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Edinburgh is a city that knows how to be ancient and modern – and does both brilliantly. It’s a beautiful city to look at. And it’s a fantastic place to live. It’s hard to describe what makes Edinburgh so special in just a few words, as the city makes a unique impression on your senses.
For a capital city, Edinburgh is a surprisingly easy place to live. It’s big enough to feel exciting and important, yet small enough to find your way around. And the unique beauty of the city is matched by its friendly atmosphere and liveliness. There’s an upbeat energy and a purpose to the city that is unmistakable.
Culture
Edinburgh has many distinct areas, each with its own special character. One of the biggest is Leith, the site of the old docks, and now the personification of stylish modern living. As well as chic new flats, there are trendy bars and restaurants and the Ocean Terminal shopping and cinema development. Another popular area is Stockbridge in the New Town, which is a great place to find large flats and grand townhouses, quirky boutiques, vintage clothing shops, chic delis - and a variety of fashionable places to eat and drink.
Edinburgh is a hub of activity for live music and concerts of every style and fashion, venues such as The Liquid Rooms, The Corn Exchange, The Queens Hall and others attract the likes of Scottish grown Indie bands such as Franz Ferdinand to The Lost Prophets to folk hero’s such as Seth Lakeman. On top of this, Glasgow - Europe’s Secret Capital of Music – is just a 50 minute train ride away.
For a busy capital, Edinburgh can also be remarkably calm and peaceful, with plenty of green spaces and tree lined parks that add a vibrant splash of colour to the urban landscape and provide a quiet place to while away an hour or two.
www.list.co.uk
www.oceanterminal.com
History
Edinburgh is often considered to be one of the most picturesque cities in Europe. This is vastly due to the wonderful array of architecture, from the ancient cobbles of the Old Town, to the elegant Georgian grandeur of the New Town, and the impressive glass-walled modernity of the financial district, Edinburgh is a place where cultures and societies collide with great success - where else would you find a medieval castle sitting on top of the crags of an extinct volcano, right in the busy centre of the city?
With its secret histories, the Old Town is like a theatrical stage set brought vividly to life, and all the more dramatic for its direct contrast to the orderliness of the silvery streets of the Georgian New Town that lie below. It’s here, in the cool symmetry of the New Town, where the elegant order of the streets is punctuated by graceful crescents and neat squares, where the grandeur of the city is at its most magnificent.
This mix of the new, the old, and the even older, somehow seems to work in Edinburgh. Perhaps it’s because the city is shaped by its history, yet distinctly modern in its outlook. It’s a stylish and cosmopolitan place to live and work, a centre of culture and entertainment.
Getting Around
The city itself is compact, so wherever you live everything is within easy reach, often within walking distance. That’s why you’ll never be far from the centre of things - from your friends, from the things you like to do, or even from your place of work for that matter.
However, for those things just out of reach, Lothian Buses run a highly efficient bus service that runs regularly throughout the day and night. Lothian Buses regularly win prizes complimenting their success.
Edinburgh is also a very Cyclist friendly city with Spokes, the Lothian Cycle Campaign, campaigning for better facilities for Cyclists.
For all your out of town needs there is Edinburgh Waverley Station (easily accessible from Princes Street) and Haymarket Station both of which offer a wide range of destinations from London Kings Cross to Glasgow.
Entertainment/Nightlife
So alongside the historic monuments and heritage sites, there are plenty of great pubs, clubs, style bars and places to dance until breakfast.
Edinburgh is home to a fantastic number of art galleries, theatres, hotels and restaurants, clubs, bars, and shops. It’s also a sporty city, with plenty of health and fitness centres, two football teams - and the imposing Murrayfield Stadium.
This is what makes Edinburgh such an amazing place to live - whether you love eating out, clubbing, going to the theatre, visiting art galleries and museums, shopping, or chatting in coffee bars… hill-walking, cycling, horse-riding, golfing, ski-ing or strolling barefoot along sandy beaches… or even a mixture of both.
As well as the incredible Hogmanay party, there are the International and Fringe festivals - the worlds largest arts festival, that take place every year. For the month of August, the city provides the perfect backdrop for the International Festival – a celebration of the best in opera, dance, theatre, music, writing, comedy and film – complete with the famous outdoor Military Tattoo.
The Festival’s unofficial counterpart, the Fringe, provides a spontaneous and eccentric parallel universe, where anything can happen - and frequently does. It’s often said that the number of visitors attracted to Edinburgh for the Festival is roughly equal to the population of the city – around 500,000. However, all the activity of the city is not exclusively in August, with the Edinburgh International Film Festival and the Jazz & Blues Festival keeping your calendar packed all year round.
www.edfringe.com
www.eif.co.uk
www.nms.ac.uk
All in All
You’re also never far away from the stunning scenery and countryside that surround the city. Even close to the city centre, Arthur’s Seat provides an unspoilt place to walk, run, or simply sit and admire the view. There’s a quality of life here that’s pretty hard to beat
With Edinburgh’s charisma and unique appeal, there’s a fair chance that many of those visitors leave the city, only to make plans to return one day for good…
- Edinburgh is Europe’s sixth largest financial centre.
- The city was voted ‘Favourite UK City’ by The Guardian and Observer for six years running.
- Edinburgh is the top destination for overseas and UK visitors to Scotland.
- The prestigious ‘Traveller’ magazine has voted Edinburgh ‘Best UK City’ three times.
- Edinburgh is on the same latitude as Moscow.
- It was the first city in the world to have its own fire-brigade.
- Like Rome, Edinburgh was built on seven hills.
- The One O'Clock Gun in Edinburgh Castle fires every day at exactly one o'clock, except on Sundays. It’s a 'time gun' – designed to help ships set their chronometers to the exact time.
- Princes Street Gardens used to be a loch, dividing the Old and the New Towns. The loch was a dumping ground for sewage and household waste and also a popular place for the dunking of witches. The loch was drained in 1759.