3 days in Edinburgh with my teenager

We’ve just spent a long mother-daughter weekend in Edinburgh. As I already knew the Scottish capital, I tried to put together a 3-day programme tailored to my young teenager’s tastes, with references to Harry Potter, history and fascinating anecdotes, art and shopping! In 3 days in Edinburgh, I was able to delight her around her interests while also showing her the city’s must-sees. In the end, at the grand age of 14, my girl loved this three-day weekend in Edinburgh. It really is an easy city break to manage for a solo mum, with guaranteed success with the kids! On the programme: Old Town, New Town, Dean Village and other lesser-known Edinburgh neighbourhoods. So, shall I take you along for the tour?

Edinburgh with my young teenager: visiting the Old Town

To visit the Old Town, allow between 1 and 2 days.

Victoria Street ❤

We started with this famous colourful, curved, cobbled street in the medieval centre of Edinburgh. It’s one of the prettiest in the city, in the Victorian style. What’s more, it is said to have inspired Diagon Alley for the Harry Potter films, so it was a good way to ease my girl in! Above the row of multicoloured houses is a balcony-terrace (Victoria Terrace), which we climbed up to for another view of the street. Several shops and cafés on Victoria Street are popular, including the Elephant House café, where J.K. Rowling began writing Harry Potter (it isn’t the original premises).

For more details on the places linked to the Harry Potter saga, read my article on the trail of Harry Potter in Edinburgh.

Grassmarket and the view of the castle

A little further down, not far from Victoria Street, is the former large market square where public hangings also took place in the Middle Ages. You’ll notice, by the way, that among the many pubs on the square, there’s one called The Last Drop! The last drop before the hanging! Nice! From Grassmarket, there’s a beautiful view of Edinburgh Castle, perched on its rocky outcrop.

The Royal Mile ❤

It’s the famous main artery of the Old Town. It’s about 1 mile long, hence its name. It links the two castles together: Edinburgh Castle to the west and the Palace of Holyrood to the east.

Here are a few must-sees on the Royal Mile:

Real Mary Close ❤

This was the visit Titpuce liked best! I think the Real Mary Close appeals to teenagers in general because the tour takes place underground, in the maze of the poorest dwellings of the 17th century. Back then, the most modest inhabitants lived in the closes, those rather squalid passages where they lived crammed together. The guided tour is immersive because a costumed actor gives all the explanations while playing a period character. I don’t recommend it for children who are too young, as the anecdotes and some reconstructions are a little grim, especially around the plague. In short, I’d say it’s typically a visit for a pre-teen or a teenager!

A note on language: the actor-guide speaks only English (with a Scottish accent that’s far too cute and easy to understand). If you or your children aren’t comfortable in English, an audioguide is lent out with the story told in French, but I think it loses some of its charm, and it can’t be easy to listen to the audioguide while the actor is delivering his lines. The audioguide also provides the translated text to read on your screen. Listening to the actor-guide and then quickly reading the French translation seems like a simpler combination to me. In any case, it’s a paid visit that represents a certain budget, so I’ll leave you to judge regarding the language issue. Otherwise, go for it! It’s great fun and very teen-friendly!

The many other “closes”:

All along the Royal Mile, we discovered loads of closes as we wandered. These are dead ends or narrow passages, sometimes with stairs to go down from the Old Town to the Princess Gardens to the north. In the evening, these passages particularly transport us into the atmosphere of times gone by. Back then, the closes were closed off with gates at night, hence the name. Some still have their gates.

St Giles’ Cathedral ❤

It’s magnificent and it stands proudly on the Royal Mile! From the outside, you already notice its crown-shaped spire, which is unusual! You should also visit its Gothic interior, all the more so as access is free (donations suggested). Don’t miss the Thistle Chapel at the back of the cathedral: its ceiling is impressive, and you can also see large wooden panels with carvings, including adorable little angels playing the bagpipes! There are 3 of them. Titpuce and I found 2. For the 3rd, we had to ask one of the volunteer guides. This chapel isn’t always open. We went into the cathedral three times before we got access (luckily, you’ll see that you often pass along the Royal Mile!).

Just in front of St Giles’ Cathedral is the Heart of Midlothian, a heart-shaped mosaic that marks the site of a 15th-century prison where executions took place (yes, again!). Nowadays, it’s also the emblem of the football team of the same name.

