Free entry at the National Museum of Scotland. Filled with rich history and interactive booths…read more There is a cafe with grab and go options and a gift shop too. The best photo op is the third floor balcony overlooking the atrium! Such a gorgeous spot and great option to get out of the rainy weather!

It's the museum on Chambers Street. The entrance is in the round tower that is across the street…read morefrom Greyfriars Bobby. You might as well rub his nose for good luck before crossing over. There is a beautiful & bright atrium in the heart of the museum. You can see all 4 floors from this spot as you look up from the first floor. There are galleries and exhibits all around it. We started our journey on the ground floor of the tower in the Kingdom of the Scots, and then worked our way up and over. It truly is the perfect place to go on a rainy morning. The best part is that it's free admission, but donations are always welcomed. There were many highlights for me. The Maiden that was used for public executions in Grassmarket, Mercat Cross, and Castlehill was certainly eerie to look at along with some of the torture devices used back in that period. The display of items belonging to Mary, Queen of Scots was presented beautifully. Especially that lovely jeweled necklace. The exhibits of the Americas was nicely done. I even saw a gut parka on display that was similar to one we saw in Alaska earlier this year. The displays of musical instruments and ceremonial dance costumes was vibrant & interesting. I was drawn to the Bloody Empire display. It was a very artistic expression of anarchism in the form of wallpaper. It's unique. I have to say the same thing about the Slit Gong musical instrument that is said to bring out the voices of a dead ancestor. Very creepy stuff! The subject matter lightened up a bit as we walked through the technology & industry part of the museum. It was cool to see "The Hawk" as well as the display of bicycles and phones (including a Mickey Mouse one). But, I think the best part was the spectacular view of Edinburgh from the open rooftop. It would have been better on a sunny day, but it was still a great sight to see. It's worth taking those outdoor spiral steps up to see it. I love that there's a mini garden with upland grasses and plants along the lookout walls of the roof. A nice little touch. We spent about 2 hours here, but could have easily stayed longer. There's a balcony café on what is technically the 3rd floor of the building (2nd floor when looking up from the main atrium). There is a fee-based exhibit called "Monkeys Our Primate Family" that may be of interest to some. It ends on 30 Nov 2025. Overall, the museum is great fun for all ages. It's a great way to learn more about the Scottish innovators throughout history.

Situated in the heart of Edinburgh, the Scottish National Gallery is a small but delightful museum…read more While Scottish artists are the main focus, the National Gallery also houses works of art from famous European artists. All of Edinburgh's publicly owned museums and galleries offer free entry to their permanent collections, and National Galleries Scotland manage five buildings which provide access to a fantastic array of artworks. In the very heart of Edinburgh, on the Mound, which connects both Old and New Town, is the original National Gallery of Scotland itself, alongside its sister gallery, the Royal Scottish Academy building. Inside the building is a sumptuous series of open spaces with works by some of the world's greatest classic artists on display, alongside iconic works by Scottish painters. Artists like Rembrandt and Van Dyck are represented alongside Monet, Reubens and Titian, as well as British painters like Constable and Turner. One iconic picture which is often considered a definitively Scottish work is Edwin Landseer's Monarch of the Glen, featuring a majestic stag in front of a Scottish Highland backdrop.

Superb gallery in Edinburgh - well worth the visit…read more We stopped by on our third morning and had a wonderful time. This is not a massive (aka tiring) place, but it has excellent representation of Masters (Rubens, Rembrandt, Titian), and even a specially designed octagonal room dedicated to Nicolas Poussin's Seven Sacraments (1644-1648) - considered one of the greatest sets of paintings in the history of Western art. But my favorites pieces were by lesser known English, Scottish and Italian artists - such as Monarch of the Glen, Reverend Robert Walker Skating on Duddingston Loch, and The Campbell Sisters. They have a small cafe which we visited when we needed a little coffee and cookie break, and the staff were very helpful and gracious. Would be happy to return.

My wife and I visited in September 2024. We made a Last Kingdom pilgrimage from London to York…read more(Eoforwich) to Durham (Dunholm) to Bamburgh (Bebbanburg) taking in many historic Roman, Saxon and Viking sites along the way. We had so much fun and Bamburgh was the pinnacle of our trail. The castle itself is in incredibly well kept condition. Most of the building is Norman (like most of the medieval structures around Britain) though there is a small stone footing of Saxon origin, and some of the old Roman lookout. Its a muscular structure with an imposing silhouette on the hilltop overlooking the sea, that can be seen for miles around. We took a guided tour with one of the custodians and she was great. Shared so much knowledge and stories of the castle. We then took a self guided audio tour of the interior and State rooms. All of which were beautiful and majestic. The grounds are well groomed and easy for anyone to navigate, with smooth paved paths everywhere. Its a hill-fort, so yeah, its going to have some steepness but nothing too extreme once you are up in the parking lot. The views from up there are just beautiful. We had really great weather that day, clear and sunny, you could see for miles. The highlight for us surely was the Last Kingdom exhibit in the great hall that had props and costumes from several seasons of the show. TLK was one of our very favourite TV shows so it was a real bucket list item to visit Bamburgh. It really didnt disappoint. I wish we had more time, than the three hours we spent at the castle, to go walk on the beach.

