edinburgh

If you've not been to Edinburgh then you can probably fill the time in the city easily. The first day you can check out the royal mile including the castle, some of the sites on the mile. The Museum of Scotland is worth exploring. Check to see if there are interesting exhibits at the National Gallery. I enjoyed a tour of Holyrood, the new Scottish Parliament. Of course, Holyrood Palace is a good tour as well. Also the gallery attached to the palace can have interesting shows. I also like the Georgian House in New Town. Also, on the north side of town, it's nice to either to the Walk along Leith Water. You can check out the Royal Yacht Britannia. The Royal Botanic Gardens are good as well. And we haven't talked about just sitting back and enjoying lunch in the Grassmarket, doing a ghost tour of underground Edinburgh. Another interesting tour that I want to take some day is one of the Rebus walking tours. These are based around Ian Rankin's books most of which take place in Edinburgh. Lastly, you might want to climb Arthur's Seat and get a really good view. If you really and truly run out of things to do, it's easy to catch the train to Linlithgow and see the palace there. Or take the train to Stirling. The former is only a morning trip, but the latter is an all day trip. Pam

If you want to get out of town for a bit, supposedly you can take a city bus to Rosslin Chapel. (the one from the Da Vinci Code) We had a rental car and visited the chapel on our way to Edinburgh, but if that site interests you, you might want to consider it.

Edinburgh is such a beautiful city, I would just stay there. You can easily fill two days, and it will be a lot more relaxing.

Merle, We have been to Edinburgh twice, are going to be there again this fall; and we still haven't run out of things to see and do. There is so much to see on the Royal Mile alone, without even exploring all the little Closes, hiking up Arthur's Seat, trying all the pubs and tea shops, and just enjoying the people. But if you really want to get out of the city for a day, there are quite a few trips available depending on your interests. Just google edinburgh day trips. Have a wonderful trip.