edinburgh visitor attractions

From 5-star visitor attractions and tours, to fabulous food to suit every taste (and wallet), Edinburgh's got it all.

The city is home to some of the best galleries and museums in the UK, so whether you're into modern art, want to learn more about Scotland's history or fancy a trip down memory lane with the toys of your childhood, the city has something for you.

Add great shopping and world-class theatre to the mix and you really are spoilt for choice. Take a look at the listings below and find some of the best isitor attractions in Edinburgh.

Royal Yacht Britannia

"The winning of Britannia, against strong competition from other centres, and the huge investment in Ocean Terminal Shopping Centre are just recent manifestations of the Leith boom"

Alistair Scott, The Sunday Times.

Leith was chosen as the home for The Royal Yacht Britannia after an exhaustive government analysis of sites around the UK. There was healthy competition from 23 other locations, including London, Manchester, Portsmouth and Glasgow.

The Yacht today looks just as she would have appeared to Royal honeymooners, world leaders, and the thousands that visited her during years of faithful service. Visitor numbers have dramatically exceeded expectations, with 436,000 paying visitors in the first year. It was judged the best new tourist attraction in the UK in 1999, and was awarded a Five Star Visitor Attraction rating by the Scottish Tourist Board in 2001.

Also available for major corporate events, Britannia is a unique attraction; a new landmark for the millions of tourists that visit Edinburgh each year, and a key component in the success of Ocean Terminal.

Forth Ports have played an important role in bringing art to the waterfront, with the proposal of a Sculpture Trail that follows the Water of Leith Walkway, linking the galleries in Edinburgh with the waterfront. Since 1994, their schemes have included commissioning the design of ornamental screens and a jardinière for the new piazza at Malmaison Square, and constructing a walkway from Queen's Quay to Victoria Bridge that incorporates the last whaling gun from the Christian Salvesen fleet.

Ocean Terminal

Edinburgh's most innovative shopping and leisure destination located in the heart of a new city quarter on the waterfront.

Shop in some of the UK's finest stores, eat and drink in a superb choice of bars and restaurants, see a movie day or night, walk the decks of the Royal Yacht Britannia, enjoy expansive views over the Firth of Forth, the hills of Fife and the skyline of the City of Edinburgh. All this within an exciting, modern environment.

There's so much to do you'll just have to come back.

Visit The Ocean Terminal web site for more information. Or telephone on 0131 555 8888.

Our Dynamic Earth

Our Dynamic Earth offers a totally new concept in visitor entertainment.

It combines the very latest interpretative technology and special effects with cutting edge scientific thinking.

It will take you on a fascinating, ever-changing journey around planet Earth. You will travel back through time to witness the Big Bang. You will experience earthquakes, ice ages and tropical rainstorms. You'll travel to the depths of the oceans and fly high above towering glaciers and mountains. You will see, hear, feel and smell the planet as it was millions of years ago and how it might be in the future.

And because all the information is regularly updated by a selection of the world's leading scientists, every visit to Our Dynamic Earth will help you to discover something new. Something fascinating. Something you will remember for the rest of your life.

Special thanks for the copy - The Official Website.

Edinburgh Dungeon

Deep in the heart of Scotland, buried beneath the paving stones of Edinburgh, lies the world's most chillingly famous horror attraction. Step through its imposing portal and you are at once transported to the darker, sinister side of Scotland's turbulent and troubled past.
Terror and torture, mutilation and mass murder, persecution and pestilence: scenes from the more terrible chapters of centuries of Scottish history envelop you in all their grisly and gruesome detail.

Witch-hunters, grave-robbers, murderers, cannibals, executioners - you will find them all here, along with their wretched victims. And remember, as you wander further into the Dungeon's grim and bloody depths, all that you see and experience really happened - much of it disconcertingly close by. In these deep shadows and dark caverns, it's wise to keep your wits about you. Some of the dead have an unnerving habit of coming back to life...

Special thanks for the copy - The Official Website.

National Trust for Scotland

The Georgian House is part of Robert Adam's masterpiece of urban design, Charlotte Square. It dates from 1796, when those who could afford it began to escape from the cramped, squalid conditions of Edinburgh's Old Town to settle in the fashionable New Town.

The house's beautiful china, shining silver, exquisite paintings and furniture all reflect the domestic surroundings and social conditions of the times.It is worth comparing this example of 18th-century New Town architecture with Gladstone's Land, a typical 17th-century house of Edinburgh's Old Town. Video Programme. The newly-opened Lamont Rooms provide excellent facilities for corporate hospitality and space for small meetings.

Charlotte Square, in Edinburgh's renowned New Town, is considered by many as the finest Georgian square in Britain. It was the last commission designed by Robert Adam (1728-92), one of the world's most influential architects. The square's light, spacious town houses attracted Scottish landowners and professional people, who could afford to move out of the crowded tenements of the Old Town, and the south side's first feus were sold in 1796. During the 20th century the houses on the south side were used increasingly as offices by legal and financial companies, many of whom had moved out by the early 1990's. In 1996 the Trust bought Nos 26-31, with the vision of initiating a renaissance of the square. The houses are now the head office of the Trust, with exhibition, retail and catering areas open to visitors. On display is a collection of 20th century Scottish paintings, recently donated to the Trust, and shown in a domestic setting. It is complemented by a loan collection of fine Regency furniture, re-creating the effect of an opulent Drawing Room of the 1820s.

For more information please visit - The Official Website.

