Car-free aroundEdinburghMidlothian
Craggy castles, cobbled streets, sandy beaches, riverside walks, world-class museums and scenic train rides: could anywhere offer such a wealth of great car-free experiences as the Scottish capital? Catch the bus to medieval forts in the suburbs or cycle along disused railways; stroll down the Royal Mile or beside the Brunstane Burn to seaside Portobello.
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1. Getting to the major city sights
With historic lanes to stroll around, cheap, regular trams and buses to ride on, and several railway stations, Edinburgh is a great city to explore car-free. The Royal Mile links the castle at the top and Holyroodhouse Palace at the bottom and there are several major museums nearby.
- Transform Scotland has produced a smart tourism guide for getting to Scotland’s top 24 visitor destinations without a car. This includes several Edinburgh attractions, like the castle, the zoo, and the city’s hop-on, hop-off bus tour.
- Transform Scotland suggests a walking route from Edinburgh’s Haymarket station to reach the Gallery of Modern Art, along the Water of Leith with steps up into the sculpture garden.
- This riverside walkway beside the Water of Leith is lovely in its own right, with frequent sightings of the resident otters; nearby Dean Village is worth a wander too.
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2. Bus to Craigmillar Castle
From the battlements of Edinburgh’s often-overlooked second castle, three miles from the centre, there are great views of the city, like the one at the start of this feature. Once home to Mary, Queen of Scots, some of the atmospheric ruined halls and towers date back to the 14th-century.
- New tarmac paths through woods and fields towards the castle (about half a mile) have made this castle beautifully accessible.
- There are lots of buses stopping nearby. Here’s one way to get there: from stop NC on Edinburgh’s North Bridge, catch bus 14 or 30. Get off, after about 20 minutes, at Craigmillar Castle Road and walk. See map below.
- Craigmillar Castle is a major location for the 2018 film Outlaw King, starring Chris Pine as Robert the Bruce. An elaborate medieval village was built in front of its forbidding walls. It’s also a location for cult show Outlander.
- As at many other Historic Environment Scotland castles, there is no café, but there are loos and you can get a hot drink from the little gift shop.
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3. Train to the Forth Bridge and beyond
Catch the train to Dalmeny, 20 minutes away from Edinburgh Waverley, for waterside views of the multi-mile-long Forth Bridges. The cantilevered, Victorian railway bridge is a UNESCO World Heritage site.
- The picturesque town of South Queensferry has a good choice of cafes and restaurants.
- From here, you can take a boat trip to Inchcolm Island to see the ruined abbey
- Or you can sample the John Muir Way. This long distance coastal walk, named after a 19th-century environmentalist, passes the entrance to stately Hopetoun House, imposing Blackness Castle and other sights as it heads towards Linlithgow.
- If you’re planning to visit a lot of castles, see whether Historic Environment Scotland’s explorer pass might save you money.
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4. Stroll down to Holyrood
At the foot of the Royal mile is the Palace of Holyroodhouse, a Versailles-inspired procession of stately, tapestry-hung rooms and historic chambers. There’s plenty to see nearby as well.
- Don’t forget to visit the atmospheric ruined abbey in the palace grounds.
- One of the many quirky features of the Scottish parliament building next door are the series of quotations, carved in different stones and fonts along the wall facing the Royal Mile.
- If you’re fit and ready for adventure, climb up Arthur’s Seat, the extinct volcano that rises above majestic Salisbury Crags behind the parliament building.
- One of the joys of being car-free is that you could climb down by a different route, but if you do end up back at the palace, you can have haggis, neeps and tatties in the café.
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5. Cycle the city
Edinburgh’s council has created a new system of “Quiet Routes”, along paths and peaceful roads, with blue signs to tell you where you’re going and how far it is, is making Edinburgh more bike-friendly. They’re redesigning Leith Walk and the Restalrig Railpath to make joined-up traffic-free surfaced routes across the city and Edinburgh already has nearly 50 miles of off-street paths.
- For bike hire, try Leith Cycles or Pedal Forth, also in Leith, at one end of a traffic-free cycle path.
- Pedal Forth also specialise in second hand bikes and sell Spokes maps with roads and paths marked for cyclability and itineraries across the city and beyond.
- There’s also the Innertube map , created by Mark Sydenham of the Bike Station, which recycles donated bikes to promote cycling.
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6. Ride the railway into the Borders
The trainline to Tweedbank opened in 2015 and provides some lovely car-free possibilities.
- Scotrail have designated this line one of their six great scenic rail journeys. From around Eskbank onwards, the landscape gets more and more beautiful: Gala Water winds under wooded slopes, sheep graze on the hills, and dramatic skies stretch overhead.
- There’s a little “Born in the Borders” café next to Galashiels railway station, serving and selling local produce.
- Loads of local bus routes leave from Galashiels so it’s a great jumping-off point for adventures in the Borders, visiting abbeys, castles, gardens, breweries, and Sir Walter Scott’s ancestral home.
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7. Walk round Newhailes and Portobello
A sandy beach with great cafés, a wooded path through the old water gardens of a Palladian stately home with a ruined grotto and mini waterfalls… this short circular walk (or bike ride) packs a great variety of landscapes.
- From Brunstane (pronounced “Broonstun”), the first stop on the Waverley-Tweedbank line, a pleasant stream-side walk leads from opposite the station along the Brunstane Burn Path.
- After about ¾ mile, turn right at the sign to stroll through the old water gardens to Newhailes.
- This fabulous Scottish National Trust 18th-century mansion is full of golden shell motifs, baroque stuccowork, marble fireplaces and fabulous portraits. There’s a kids’ play area and a café in the old stables.
- Return to the footpath crossroads and join the Brunstane Burn Path again to reach the main road. Turn left along the beach and promenade.
- You can turn left up Brunstane Road to return to the station or continue to the popular beachfront Esplanade bar (known as “the Espy”). Buses run from nearby Portobello High Street back into central Edinburgh.
