Described as the finest Georgian square in Europe, Charlotte Square was designed by master architect Robert Adam, and is the crowning glory of Edinburgh's New Town. No 28 houses an elegant drawing room gallery with a fine collection of work by 20th century Scottish artists. Visitors can relax in the Coffee House in the Georgian atmosphere.

Visit the secret world of Loch Ness, a great idea for something to do in Edinburgh.

Discover real truths beneath the world's most famous mystery.

Your chance to learn about the environment of the real Loch Ness and to investigate the legend of Nessie at our exhibition in Edinburgh.

What is the evidence? What are the problems?

Could it be true? ... 1000 Eyewitness Accounts

Photographs, Hoaxes, Illusions, Facts and Figures, Ecology, History & Mystery ... and much more.

Places of Worship

Family friendly museum with farm animals, play areas and tractor rides

Stately home to the Dundas family since 1571. A William Adam palladian style mansion house with scottish portraiture, period contents and fine stucco work among other fascinating contents.

Heritage & Industrial

Let our costumed guides take you back into Edinburgh's grisly past and tell you about the characters that once stalked the very streets that we take you on. Hear the terrifying true stories unfold as we send shivers down your spine...

Then let us take you underground where the very smell and surroundings of our legendary haunted vault and working pagan temple will haunt you forever.

Situated in the Avon Gorge beside Birkhill Station, the Fireclay Mine is well worth a visit for all but the very young, old or infirm. The experienced guides show you the underground workings, the 300 million year old fossils and describe the life of the fireclay miners. Tours last approximately an hour and are co-ordinated with the railway timetable.From its dark passages was dug high quality high alumina fireclay which was formed into bricks which lined the industrial furnaces of Central Scotland. Part of the vast labyrinth dug through the fireclay seam has been opened up to visitors, and you can enjoy a thrilling underground tour of the old workings.
Tour guides will meet your train at Birkhill Station (the Mine is open on every day when trains run), and will lead you down into the ancient woodland of the beautiful Avon Gorge, home to much wildlife including deer and otters. Then on into the Mine caverns. See how the clay was worked, see the imprint of ancient riverbeds in the excavated roof of the Mine and find 300 million-year-old fossils, laid down in the Carboniferous Period, long before dinosaurs walked the earth.

Built in the 15th century by one of Scotland's most powerful families, the Crichtons, Blackness was never destined as a peaceful lordly residence; its enduring roles were those of garrison, fortress and state prison. In the 16th century, the castle's defences were strengthened to become a formidable artillery fortification.

Savour the nostalgia of the railway age and travel by steam train from Bo'ness to the caverns at Birkhill - and visit Scotland's largest collection of locomotives, carriages, wagons and railwayana.

The Brass Rubbing Centre occupies Trinity Apse, the only surviving fragment of the Gothic Trinity College Church, founded about 1460 by Queen Mary of Gueldres, wife of James II of Scotland. In the centre, you will find a fascinating collection of replicas moulded from ancient Pictish stones, rare Scottish brasses and medieval church brasses. No experience is required to make a rubbing, and staff are on hand to help. The Centre also stocks high quality ready-made rubbings, brass rubbing kits, booklets, postcards and gifts.

One of the most important prehistoric monuments in Scotland, Cairnpapple was used from about 3000 to 1400 BC as a ceremonial site in the Neolithic period, then several centuries later in the Bronze Age, as a burial site. The hill on which it stands affords good views of east central Scotland.

The Camera Obscura show is a fascinating and highly amusing way to see the city and learn about its history. This unique experience has delighted and intrigued people for over 150 years. It is a 'must' on any visit to Edinburgh.

From inside this mysterious Victorian rooftop chamber, you see live moving images of Edinburgh projected onto a viewing table through a giant periscope. Pick people up on your hands, squash them to a pulp and even make the traffic climb over paper bridges.

The friendly guide will entertain you while telling stories of Edinburgh, past and present, in an engaging and informative way. Visitors are truly amazed at how, in this age of high technology, a simple array of mirror, lenses and daylight can produce this incredible panorama.

Experiencing the Camera Obscura is like stepping back in time!

Roman Era

Located in the heart of the capital, with six exhibition galleries, the City Art Centre is Scotland's emporium of the visual arts. It is both home of the City's collection of Scottish Art, and one the UK's leading temporary exhibition spaces.

Since opening in 1980, the City Art Centre has mounted a huge range of exhibitions, from rare Egyptian antiquities to the most innovative contemporary art, from Michelangelo drawings to Star Trek.

The scale and range of the programme has made the gallery one of Britain's most visited exhibition centres. The City's fine art collection consists of around 3,500 works of Scottish art: paintings, watercolours, drawings, prints, photographs, sculpture and tapestries, including works by McTaggart, Fergusson, Peploe and Eardley.

map to cacThrough purchase funds provided by the Jean E Watson Bequest, the collection has been kept up-to-date, by the acquisition of works by contemporary Scottish artists, including Davie, Blackadder, Paolozzi and Bellany.

In 1997, the collection was further enriched by a substantial gift from the Scottish Arts Council. The holdings also include topographical views of Edinburgh and portraits. Exhibitions drawn from the collection are a regular feature of the City Art Centre's programme.

The City Art Centre's licensed café can provide you with a cup of tea or coffee, or a three-course meal.

One of Scotland's most perfectly preserved medieval castles; Craigmillar is an imposing fortress with a tower house, courtyard and gardens. Its history is closely bound with that of Edinburgh. The Prestons who built it were honoured for presenting the city with a relic of its Patron Saint, St Giles.

Built as the lordly residence of the Crichtons and later home to the Earls of Bothwell, Crichton Castle is a large, sophisticated edifice noted for its stunning italian-style range of faceted stonework which was added following the Earl of Bothwell's visit to Italy in the late 16th century.

A ranger service operates at Dalkeith to help people enjoy the beauties of the countryside and the work of a country estate. Guided walks, talks and special school activities are available year round by arrangement. Topics include forestry, wildlife, landscape history and many others. All educational visits are free. Enjoy a cup of coffee in our Visitor Centre at the restored stables or browse through our estate shop while your kids play at the Adventure Playground.The estate evolved around Dalkeith House which was built around 1700, as a large pleasure garden. It never stops changing. The formality of manicured lawns and hedges has been softened by natures hand over the years and has produced this unique semi-natural woodland which is the home to deer, foxes and a myriad of smaller birds, animals and insects. The woodland although planted and managed as a commercial crop still maintains a feeling of wildwood and romance.

Arts, Crafts & Textiles

The impressive, romantic ruins of the 13th century Dirleton Castle are most famous for their beautiful gardens. There is a colourful blend of traditional formal gardens and more contemporary plantings. Victorian and 1920s Arts and Crafts gardens have been recreated. Home of the world's longest herbaceous border.