Finally, the City Chambers are located just across the street. In its elegant cobbled courtyard are J.K. Rowling’s handprints. One more nod for my little Harry Potter fan!

Cockburn Street:

Cockburn Street is also one of the most picturesque streets in the Old Town, with the charm of its curved shape and its slope (like Victoria Street but without the colours). It winds down towards the bottom of the old town and shows off its elegant Victorian buildings with stepped gables, as well as numerous shops and cafés (see shopping below).

The Witchery

At the top of the Royal Mile, The Witchery is a very beautiful 16th-century building housing a hotel-restaurant with Gothic decor: ideal for imagining yourself in the time of the witches! I thought about booking a table there but, firstly, it was full and, secondly, it’s quite expensive because you pay for the setting. They have a more affordable (but not cheap) menu at lunchtime if you need to please budding young witches or wizards! Titpuce and I just admired the exterior and the restaurant room through the windows. Beware, the place is said to be haunted!

Canongate and the Palace of Holyrood: to the east of the Royal Mile

The eastern part of the Royal Mile is called Canongate. There you’ll come across, among other things, this medieval building, the Canongate Tolbooth, an administrative building and prison from the Middle Ages, with its clock and turrets.

Then, continuing east, you find yourself in front of the Parliament, with its ultra-design architecture, and in front of the Palace of Holyrood, a superb royal palace still used today by King Charles III.

Arthur’s Seat:

Finally, when you’re at the end of Canongate, opposite the Palace of Holyrood, you can see Arthur’s Seat. It’s actually from there that you can begin the climb. I highly recommend this little hike, which we did last time with Ticoeur. It’s beautiful and very Scottish! Allow about 2 hours for the round trip at a leisurely pace.

2 castles in Edinburgh: which one to visit?

This is the question many people ask, and it’s worth thinking about because both are paid for and expensive, whereas all the city’s museums are free. So here’s my opinion:

- - Edinburgh Castle is a fortress: so more austere, very stony, very cold, since it had a military role. Honestly, the visit bored me a little despite its obvious historical importance. Clearly, for a trip with Titpuce, it wasn’t on my list. She’s a history fan and so am I, but less of this style.
  - The Palace of Holyrood was the palace of Mary, Queen of Scots. It’s a ceremonial royal palace, so there are magnificent furnished interiors and the audioguide is very interesting. I therefore wanted to visit it with my girl but, at the moment, Queen Mary’s chamber is partly under renovation and the very beautiful abbey in the palace courtyard is also being repaired, so given the budget, I didn’t get the tickets. Check the Palace of Holyroodhouse website to find out the opening situation of the rooms and the palace. When the royal family is staying there, no visits are possible.

Did you see? Just on the Royal Mile, there’s plenty to do! Now let’s continue visiting the Old Town…

New College

The turrets and courtyard of this university building are said to have inspired the depiction of Hogwarts in the Harry Potter films. That’s probably true of many colleges in Britain, but let’s just say that the atmosphere and the height of the towers of the New College really do give off a wizarding-school air! Titpuce loved it!

Greyfriars Kirkyard cemetery, Harry Potter and Bobby the dog

Greyfriars cemetery is worth a visit above all for its beauty and the views over the Old Town. In front of the cemetery, don’t miss the little dog Bobby and the anecdote that goes with it: this loyal dog is said to have watched over his master’s grave for 14 years. Now he too rests in peace in the cemetery. They say touching his nose brings good luck! In the cemetery, your teenager or child who’s a Harry Potter fan will be happy to come across the names McGonagall or Thomas Riddell on the graves (I explain everything in my post about Edinburgh and Harry Potter).

The National Museum of Scotland

It’s Edinburgh’s main museum, with collections of everything (science, art, culture, nature…) and a very beautiful interior glass roof. During our previous stay, with our baby Ticoeur, we mainly explored all the sections on animals. With my young teenager, we chose to discover a few pieces that interested her, such as the fashion section, Egypt and Dolly the sheep, which was the first cloned mammal. We also went to see the Lewis chessmen, which inspired the one in the Harry Potter film (see my article on Harry Potter & Edinburgh). Do take the map at the museum entrance because it’s a real labyrinth! Finally, we went up onto the museum’s rooftop for a 360-degree view of Edinburgh! Not to be missed!

