Half a day in Edinburgh

[GoSeigen]

My late-teens daughter and I will have a morning to spend in Edinburgh on Monday before our afternoon flight. I've been there a couple of times myself but my daughter was too young to remember her first visit. Any thoughts on what the highlights might be without having to walk too much? My daughter has broad tastes, museums, galleries, historical buildings all ok. Her interests are music (again broad taste, with a rock bias, Proclaimers, Marillion AOK; plays cello), sport (rows, hikes, plays rugby), science and geography, retail therapy and the usual teenage stuff.


Also any recommendations on a nice place to have breakfast after arriving by train?


GS

[swill453]

With only half a day I'd say the highlights would have to be, based on your interests:

- the two adjacent art galleries on Princes Street - the Royal Scottish Academy and the National Gallery
- the National Museum of Scotland in Chambers Street

All within half a mile of Waverly Station.

In fact there's more than a day's worth of pottering there, you might have to be even more selective.

Sorry can't really help with breakfast, except to say that you have a Wetherspoons at the west exit of the station (breakfast about £6) and the Balmoral Hotel at the north exit (breakfast around £32).

Scott.

[Lootman]

Sorry can't really help with breakfast, except to say that you have a Wetherspoons at the west exit of the station (breakfast about £6) and the Balmoral Hotel at the north exit (breakfast around £32).

I'd offer up the opinion that the Balmoral breakfast is probably more than 5 times as good as a Wetherspoons breakfast.

A long time since I was there but is the "secret" passageway from Waverly Station to the Balmoral lobby still operational?

[kiloran]

There are those of us who would suggest that the best part of Edinburgh lies 50 miles west along the M8

--kiloran

[doug2500]

Agree about national gallery, decent, convenient and free.
For breakfast try papii or tani modi, both excellent despite the weird names, and convenient.
Could also try the ivy.

[servodude]

You've had some good suggestions already
- I'm going to throw in a few alternative/independent options (there's a tonne of stuff to do round the Royal Mile to fill a half day that is a bit different from the standard museum stuff)

I'm assuming Waverley Station (...otherwise these will be a bit more of a hoof from Haymarket... if you've got off at Embra Park just get back on the train and go anywhere else!!)

Consider breakfast at the Southern Cross Cafe on Cockburn St (go out on to Market St and up the stairs. it's a 2min walk)
- alternatively if she's of an age that remembers the wizard stuff fondly take another 8 or so minutes to walk to the Elephant house cafe on GeorgIV Bridge (where some single mum wrote the first book while sponging off their heating).. tell them your pronouns are "Meh/Whatever"

Within easy walking distance you've got:
- the museum of childhood
- the poetry library
- the national museum - (OK it was mentioned before... it's very good, wander round Greyfriars Kirk graveyard after)
- the parliament (it's certainly a building of interest)

you could consider booking yourself in to a tour of Mary Kings Close (ok it's a bit touristy but it's also unique)

and depending on the day/date there might be a market in grassmarket, or the xmas market near the galleries.

That said if the weather is "typical" you might want to just park yourselves in a pub..
..and TBH Kiloran gave you the right answer up thread
Where you could then re-enact the "over and done with" scene from the "Sunshine on Leith" in the Griffin?!

Have fun
-sd

[GoSeigen]

Agree about national gallery, decent, convenient and free.
For breakfast try papii or tani modi, both excellent despite the weird names, and convenient.
Could also try the ivy.

Thanks everyone, I seem vaguely to remember these oddly named places being mentioned before, we'll try one of them or perhaps the Harry Potter haunt if that's what DD wants.

Believe me I did think very seriously about visiting the better half of Edinburgh but sadly the extra hour and a half journey would have left us little time to sample its charms of which there are many I've no doubt.

It would be fun to visit the Griffin but sorry to say I've never watched the movie, perhaps one to do tonight. Definitely looking forward to seeing those Scots lasses though, especially the one with the smile from the music video Does anyone know where that was filmed BTW, was it in the Shore area?


As for the typical weather, I think it's migrated south today, it's pretty driech here where we are. Hoping for sunshine on Leith on Monday, looks like Hibs could use some today too....


GS

[swill453]

Does anyone know where that was filmed BTW, was it in the Shore area?

The mass dance scene in Sunshine on Leith was literally filmed outside the art gallery on Princes Street mentioned above.



From https://monad.txt-nifty.com/blog/2014/0 ... n-lei.html (random google search)

Scott.

[GoSeigen]

Does anyone know where that was filmed BTW, was it in the Shore area?

The mass dance scene in Sunshine on Leith was literally filmed outside the art gallery on Princes Street mentioned above.



Scott.

Sorry, was referring to the cafe in the official music video of the song of the same name. Not that it matters, just idle curiosity.

GS

[servodude]

Does anyone know where that was filmed BTW, was it in the Shore area?

The mass dance scene in Sunshine on Leith was literally filmed outside the art gallery on Princes Street mentioned above.



From https://monad.txt-nifty.com/blog/2014/0 ... n-lei.html (random google search)

Scott.

Seeing as the wean is a fan, and you haven't seen it - do yourself a favour and watch it, it's really very good fun!
It could set the visit up nicely!
there are plenty of obvious spots in Embra used (they just had to go to Glasgow to find suitable pubs to film in )

The Reid boys cameo in it during one number popping out of a place towards the Lawnmarket on the royal mile ... possibly the Ewart?

