United Kingdom was one of the most desirable places for us to visit. We travelled as a couple to UK in May 2019. Our itinerary was mainly focused on London-Edinburgh-London travel. This article is mainly going to talk about of us exploring Edinburgh and the beautiful Scottish country side in just around 3 days.
We arrived at Waverley Railway station in Edinburgh, on 26th May 2019 after a 4-hour train ride from King’s Cross station, London. For our accommodation we chose a cosy Airbnb property in an old-style Scottish building that was close to old town.
Royal Botanic Garden & Dean Village
After reaching our accommodation and stowing our luggage, we immediately headed out to explore this beautiful historic city. For our 1st stop, we chose to visit the Royal Botanic gardens. The garden has 100,000 plants from around the world and is 70 acres long with at least 10 glasshouses!! We were mesmerized to see such pretty and colourful flowers, that made us almost witness spring time in the UK. We were enchanted by the vibrancy of this garden and the greenery that was surrounded by it. The beauty of the flowers captivated us immensely!
The entry to see this widespread botanic garden is free. There are entry fees to enter the Glasshouses.
After spending nearly 2 – hours we then headed to this picturesque place called Dean Village.
Dean Village is a small township in the heart of the city with cafes and residences having a river running through the middle of it! It is a 15 mins from Princess Street. The landscape is perfect for those who can sit and paint for hours.
In the past, this village, housed mills of various kinds, and the remains of the industry can still be seen today. The millstones and carved stone plates with baked bread and pies are not to be missed. Follow the walkway along the Water of Leith and you will come to the stunning Dean Bridge designed by Thomas Telford, and the classical temple of St Bernard’s Well.
The Dean Village is like a hidden gem in the midst of this beautiful city. And one that deserves a visit.
Glencoe, Highlands and Loch Ness
For day 2, we decided to explore the Scottish countryside and its rich history. We booked a day tour by bus (booked via Getyourguide app). The bus was a comfortable ride with about 20 travellers and a chatty driver cum guide who told us about each location as we passed by. The best part was the pickups through the city of Edinburgh which also gave us the extra city tour info. The day trip was about 12 hours with Glencoe and the Highland being about 4-5 hours from the main city (the travel was worth with stunning views of the countryside!). The high point of the tour was the Loch ness (yes with the legend of the monster!), and the boat ride at the Loch (lake in Scottish). The Highlands have some fabulous single malt breweries and is a whiskey lover’s paradise.
It's truly a paradise of scenic beauty!
Free Walking City Tour
Day 3 was about exploring Edinburgh – on foot and bus being the best way to soak in the city vibes! We explored the Edinburgh castle with the Scottish crown jewels and fabulous views of the city (it has an entry fee of about 20 GBP).
The second half of the day we had booked a free walking tour with Strawberry holidays. Yes, it's free but not quite, when the tour finishes you pay the guide what you feel the tour was worth. It’s a very good tour lasting 3-4 hours where you get to know a lot about the city’s history and explore on foot, the guide being cheerful and humorous adds to the experience. It is way pocket-friendly if you are the kind of sorts, who doesn’t enjoy entering a building roaming around half a day and entering another building (sightseeing places) and missing out the city vibes. We love to explore the city on foot, rather than go inside every touristy building. Some iconic places like The Edinburgh Castle is an exception.
Also, if you love exploring the dark and creepy horror stories, there are Free Ghost tours to sign up for.
Harry Potter Fans – Edinburgh is a real treat for you’ll since a lot of the references in the book are inspired by some alleys of this city. There are separate Harry Potter walking tours as well that one can explore. The famous Diagon Alley is not to be missed!
Edinburgh is a beautiful, quaint and a small city which you can practically explore in a day on foot alone!
Pro-tips
1.Pre-install the Lothians bus app, and with a daily minimum payment of about GBP 4 you can explore unlimited bus rides during the day.
2.A day trip to Glencoe, Highlands and Lochness costed us 40 GBP per person on GetYourGuide app. This is highly recommended since we really enjoyed some breath-taking views on our way.
3.We booked London- Edinburgh- London train ride through Trainpal Uk app. It gives you some good discount if you book the tickets way in advance. We got the return fare for 52 GBP per person.
4.The Walking tour is the best way to explore the city anywhere in the UK and are comparatively pocket-friendly since you decide the price at the end of the trip. Trust me the guides are super cool and are entertaining as well.
5.You can get some delicious crepes near Scottish Monument next to Princess Street.
6.There are good Airbnb options available in Edinburgh at an affordable price. We got a room with an attached bathroom for about 180 GBP for 3 nights.
7.Sainsbury's supermarkets are at almost every corner, you can pick some delicious eateries or fresh food to cook from there, which is way cheaper then eating out.
8.Pret a manger – A café with many outlets is your go-to place for coffees, savouries or a quick breakfast on the go. It will cost you less then 4 GBP per person.
9. Hectors Pub is one of the oldest and busiest pubs and serves a fab Guinness pint!
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