The Vennel viewpoint

To end the day in the Old Town, there’s nothing like this lovely viewpoint at sunset (or at any time, don’t stress!). You can glimpse Edinburgh Castle with the charm of an old staircase climbing up into the city. To give you an idea, a day spent criss-crossing the Old Town was, for us, roughly 10 kilometres of walking.

Edinburgh with my teenager: our visits in the New Town

To visit the New Town, allow between half a day and a day.

We say “New Town”, but this part was built in the 18th and 19th centuries, which is recent compared to the medieval buildings of the old town. It’s all relative! Crossing from the Old Town to the New Town, we sometimes took the North Bridge and sometimes the Waverley Bridge. Both bridges offer lovely views of the Old Town.

Princess Street Gardens ❤

Princess Street Gardens is the green space occupying the valley between the old and new town. There used to be marshes here. There you’ll find:

The Scott Monument

At the start of Princess Street Gardens stands this famous neo-Gothic monument of Edinburgh. Its name is a (towering!) tribute to the writer Sir Walter Scott.

The Ross Fountain:

In front of this fountain, from where you can admire the castle, we’d taken a photo of Ticoeur back in the day. So I took a photo of my young teenager: I’ll be able to make a montage with my two children!

Next to the Ross Fountain is the Scottish National Gallery (free) and its collection of classic paintings if it tempts you on a rainy day. It wasn’t on our programme. It’s the building at the bottom right in the photo. From there, you also have a lovely view of the New College and its towers on the left and the castle in the background.

The Georgian style of the New Town:

The streets of the New Town form a grid and the buildings are mainly of Georgian architecture (from the era of the King Georges). It’s a style I really like. To admire it, you just have to wander through the main streets such as George Street, Rose Street and squares such as Charlotte Square or St Andrew Square, where we came across Paddington! Would you believe my teenager was no longer interested in posing with him for the photo :-).

Scottish National Portrait Gallery ❤

Another free museum and, as its name suggests, many portraits are exhibited there. I wanted to take Titpuce there because she loves art, not for the portraits but for the beauty of this mural, called the processional frieze, which adorns the museum’s great hall. It depicts 155 figures from Scottish history. It’s very beautiful! We still did a little half-hour tour through the museum to look at a few portraits from every era. There’s also a beautiful library.

The Balmoral Hotel:

This luxury hotel was built in the Victorian era, at the time the railway was taking off. The station, Waverley Station, is in front of the hotel in my photo. The amusing little anecdote is that the hotel’s large clock has been set 3 minutes fast from the start so that travellers don’t miss their trains! Balmoral means “majestic” in Gaelic: that sets the tone! The anecdote for your Harry Potter-fan teenager is that J.K. Rowling booked a suite there to finish the final Harry Potter book in peace. And for teenagers who are James Bond fans: Sean Connery also stayed at the Balmoral.

Calton Hill ❤

We were there at sunset, but the view must be lovely at any time. In 5 minutes, we climbed Calton Hill and sat down on a bench, admiring Edinburgh, the castle and Arthur’s Seat. A well-earned rest after so much walking! The hill is home to several monuments, including the National Monument inspired by the Parthenon in Athens, a tower (Nelson Monument) and temples.

Edinburgh with a teenager: the other neighbourhoods of Edinburgh

You could devote between half a day and a day to another part of Edinburgh.

Dean Village and the Modern One museum

Dean Village ❤

I’d really liked Dean Village during our previous stay in Edinburgh, so it was on my list of places to absolutely show Titpuce. Located on the banks of the Water of Leith, this former millers’ village (in the 12th century) is today a pleasant neighbourhood not far from the New Town. So you can easily reach it on foot.

Modern One: the Modern Art museum

Once in Dean Village, I recommend walking along the river on the Water of Leith Walkway, westwards, towards the Modern One modern art museum. A lovely, idyllic little walk! Along the way, you pass a small waterfall. It takes only about a quarter of an hour to the museum.