We stayed in the castle at the Neville Tower for a week and it was absolutely amazing…read more First things first: the staff there was completely, absolutely, 100% over the top nice and helpful. From the first person we talked to when we arrived to the last person we said goodbye to on our last day the staff was incredibly nice and just so wonderful. They made an incredible spot that much more enjoyable. The castle itself is beyond words. So much history, such incredible views, so beautiful to look at from all the different perspectives, it was something you could never get tired of. There are actually a few apartments at the castle, and I spoke with a gentleman who had lived there for 20 years! It's hard to imagine. Staying at the castle wasn't cheap, but if you want to do a "once in a lifetime" kind of trip like we did you won't be disappointed. Spending a day there would be great too, but staying there was awesome because we had the run of the place after it closed to the public at 5:00 every night. I loved walking the grounds in the evening or early morning before the public was let in (10:00 AM). Having the whole place to yourself is a unique experience.

St Andrews museum is set in a lovely park surrounded by tennis courts, bowling green and a small…read moreputting green all open in summer months. The museum itself has two galleries one of witch stays the same all year and is the history of St Andrews, the other changes every few months. Cafe in the park is situated on lower floor of museum and is a bright welcoming place to have a spot of lunch at great prices, well worth a visit!!!

There's so much to see and do at this museum that it was well worth the £12 entry. There's 3…read morehangars to explore with planes of all different sizes from olden day to modern planes. You can step on board a few planes and the highlight for me was seeing Concorde and getting to walk under it to really appreciate the size of the plane. One thing I really liked about the museum was that there weren't many restrictions. You could get close to the planes and nobody batted an eyelid. There's lots of flight based games for kids to play and the big kids of course. When I visited you could buy tickets for a short helicopter ride too. It's a great day out even if you're not really interested in planes. The museum has stories on the people who flew and travelled on planes as well as the history of the hangars.

The Museum of Flight based out at East Fortune, an airbase that has worked hard in service to the…read morecountry though both our World Wars and other military activity, as well as being a base for some of the air services. At £12 for an adult day ticket, I was a little wary initially about whether it would be worth it, however several colleagues had recommended it as a good day out so we gave it a go. I am sold! We had a wonderful day, there is so much to see and do. There are around 10 hangers, all filled to bursting with planes (surprise, surprise), but also memorabilia, parachutes, air ships, science experiments for children (also very exciting for adults). I particularly enjoyed doing the pilot tests; it would appear I my calling is definitely not to fly (shame, as I do love the uniforms!). The whole space is really interactive, there are touch screen video presentations seemingly everywhere you look so you can find out much more about the background and history of the planes, see them in flight, and hear from those who were lucky enough to fly them. Some of the planes, including concord you can even get on board. There is everything from air ship flight simulation to bombing target practice and much, much more.

This is a great little museum that's packed with fun stuff. You can easily get round most if it in…read morean afternoon and it's small enough that you can really talk to the staff and get all your questions answered.

A small and friendly museum. Usually you have a quiz to take you round and 'see' Alnwick before…read morethings changed. Every few months new exhibits come to town. It is set over three floors and is bit off the beaten track. It is fairly cheap to get in and family tickets are available.

Visited April 2015: "Border town attraction"…read more We didn't think we were going to spend a great deal of time at Melrose Abbey, due to it being a ruin but there was more to do then our first glance. For one, we were able to walk up a very narrow staircase, to the top of the church. You were able to see the entire village, and not feel overwhelmed by the height. Robert Bruce's heart is buried there. We were not provided or offered an audio guide

As Scottish church ruins go, Melrose Abbey is top of the line! Much more interesting and scenic…read morethan St. Andrews Cathedral for what it actually is TODAY - not for what it once was. Great photo opportunity, too. See my photos for reference. This attraction is included in many 1-day coach tours that start off from Edinburgh (mine was by The Highland Experience Tours). Is it worth the trip from Edinburgh on your own (by bus or train)? Well, not really, as you won't spend more than 1 hour max exploring the grounds of Melrose Abbey. And the village of Melrose itself, let's just say that it's a sleepy little hovel between someplace A and nowhere B. But as part of such an organized coach trip, it's well worth your time. The entrance is moderate (5.50 - minus 11% if you're in a group), you can take as many pictures as you'd like. What distinguishes Melrose Abbey from, say, St. Andrews Cathedral, is that a large part of the once mighty construction has survived! So there's actually something to see other than just bricks on the ground that indicate former walls and towers. What's left is enough to let you feel the actual impact the original abbey must have made on visitors. Included in the ticket price is an audio guide. You'll get it when entering through the shop, which is also the ticket office. Since just a couple of clerks are responsible for BOTH shop and tickets you'll find that the simultaneous arrival of two or more bus groups, which is not uncommon, mixed with people who want to get out and buy books or less useful items in the shop, will create an *interesting* situation. Well, that's that particular brand of British efficiency.

