Day 1Two hills and an underworld
Set off early from Victoria Street with “From Victoria Street to Calton Hill”, which takes you over the Mound and past the Scott Monument to Old Calton and the hill itself. From there, drop down to the Canongate for cullen skink at the Tolbooth Tavern. Refuelled, head into Holyrood Park and climb Arthur's Seat, then walk back up the Royal Mile to Blair Street for a tour of the vaults. As dusk falls, “Bodysnatchers, ghosts and a faithful dog” leads you from the High Street through Greyfriars to the Grassmarket, where haggis awaits at the White Hart Inn.
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Morning
From Victoria Street to Calton Hill: Edinburgh's highlights
- Victoria StreetA curving street of painted shopfronts, built in the 19th century to tame an impossible slope, which half the world associates with Diagon Alley.
- The Mound and the National GalleryA whole hill made from the earth left over from building the New Town, crowned by two Greek temples full of art.
- Scott MonumentThe largest monument in the world to a writer was designed by a self-taught joiner who drowned before he could see it finished.
- The Balmoral HotelA clock that lies on purpose, a railway hotel turned landmark and the room where the Harry Potter saga came to an end.
- Old Calton Burial GroundIn this small graveyard lies the great sceptical philosopher of the Enlightenment, watched over by a statue of Abraham Lincoln.
- Calton HillA Parthenon left half-built, a stone telescope and the view that shows you why Edinburgh is a World Heritage Site.
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Lunch
Try Cullen skink at Tolbooth Tavern. 167 Canongate
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Afternoon
Arthur's Seat
The ancient volcano that towers over Edinburgh from Holyrood Park, just off the Canongate. Allow one to two hours up and down on paths with some steep sections, and expect a strong wind at the top. The view takes in the city, Leith and the Firth of Forth.
DirectionsSouth Bridge Vaults
Beneath the arches of South Bridge, completed in the late 18th century, dozens of vaulted chambers once served as workshops, stores and taverns before being abandoned. You can only get in on a paid guided tour, run by several companies: book a time slot, especially in summer.
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Early evening
Bodysnatchers, ghosts and a faithful dog
- Mary King's CloseBeneath Edinburgh's City Chambers lie buried 17th-century streets, and on top of them has grown one of Scotland's most famous collections of legends.
- Deacon BrodieBy day a respectable cabinetmaker and councillor; by night a burglar raiding the very houses whose locks he fitted. His double life inspired Jekyll and Hyde.
- Greyfriars BobbyA little terrier who, so the story goes, kept watch over his master's grave for fourteen years and became Scotland's most famous dog.
- Greyfriars KirkyardHere the National Covenant was signed, here twelve hundred prisoners were held in the open air, and here lies the man legend has turned into a poltergeist.
- GrassmarketThe Old Town's liveliest square was for centuries its place of execution: here a woman survived the gallows and a mob lynched a captain.
- West Port: Burke and HareOn this street lived Scotland's most notorious murderers, who killed sixteen people to sell their bodies to an anatomist.
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Dinner
Try Haggis, neeps & tatties at The White Hart Inn. 34 Grassmarket