There are actually two modern art museums, one next to the other: Modern One and Modern Two. The latter was closed because they were installing a new exhibition. Once again, these museums are free, so there’s no pressure to see everything! The collection is small but representative of the great currents of Modern Art, with works by Dalí, Braque, Magritte, Miró, Louise Bourgeois… Perfect for my budding little artist! We spent 40 minutes in the museum and in its shop (see shopping below). We really liked the museum garden:

Stockbridge and the Royal Botanical Garden

Stockbridge

With Titpuce, we continued walking along the river on the Water of Leith Walkway, east of Dean Village, passing briefly through the Stockbridge neighbourhood. The riverbanks gave us the impression of being in the countryside, not in a capital city! Stockbridge is a pleasant residential neighbourhood with very charming little streets. On Sundays, there’s a small market. Circus Lane is particularly picturesque, being narrow, cobbled and curved:

The Royal Botanical Garden

We carried on following the path laid out along the river to get to the Royal Botanical Garden. Titpuce loves plants and flowers! Sadly, early March wasn’t a good time because there’s not much yet and the very beautiful Victorian glasshouses are currently closed for works! Luckily, the rhododendron avenue and the Stone Garden appealed to us! Entry to the gardens is free – for the glasshouses there’s a charge. More information on their website.

Leith, a neighbourhood off the beaten track

After the Botanical Garden, we continued our walk along the Water of Leith because our goal was to walk all the way to the sea. We really love walking in our family! But this time, I’d slightly underestimated the distance because the river meanders enormously and the path isn’t very varied. After the botanical garden, we found another, more direct footpath to Leith. The advantage of this long, quiet walk, with no cars, is that Titpuce had time to tell me all the little gossip from school :-). That’s also the aim of a mother-daughter weekend! Creating moments of closeness and girly chats!

Leith is very different from the centre of Edinburgh. I wouldn’t say it’s a must-see, but I wanted to see this maritime neighbourhood, once disadvantaged (remember the film Trainspotting, which is set there!). Today, Leith has been regenerated; it’s both calm and lively, with the atmosphere of a small port. There are lots of fish restaurants. We passed through a small neighbourhood market and tasted a few shellfish for a late lunch. If it interests you, in Leith there’s also the royal family’s ship, The Royal Yacht Britannia. The visit didn’t tempt us, but it’s a popular tourist attraction. Tired, we went back to the Old Town by bus (a 20-minute journey on the number 35 bus, to the Palace of Holyrood).

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3 days in Edinburgh: our great Bed & Breakfast!

A huge favourite was our Bed & Breakfast run by lovely hosts, in a Victorian house. Travelling alone with a teenager, I struggled to find accommodation with two single beds! The Castle Park Guesthouse has exactly the kind of rooms with double beds and others with single beds. Our room, decorated in the colours of the McKenzie clan, was pretty, spacious and comfortable. Titpuce and I loved it! We’ll come back with Papa Voyage and Ticoeur. In the morning, there are several Scottish breakfast options. Titpuce tried the version with black pudding and other meats, while I had the salmon version. It was hearty! In terms of location, we were in the residential neighbourhood of Bruntsfield, a 20-minute walk south of the Old Town. That makes a little walk in the morning and evening but not too much, and it was pleasant, going through a park.

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Mother-daughter weekend in Edinburgh: the shopping!

Our mother-daughter weekend called for a bit of shopping, didn’t it? Here are the addresses we liked:

Waterstones :

It’s the largest bookshop chain in the United Kingdom. The shop on Princess Street has the distinction of having a superb view of Edinburgh Castle. Titpuce bought a few books (she devours them at lightning speed!) and, at the same time, we enjoyed the setting:

The Scottish Design Exchange:

It’s a large local crafts centre, located in the New Town, on George Street, behind Waterstones. They only sell souvenirs and creations by local artists and craftspeople. My girl, who loves to create and make all sorts of things, particularly liked all these little stalls of jewellery, watercolours, ceramics, textiles, etc.

The modern art museum shop:

Titpuce wanted to bring her brother back a tartan scarf. Now, tartan is big business in Edinburgh and you have to watch out for shops selling scarves made in China! Lots of rip-offs around the Royal Mile. Make sure it says “made in Scotland” on the label sewn onto the scarf and not just on a paper tag. Also check the origin of the wool. For high-end models in Scottish cashmere, expect to pay around £100. So we opted instead for normal but Scottish wool, with a “made in Scotland” scarf found at the Modern Art museum (£29). The tartan pattern we chose is the one created for the National Gallery of Scotland and it’s sold in all the city’s art museums. It’s a tartan that mixes the style of the McKenzie clan and the Black Watch.

Red Shop: a tiny shop with a big choice of illustrations, on Victoria Street (my girl loves illustrations!).