[Charlottesquare]

You've had some good suggestions already
- I'm going to throw in a few alternative/independent options (there's a tonne of stuff to do round the Royal Mile to fill a half day that is a bit different from the standard museum stuff)

I'm assuming Waverley Station (...otherwise these will be a bit more of a hoof from Haymarket... if you've got off at Embra Park just get back on the train and go anywhere else!!)

Consider breakfast at the Southern Cross Cafe on Cockburn St (go out on to Market St and up the stairs. it's a 2min walk)
- alternatively if she's of an age that remembers the wizard stuff fondly take another 8 or so minutes to walk to the Elephant house cafe on GeorgIV Bridge (where some single mum wrote the first book while sponging off their heating).. tell them your pronouns are "Meh/Whatever"

Within easy walking distance you've got:
- the museum of childhood
- the poetry library
- the national museum - (OK it was mentioned before... it's very good, wander round Greyfriars Kirk graveyard after)
- the parliament (it's certainly a building of interest)

you could consider booking yourself in to a tour of Mary Kings Close (ok it's a bit touristy but it's also unique)

and depending on the day/date there might be a market in grassmarket, or the xmas market near the galleries.

That said if the weather is "typical" you might want to just park yourselves in a pub..
..and TBH Kiloran gave you the right answer up thread
Where you could then re-enact the "over and done with" scene from the "Sunshine on Leith" in the Griffin?!

Have fun
-sd

Elephant House looked closed last week when I drove past, did they ever sort it post the fire?

There is the Christmas Market down on Princes Street near the two galleries, personally dislike but some people enjoy.

Balmoral afternoon tea is a poor third behind:

1.WS Library
2.Caledonian

But may be no use if just the morning.

I tend to ignore the town-much prefer Shore, Leith, apart from WS this summer (which I did enjoy) it must be a few years since I visited anywhere in the Centre (though my other half still shops, meets her Mum and friends and lunches up there)

[servodude]

I tend to ignore the town-much prefer Shore, Leith, apart from WS this summer (which I did enjoy) it must be a few years since I visited anywhere in the Centre (though my other half still shops, meets her Mum and friends and lunches up there)

That's probably because you're NOT a tourist

I found Princes St to be utterly dismal and depressing when we visited last Christmas; just shoes, vapes and the shell of Debenhams.
Fortunately the kids could both pass for drinking age - so we wandered a few old haunts on the periphery of the tourist area that still seemed to be holding up (and our 16yr old played a short support slot for a mate's band in Bruntsfield).

[doug2500]

I found Princes St to be utterly dismal and depressing when we visited last Christmas; just shoes, vapes and the shell of Debenhams.

I agree. As a visitor I'd have to say Princes Street has declined markedly, maybe more than other high streets because it started from a higher place? I mean, remember Jenners 30 years ago?

Edinburgh as a whole has just become scruffy and has an air of lack of maintenance. Probably not unusual these days but it's our capital city and if it's failing there's no hope for anywhere else.

I recently had a holiday in the Canaries and have to say it's the first time I've been struck by how much cleaner, better maintained and better functioning it appeared to be. It used to be the other way around.

[Charlottesquare]

I found Princes St to be utterly dismal and depressing when we visited last Christmas; just shoes, vapes and the shell of Debenhams.

I agree. As a visitor I'd have to say Princes Street has declined markedly, maybe more than other high streets because it started from a higher place? I mean, remember Jenners 30 years ago?

Edinburgh as a whole has just become scruffy and has an air of lack of maintenance. Probably not unusual these days but it's our capital city and if it's failing there's no hope for anywhere else.

I recently had a holiday in the Canaries and have to say it's the first time I've been struck by how much cleaner, better maintained and better functioning it appeared to be. It used to be the other way around.

It may look like **** but it has a tram. (Suspect reason it looks like **** is all the money spent on the tram)

My street (Summerside near Victoria Park) has pavements to trip on and potholes to fall in (or at least wreck your tyres and car), pretty sorry state for a conservation area

[GoSeigen]

Sorry for the late feedback and thanks for all the suggestions.

We started our morning with a fine breakfast at Tani Modi, an easy five minute walk from the station. After mooching round a couple of shops including one selling a football shirt for £1200, we crossed Princes Street (unremarkable as others have said) and dodged round the Christmas market to the National Gallery which has a surprisingly good range of top artists' work, with a strong focus on home talent of course. Then we had a bit of time left to do the tourist walk of shame -- up to the castle, then down the Royal Mile to St Giles. I'm ashamed to say I know nothing whatsoever of its history so we ambled round it like a pair of ignoramuses, I can only assume a fair number of kings and queens have traipsed down there on a chilly winter morning much like we did.

Final stop was the National Museum for an hour where my daughter wanted to see the dinosaurs and other beasties and also the rocks in the Geology section (one of her academic interests). The one thing that made me laugh was the donner kebab shwarma we bought for lunch, she wanted garlic sauce, I wanted chilli so we did left half the one and right half t'other. When the two halves came out of the toaster the server swore he hadn't got them mixed up, but that is not the message my daughter's face gave me five minutes a few bites later I'd wondered why mine was so mild...

Okay, all pretty standard tourist fare but DD was impressed by the beautiful architecture and setting of the city and its amenities and now seems determined to name it as one of her university choices.

Sorry Glasgow.


GS