A weekend away

Getting there

We decided much earlier in the year that after two holiday cancellations to Edinburgh, including a trip that was supposed to be for my husband’s birthday with a good friend and her partner, that we would make the conscious effort to go down as soon as we found the time (and the pennies!). The right way to do this, we felt, was to book in advance and give ourselves the headway to sort out all the logistics, including care for our dogs, getting down there and booking accommodation. We settled on getting the train, for two reasons; we could see the sights as we made our way down to the city that sits on a 700-million-year-old extinct volcano (that’s super-duper cool) and it was a greener alternative to us driving. For the dogs, our wonderful friend Kate said she would have them and, on top of that, she put us in contact with her friend who just so happened to be in the process of setting up an Airbnb there, so we could stay for a discount, as long as we didn’t mind being around paint pots and staying in an incomplete flat (nae bother!).

I can safely say that choosing to go green was the perfect option for us, especially with the bout of snow we had on the 12^th of March 2026 that made travelling through the Cairngorms National Park a beautiful and impressive experience. It also allowed us both to finish up some work – this blog being one of them – and marvel at the fact we could go to the bathroom without having to wait to spot a services, or a discrete lay-by for those really urgent breaks. What impressed us the most, as individuals who have spent a good length of time in the South of England, was the fact that it was easier to travel from Alness to Edinburgh (175 miles) than it had been for us to travel from Littlehampton to Central London (90 miles). Consider me... Mind. Blown.

My favourite part about travelling on the train is packing for the long journey, knowing that I can focus on a bit of 'me time'. I was able to bring my book with me, my headphones and snacks - perhaps the most important item on that list - which meant that the most appropriate way to start off our journey was by listening to music, whilst eating my lentil chips and staring out the window in awe of our breathtaking Scottish landscapes. As the hours rolled by, my husband and I were also given the unique opportunity to sit and chat, which resulted in some quality time before we had even technically started the holiday. We shared ideas about the weekend ahead, discussed the best use of our time for the first night and started to create a list of all the landmarks we wanted to tick off. It was decided that it would be rude not to "hit the town" as our very first initiation into Edinburgh, given that it was a Friday night and the evening would be (forgive me) poppin'. 

Into the City

Once arriving at the station, we hopped in a taxi to take us to the Airbnb, whilst taking mental notes of all the tasty treats, coffee shops and eateries on route (there were too many in all honesty and I was certainly not complaining). After putting our bags down in our digs, my husband had to attend a meeting for work, which gave me my first chance to find a good coffee shop and channel my inner ‘hunter-gatherer’ to bring back some sustenance for our fun night ahead out on the town. I found this rather brilliant place called ‘Project Coffee’ which did fresh sandwiches – really fresh, not just from-the-counter fresh – with big chunky cuts of wholemeal sourdough and proper fillings. I almost skipped home with delight as I could feel the heat emanating from the brown back containing the huge, wrapped sandwiches with which to present to my husband.

 Project Coffee cafe.

As expected, they went down far too quickly, but with exceptional ease. Satiated, and craving more goodness (as my husband calls it), we washed our meal down with a cup o’ cha and grabbed our hats and jackets to head into the big city. The sounds and smells greeted us as we made our way closer to the centre, with the hustle and bustle of the shops and stalls creating childlike excitement that expanded in my chest. We took in the sheer size of the castle from Terrace Street as we made our way upwards to the Esplanade, giggled at our funny looking bodies in the warped mirrors of Castle Hill, and had our first sighting of the historic alleys as we passed Jollie’s Close, which gave us insight into the medieval layout of a younger Edinburgh city. We were tempted by many bakeries, which I eventually caved to, and bought myself a carrot cupcake that lasted seconds and I decided immediately that buying two would have been a better idea.

 Warped mirrors on Castle Hill.

