10 Top Attractions in Saint John's Castlerigg and Wythburn (2024)

5. Royal Mile

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#5 of Best Things to Do in Edinburgh

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salvalasilvia The Royal Mile is the busiest tourist street in the Old Town as it runs between two significant locations in the royal history of Scotland: Edinburgh Castle and Holyrood Palace. The name derives from it being the traditional processional route of monarchs,with a total length of approximately one Scots mile.The streets which make up the Royal Mile are: Castlehill, the Lawnmarket, the High Street, the Canongate and Abbey Strand.Today, the Royal Mile is an eclectic mix of shops, restaurants, pubs and visitor attractions, where you’ll often find events, stands, entertainers and buskers, especially during the Edinburgh Fringe.Try walking all of it and explore the closes as well, as most have an interesting story and/or and amazing view.A part from the castle and the royal palace, the Royal Mile is full of buildings of historical importance. Just to list a few: The Castle Esplanade (a venue for Edinburgh Military Tattoo and other events); the former Tolbooth-Highland-St John's Church; the preserved 17th century merchant's townhouse Gladstone's Land; High Court of Justiciary (Scotland's supreme criminal court); the old Parliament House which now houses the Court of Session (Scotland's supreme civil court); St Giles' Cathedral, the Heart of Midlothian (a heart-shaped pattern built into the "setted" road, marking the site of the Old Tolbooth); Edinburgh City Chambers; Mercat Cross; Tron Kirk; John Knox's House; one of Edinburgh’s all around the year Christmas shop; Scottish Storytelling Centre; World's End Pub; Moray House; the Canongate Tolbooth (now a museum of social history called The People's Story); the Kirk of the Canongate and the new Scottish Parliament Building.

Edinburgh

821m from New Town

Free