magnetize the crowd. In this place one can get famous woolen outlets exclusive boutiques, pubs, museums and wide range of bistro.

Edinburgh - Thistle Chapel
The Thistle chapel was designed in 1917 by Sir Robert lorimer and it is an ultimate example of Gothic style of building. In 1470 James III came to know that thistle chapel is the oldest order of knights in the Scotland’s. Only 16 members were allowed in it apart from the monarch.

HOTELS TO STAY

The well-known Hotels of Edinburgh are-

The George Hotel-

 It is located in the prime area of the city Edinburgh. The places which are near to hotel are Edinburgh Castle,

Prince Street

gardens and Holy rood palace. The hotel is easily accessible by road, rail and air. George hotel is a walking distance from Waverley Station and just few miles from Edinburgh International Airport.

Ramada Mount Royal-

 It is located in the heart of Edinburgh on

Prince Street

. In this hotel one can enjoy all the facilities which one cannot avail in any other international hotel. Ramada Mount Royal is centrally located from all attractions and business areas, which make it ideal for spending vacations and business dealings. The hotels has 158 suits with all facilities.

The Glasshouse-

 It is one of the 5 star hotels in Edinburgh. The hotel has a beautiful garden and offers a panoramic view of the city. It is spread on an area of two acres.and is located in the centre of the city.The glasshouse incorporates modern luxuries and traditional architecture. The hotels has a 150 years old Lady Glenorchy church. The garden in the hotel provides peace of mind and makings an ideal environment for a relaxed  vacation.

Old Waverley Hotel –

 It is located on the famous street of Edinburgh,

Prince Street

, making it convenient for the visitor by providing all the things within its surroundings. Excellent location of the hotel offers a fascinating view of Edinburgh castle. Old Waverley provides its customers absolute value of their money with customer satisfaction assured.

Apex City Hotel –

It is located on the southern side of Edinburgh castle. All the commercial offices and attractions of Edinburgh are very near to the hotel. The hotel attracts a number of tourists who is either looking for a business trip or spending a vacation.