Cottage Holidays Scotland

Holiday cottages in Edinburgh - an eclectic mix of culture and modernity

We asked the Williams family to write a report about their recent holiday cottage in Edinburgh in order to give potential visitors to the area a flavour of the kind of holiday that is in store for them.

"We arrived at our holiday cottage on Saturday afternoon, and after quickly unpacking we took our first walk into the centre of the City of Edinburgh.

The first thing we noticed about Edinburgh, was that it is not stuck in some classical time-warp as we had thought, but is a modern, vibrant city. This has been especially evident after 1999, we were told, when Edinburgh became the home of Scotland’s first developed parliament since 1707. Stylish buildings have sprung up to create beautiful additions to the architectural landscape. My wife was pleased to see that Edinburgh is definitely a serious shopping destination with the classically-designed buildings along Princes Street home to some of Britain’s best-known, most upmarket shops. There’s even a Harvey Nichols in a brand new building on St Andrew Square!

Seeing the city is best done on foot, we found – it’s not so big you can’t cover all the central bits in a day or two. What struck us as we walked around, was how the city is shaped, literally, by the volcanic hills upon which it is built - dominated by Arthur’s Seat and the Castle Rock. Our cottage was close enough to the centre of town that we could comfortably walk in, but was in a quiet location, so when we wanted to go and sit in the garden and enjoy some quiet time we were able to do this. It's one of the advantages of a self catering holiday, especially in a cottage like the one that we stayed in, that you get the flexibility that a hotel really doesn't offer.

On our first full day in Edinburgh we climbed the telescope-shaped Monument to Lord Nelson, practically outside our hotel door, for the ultimate birds-eye views of our temporary home – we could see the far-off waters of the Firth of Forth to the north, the fertile fields and golden beaches to the east, and a splendid panorama of the steep ridges of the Pentland Hills circling the south and west.

Old Edinburgh still exists. Medieval tenement blocks, centred around the Royal Mile, drift downhill from the castle fortress eastward to the Palace of Holyroodhouse. The castle and Holyrood Abbey, we learnt from the excellent guide who talked us around the site, hosted kings, nobles and the troubled Mary, Queen of Scots. The daily one o'clock canon fired its salute from the parapets of the castle and reminded us to venture down a side street for lunch at one of the many tantalising bistros and restaurants. Of course we could always return for lunch at our cottage, but you really feel you're on holiday when you eat out a few times.

We spent a joyous few days in Edinburgh - attending the theatre, visiting art galleries and generally soaking up the cosmopolitan lifestyle. And when we wanted a bit of peace and quiet, we found that the city is endowed with some of the world’s most famous and enchanting Botanical Gardens and by peaceful parks such as the Meadows, Leith Links and the Braid Hills, where it’s virtually impossible to believe you’re in the middle of a city.

We were sad to leave this Athens of the North, but we departed our holiday cottage sure in the knowledge that Edinburgh would still be there with all its eclectic mix of culture and modernity for a long time to come."