Being a working fishing community, a fitting tribute is the visit to the Eyemouth museum, with the…read morehistory of the town and the disaster all on view, also some local art, with a shop, a fantastic visit is guaranteed

The most unique museum I have ever been to. Beware...this is Not for the squeamish…read more Surgeons' Hall Museums is an award winning Museum that is home to one of the largest and most historic pathology collections in England. It showcases the history of surgery and is so different from anything you have ever seen. I'm not in healthcare, I don't like anything that has to do with disease, yet, I couldn't stop looking. I was so intrigued. There was room after room of jars with body parts and showcases of how they see certain diseases. I couldn't stop looking. Venture up to the top floor to see the robotics and AI surgery exhibit....so interesting. to see the wave of the future. No photos allowed but it is worth the $10 entry fee.

I wasn't sure what to expect when we came here today but I've never seen anything like this museum…read morein my life! The Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh was founded in 1505 and was originally used as a teaching museum for students of medicine. Its vast collection opened to the public in 1832. Here you will learn about the history of surgeries- how the medical field started and where it is headed. It was also fascinating to learn about William Burke and William Hare who murdered sixteen people in 1828 and sold the corpses to Robert Knox for dissection at his anatomy lectures. And I've never seen so many bones and organs on display! Many of the specimens show the results of certain diseases or injuries. Plus there are many historical surgical instruments, paintings and illustrations on display. There is also a section on medical advances like robot-assisted surgeries- something I have benefited from. No pictures are allowed so you'll have to come see it all for yourselves!

A day trip to Rosslyn Chapel may be within seven miles of Edinburgh, but it feels like stepping…read moreinto another realm. The chapel is easily accessible by bus--a roughly 50-minute journey from the city centre. Our route had more than forty stops, yet I didn't mind at all. We were seated on the top deck of a double-decker, watching the city slowly give way to the Lowlands, enjoying glimpses of Edinburgh's outer edges as we made our way toward the chapel. Rosslyn Chapel is steeped in mystery, but if it looks familiar, that's because it is! Rosslyn Chapel was the inspiration for the book and film the Da Vinci Code. As such, she's a magnet for tourists looking to get a taste of intrigue. Dan Brown may have brought this chapel into popular culture in his book The Da Vinci Code, but this chapel was famous in its own right long before that. Rosslyn Chapel has been loved for both its amazing decorative artwork as well as the mystery that surrounds it with people for decades. After the "Da Vinci Code" movie, thousands of people came here every day looking to find some truth in the story, and thousands of people walked away disappointed. But whether you believe in the Da Vinci and Templar theories or not, this church is still an interesting place to visit. The chapel was founded by William Sinclair of the Sinclair family, a noble family descended from Norman knights who moved to Scotland when they fell out with William the Conqueror in the 11th century. The chapel itself is actually quite small. Standing 12 meters tall and 21 meters long, it was originally built to be a full style Gothic cathedral in the shape of a cross. However, when William Sinclair died his son decided to stop construction. He closed up the "top" and just made the existing building into a much smaller chapel. You can spend hours looking over all the reliefs, statues, and images. They are fascinating. The most fascinating one is the American maize (corn), which was not discovered at the time this church was built. Over one of the windows, there is clearly maize, leading many people to theorize the Sinclairs had contact with America years before Columbus did. (Though that isn't exactly revolutionary, as it's well documented that Columbus was not the first European to discover America.) we had a timed ticket and they have their own guide tht gives you a tour (on certain time). so check out the time when you enter.

I thought it was worth the cost. You have to buy a years pass but we were only going to be there…read moreonce. They do give discounts if you are in military, unemployed, disabled or over 65. Im unemployed and disabled but my hubby didnt mess with the discounts. It's a smaller place than i expected but the detail was stunning. I wish they had allowed photography id have been there all day. So much symbolism and history in every detail but you need a zoom lens to really see it. It was beautiful and so much stone detail it was gaudy. There are yours and information but I'm more visual. I asked why no photos and they claimed someone tripped and try to sue. I would pay extra to be able to do my thang with camera without having to sneak.