I spent 60 hours in Edinburgh with my family, and I thought I would share with you what I did, what I liked and reflected on my stay.
First of all, I've been to Edinburgh before when I was younger, but this really felt like a rediscovery of the city.
I love Scotland. I love its landscapes, the kindness of the Scots, the culture, the whisky and its history. I love the ghostly atmosphere of the city, you can clearly feel that Edinburgh's history is heavy and rich, and it really makes you want to know more and get the chills.
The few days I spent in Edinburgh were intense: in addition to walking more than 10km a day, I learned a lot.
As far as walks and pretty views of the city go, we walked around the old town. It's beautiful, the buildings have incredible architecture, the small streets or "close" may seem macabre but hide beautiful things, the cathedral is very beautiful, etc... There are many things to see, details to capture and things to learn! You can feel that this city has experienced a lot just by walking around the old town. There are also actors and street musicians who add life and expect to see many souvenir shops!
On the other side, the new town is completely different: much more modern. It was lively, there was life but much faster and more hurried than on the other side. Lots of different shops, restaurants, fast food on Princes and George streets... a real modern European city!
East of Princes Street, you can go to Calton Hill to see monuments, memorials but also a nice view of the city. It was really nice but the sky was grey, the colours of the city didn't come out well.
In terms of history, we visited the National Museum of Scotland. It's a free museum that offers a lot of history. I really loved the modern part with robots, cars and all sorts of interactive works. It was really fun!
We also visited Mary King's Close, a historic close located beneath buildings on the Royal Mile, which gave us the opportunity to learn more about the city, imagine how people used to live and learn more about the plague that affected all of Europe. There were also some ghost stories, like Annie's story which really touched me.
How can you visit Scotland without tasting Scotch whisky? We did the Scotch Whiskey Experience. It was quite interactive as the tour started with a barrel ride, then scents, then a tasting. I learned how whiskey was made, it was very interesting and not at all what I expected! Of course, we then tasted a whisky of our choice, I chose the Highlander because I liked the smell :) We even got to keep the glasses as a souvenir!
Afterwards, we went for a walk in Greyfriars Kirkyard. There was a heavy and historical atmosphere, but also a friendly one. Amazing for a cemetery that claims to be the most haunted in the world with many paranormal attacks. The cemetery was very nice, and again, I learned a lot. There is a statue of Bobby, a model of loyalty, and very famous names like Sir George MacKenzie.
Being a fan of the Harry Potter saga, there was also a lot to see!
In the Greyfriars cemetery, we looked for the names that would have inspired J.K Rowling for her characters. Bingo! We found Tom Riddell, MacGonagall and Potter. Looking for the graves was quite fun. The cemetery is also said to have inspired the author of the village of Godric's Hollow.
We also walked down Victoria's Street, which would have been an inspiration for Diagon Alley. It was really nice, the shops were very nice and I could see the similarities with the films of the saga. We also found some Harry Potter shops on this street, so we could buy some small artefacts :)
To conclude our Harry Potter experience in Edinburgh we spent an evening at the Department of Magic, to do the Magic Potions Tavern Experience. This hidden tavern offers to make your own magic potions/cocktails and to drink original and steaming shots. It's really fun to immerse yourself in the harry potter universe and mix all the ingredients to make your magic potions, and the result was very good! Unfortunately, my love filter didn't really work :( The Department of Magic also offers a Harry Potter-themed escape game, but we didn't do it as it was too late to book.
For fun, we also went for a cocktail at The Cocktail Geeks bar, which offers superhero and supervillain inspired cocktails. The bar had a great atmosphere, it was very well decorated, and the original cocktails were very good! My cocktail, inspired by Deadpool, mixed Jalapenos, Raspberry, Chipotle and Candy Floss!
We also spent an evening in a pub that offered karaoke, The Tron. It was great fun and we were in awe of the singers who had amazing voices! We had a few beers and played pool.
So in a short space of time, we did a lot of things. I loved my time in Edinburgh, and I already want to go back!
However, I have some regrets because I think we missed some time. We didn't get to visit the castle. We preferred to do activities that we didn't do on our first visit to Edinburgh a few years ago, and when we wanted to do it at the end of the stay, it was too late. It's a shame as it's really pretty!
I would also have loved to visit Dean Village, a small, quiet, bucolic place. Hopefully another time.
Another activity I would have loved to do is Edinburgh's Dungeon. Indeed, we thought it was a bit expensive at the beginning and we were afraid! But when we decided to do it, prepared ourselves mentally and were on our way. I checked the opening times on my phone, and I was right because it was already closed! What a shame!
Also, the weather was not really in our favour: snow on the first day, a lot of wind and rain the rest of the time, it was not always pleasant, especially for us who come from the south!