St James Quarter is a large, new shopping centre in Edinburgh's New Town, as of March 2023, it is the 7th largest shopping centre in the UK by retail size and the largest in Scotland.
The shopping centre opened in June 2021, before being officially opened in September 2022 by Princess Anne, and is located on the site of the former St. James Centre and is a massive improvement.
The shopping centre is large, airy and modern and reminds me a lot of the Liverpool One in terms of layout, with the main difference being the presence of a roof. I would note though that it is partially open and exposed to the elements so during days of heavy snow, rain and wind you might just feel it.
There is a good number of large retailers here including Next, Zara, Boss, Boots, JD Sports, EE, Samsung, Superdrug and more, including the sole anchor tenant, John Lewis.
For food and drink, you have a nice number of options too, Gordon Ramsay's Street Burger have a location here, which is their only location in Scotland. Other options include Duck and Waffle, Starbucks, Five Guys and The Real Greek.
The centre overall feels modern and rather attractive, there is a good amount of seating around the mall, some of these seats even have little tables which are pretty cool too.
There are obviously a large number of other shops in and around the city centre, especially along the Royal Mile and on Princess Street, with an Apple Store just outside the city centre, but it does have perhaps the best selection of shops under one roof.
If you're looking to shop while in Edinburgh, this is a great start for sure, and with further additions to the development planned including a hotel, I can't wait to see what the future brings. 4* read more