Thanks to our recce of the city, we knew we were going to have many options for a drink and dinner, which meant that we didn’t have to worry about finding somewhere. Our first pint was at the Halfway House, which is one of Edinburgh’s smallest pubs! I couldn’t quite believe the size, especially as we weren’t privy to that fun fact until after we had entered the premises and it made for a really great experience. It was easy to imagine a similar setting in the medieval times when a mere ~10,000 people were living there, back when it had grown from a small settlement into Scotland’s largest burgh. Every person would have been living in a tightly packed manner, rather like the pub, inside the defensive Flodden Wall to protect the inhabitants from the feared English invasion (that never came).

Aptly named, we ended up in Burgers and Beers for our dinner, which for ‘pestatarians’ like us – you’ll have to guess what that might mean – was a great choice. Every single burger could be made veggie with either a moo-less mince or cluck-less chicken alternative and the sides were incredible. I also let my husband choose a drink for me as I went off to find the restroom, which turned out to be the best decision, because I was able to discover a ‘Ginny Weasley’ for the first time and that is 100% my recommendation for anyone interested in a sweet, fizzy, gin-based cocktail.

A proper tour

The next day was an incredible self-led tour, thanks to a brilliantly clever gift from my mother-in-law. She gave us a true crime murder mystery booklet, which took us around the sights of the city, as well as encouraging us to find great food and drink pitstops along the way. The whole thing took my husband and I about three to four hours, with a much-needed tea break in between, and ended with us finding the culprit in The World’s End pub on the Royal Mile.

 Our murder mystery guide.

As part of the tour, we were able to appreciate the reputation that Edinburgh has earned as one of Europe’s greenest and most sustainable cities. In our short break, we came across a vast number of green spaces, urban trees and vehicle-free zones, allowing the majority of visitors and residents alike to always be within a five-minute walk of a local green-space and benefit from thousands of urban trees providing nature-based solutions including shade, cleaner air and natural flood management.

Edinburgh city has an impressive 144 parks, with roughly 45% of it covered by green spaces, and is on track to be a “Million Tree City” by 2030, which has been supported by a vast number of environmental organisations and The City of Edinburgh Council (https://edinburghlivinglandscape.org.uk/project/edinburgh-million-tree-city-2/). As the first local authority in Scotland to sign the Charter for Trees, Woods and People, Edinburgh is continuing to plant trees extensively and supports urban rewilding programmes, such as the Edinburgh Nature Network (https://www.thrivinggreenspaces.scot/homepage/15/edinburgh-nature-network). The Woodland Trust has summarised perfectly what urban trees do for us (https://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/protecting-trees-and-woods/benefits-of-urban-trees/), and it was hard to ignore what a difference it made for us as avid nature lovers and tourists when you’re in such a beautiful city. The trees complimented the cultural and heritage ties to the rich history of Edinburgh, with links to the Victorians, Mary Queen of Scots and ancient woodlands that were present before the Romans arrived, as well as providing a complimentary colour scheme to the old buildings with soft browns, warm oranges and fiery reds. Walking through Greyfriar’s Kirkyard, there is now a hilarious tradition known as “slapping the bum tree” where a number of tour groups are encouraging visitors to slap the bodacious tree three times for good luck. Despite how ludicrous it sounds, it shows how we can create a connection with these impressive living beings and believe in things far greater than ourselves such as luck, fortune and fate.

We ended our weekend stay with a ghost walk led by a City of the Dead tour guide, who led us through the South Bridge Vaults and into the Kirkyard, to appreciate it in a whole different manner at nighttime. We learned about how South Bridge came to be, the superstitions of the residents at the time, it’s questionable uses after businesses deemed the vaults unsuitable and it’s subsequent blocking, before being rediscovered in 1985. This renewed appreciation for something that was originally shunned or ignored by many of the locals made me think about our remaining trees and woodlands.

Can we uncover a lost love for something that we can take for granted and realise all that they have to offer? Personally, I think so.

Thanks for reading.

Lydia

 From inside one of the South Bridge Vaults.