Scott Monument

Following the death of Sir Walter Scott on 21st september 1832 there was a widespread feeling in Edinburgh that a monument should be erected to his memory, and the initial decision to proceed was taken at a public meeting on 5th October. A competition was declared in order to select a design for the monument. The competition was won by George Miekle Kemp, a working joiner who had attained recognition as an accomplished draughtsman, especially through his drawings of Melrose Abbey and Glasgow Cathederal. In 1838 Kemp was awarded the contract to build the monument.

At the same time John Steell, later Sir John and H.M. Sculptor for Scotland, had been declared winner of a competition to select the sculptor of the statue of Sir Walter Scott to be included in the monument. In the autumn of 1844 the last stone was placed in the pinnacle by Kemp's young son, Thomas. The monument including the statue was officially inaugurated on 15th August 1846.

The Scott Monument is 200 ft. 6in. High and 55ft. Square at the base; the highest gallery is reached by climbing a total of 287 steps. It is constructed of Binnie stone, taken from shale workings near Linlithgow; this stone contains natural oils which are said to aid its preservation. Sir John Steell's statue of Sir Walter Scott is executed in Carrara marble and is more than double life-size.

The monument has 64 niches, in each of which, in accordance with the original design, a statuette has been placed. Several of these were contributed at the time of the original inauguration, and a movement instigated by James Ballantyne in 1870 brought the total to 32. The remainder were provided as a result of a motion placed before the town Council by Bailie Thomas Hall in 1881. All the statuettes represent characters from the works of Sir Walter Scott.

Special thanks for the copy - AboutBritain.com.

Edinburgh Zoo

Edinburgh Zoo is part of the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland, a registered charity.

Their mission is to "To promote, through the presentation of our living collections, the conservation of animal species and wild places, through captive breeding, environmental education and scientific research."

Edinburgh Zoo opened in 1913, in leafy hillside parkland just ten minutes from the centre of Edinburgh. Recognised as one of the world?s leading zoos, they are involved in many conservation breeding programmes, and they give the highest priority to the welfare, both physical and behavioural, of the animals in their care.

Special thanks for the copy - The Official Website.

City of the Dead's Haunted graveyard tour

Black Hart Storytellers present the world famous City of the Dead Ghost Tours.

This walking tour features the world famous MacKenzie Poltergeist - the best documented paranormal case in history - which haunts the Black Mausoleum in the Covenanter's Prison, Greyfriars Graveyard, Edinburgh.

Of all the things to do in Scotland, this is one of the most famous.

Find out more at - Blackhart Storytellers.

Historic Port of Edinburgh Leith

The Port of Edinburgh Leith, only 2 km from the centre of Edinburgh, forms a vibrant and varied waterfront environment.

Leith has played a significant role in Scotland's history as the historic maritime gateway to the Capital City.

On the east coast of Scotland, Leith has received visiting seafaring monarchs from the early Middle Ages and has imported wine and exported whisky for hundreds of years, and became an important shipbuilding and industrial centre in the 20th century. Today Leith extends a welcome to visitors from around the world.

Come and explore the heritage and the exciting developments on the Waterfront. Many restaurants, pubs, hotels and shops join a bustling port to naturally form a distinctive attraction with great appeal. You can eat seafood in traditional-style restaurants, snack in contemporary cafés, eat the best of new Scottish food in stylish eateries, drink beer and whisky in cosy Scottish pubs.

The 21st century sees the Leith Waterfront area as a focus for new economic prosperity and creative fertility. An exciting mix of traditional businesses, cutting edge enterprises, artists and designers, are adding their stamp to the distinctive character that Leith has always shown. Diverse groups of people have always made the waterfront their home. The old and the new, the rough and smooth, all combine to give the visitor the feeling that this is a real place, where you can meet real people and experience real Scotland.

City Sightseeing and Guide Friday Bus Tours of Edinburgh

The best way to see the whole of Edinburgh in one day is to tour the city on an open-topped bus.

You can alight and depart the bus as many times as you want during the day to see all the sights at your own pace.

Price: Adult: £7.50, Child: (5-15) £2.50,
OAP/Student: £6.00
Duration: 50 minutes
Start Point: Waverly Bridge
Frequency: every 10 minutes every day, 0905 until 1955*
Description: Multi-lingual - English, French, German, Italian, Spanish, Dutch, Japanese
Season: All year round

*24 March-1 June & 8 September-26 October last tour at 1715. After 1825 tours leave every 15 minutes.

Find out more at - City Sightseeing Tours

Deep Sea World

Deep Sea World is an experience like no other. Featuring the world's longest underwater viewing tunnel and a fascinating array of marine life, you'll be amazed at what you find.

Our vast underwater world is home to one of the world's largest collections of sand tiger sharks in Europe, stingrays, conger eels, plus thousands of other weird and wonderful creatures.

Our spectacular lagoon cafe, outstanding souvenir shop and lot's more to see and do, including watching the divers hand feed the sharks, make Deep Sea World a memorable day out for all the family.

Deep Sea World
North Queensferry
Fife KY11 1JR
TEL - 01383 411880
FAX - 01383 410514
www.deepseaworld.com

Edinburgh Butterfly and Insect World

Take an exciting journey through a tropical rainforest, experience the life and learn about the creatures. See exotic butterflies and tropical birds flying free, handle snakes and spiders, see poisonous frogs and scorpions, leaf cutter ants and much much more.

Whatever the weather, Summer or Winter, stroll through the wonderful world of an exotic rainforest, a landscape of tropical plants surrounding splashing waterfalls and pools.

Opening hours - summer 9.30am - 5.30pm / winter 10am - 5pm

Edinburgh Butterfly and Insect World
Dobbies Gardening World
Melville Nurseries
Lasswade
Midlothian
EH18 1AZ
TEL - 0131 663 4932
FAX - 0131 654 2774
www.edinburgh-butterfly-world.co.uk