Harry Potter-themed shops: there’s the Context Museum on Victoria Street and MinaLima on Cockburn Street. Plenty to delight your teenager or child who’s a Harry Potter fan!

Edinburgh with a teenager: foodie spots

In the Old Town:

Amber ❤ : it’s the restaurant of the distillery-museum The Scotch Whisky Experience. For a solo trip with my young teenager, visiting the distillery wouldn’t have been of interest to her. The restaurant, on the other hand, I’d spotted because it offers gourmet Scottish cuisine at good value for the Royal Mile. My Titpuce tasted haggis wrapped in chicken there (in the photo) and she really liked it (yet haggis is very special!). I opted for a little pot of local mussels and I was still able to indirectly enjoy this whisky museum by choosing one of the 500 references on their list! You can just order a small tasting glass: it was perfect for this 100% Scottish dinner experience.

Another restaurant option that teenagers like is Makars Mash Bar, very renowned for its excellent mashed potatoes served with meat or vegetables. It’s hearty, simple and budget-friendly, but you have to book well in advance (for us, there was no room left).

On the go, Titpuce tested the very creamy ice creams at Mary’s Milk Bar on Grassmarket (she recommends them!). Titpuce also tried, one lunchtime, a pulled pork sandwich at Oink, an Edinburgh institution (several addresses). She recommends the version with apple sauce and haggis! How brave :-). As I don’t like that kind of speciality, I grabbed a little snack from a Mor bakery (there are several in the city offering Cornish pasties and cakes).

Finally, in the evening before dinner, I’d have loved to take Titpuce to drink an apple juice in one of the many pubs in the Old Town where there’s live Scottish music. Sadly, they don’t admit minors unless you’ve booked a table for dinner. We’ll try next time!

In the New Town:

Mowgli ❤ : a very good Indian restaurant in a magnificent historic building. Arriving at the start of service, we even managed to get seats on the swings, which Titpuce loved. The whole thing had a lot of charm. The Indian tapas and the mocktails were very good. A lovely spot that appeals to teenagers. You have to book well in advance!

Leith:

Fishers ❤ : this fish restaurant is an institution in Leith. We just had a few shellfish and smoked fish there for a late snack. The little scallops and the Scottish oysters were excellent. There’s a branch in the Old Town.

Edinburgh: practical information

What’s the ideal length of time to discover Edinburgh and its must-sees?

We stayed 3 days and 2 nights in Edinburgh: it was perfect! We devoted 2 days to the Old Town and New Town and almost a whole day to Dean Village, Stockbridge and Leith. Here’s a rough breakdown of the programme to discover Edinburgh, bearing in mind that you can mix up the order, depending on your wishes and the weather:

Day 1: Old Town
Day 2: the rest of the Old Town and the New Town
Day 3: Dean Village and Stockbridge + Leith but for a first stay and over 3 days, I’d advise you to replace Leith with the climb up Arthur’s Seat and a visit to Holyrood Palace.

If you stay 4 days, then it’ll be a chance to visit more museums and why not Leith. If you only have 2 days, you’ll be able to enjoy walks in the Old Town, New Town and Dean Village but you’ll lack time for the sights.

Time of the trip:

We were there for a long weekend in March (we took advantage of an inset day at school). We had lots of sun with a few brief showers here and there. It got cold as soon as the sun went down. We had down jackets and hats, and once night fell, I’d have happily worn gloves!

Transport:

From France: since Brexit, you need to obtain a travel authorisation (ETA) to enter the United Kingdom, to be requested about 3 days beforehand. Cost: £20 per person from 8 April 2026 – valid for 2 years.
From London: you can organise a combined London-Edinburgh stay, given that the two cities are connected by train from King’s Cross station. Read my guide to visiting London as a family again.
Journey from Edinburgh airport: you have the choice between the bus and the tram, which both run every 10 minutes. The journey takes about 30 minutes. Tickets bought on the spot. The bus is a little cheaper than the tram. A return is much more economical than the journeys separately. We took the bus both ways.
Buses in the city: it’s very easy. I looked up my route on Google Maps and paid as I got on the bus, with my bank card, telling the driver that I wanted one adult ticket and one child ticket (child fare for ages 5 to 15). We only used the bus in the city once, to come back from Leith. Otherwise, everything is done on foot.
Good shoes: believe it or not, you walk quite a bit in Edinburgh and it’s hilly! Titpuce and I had good trainers!
Hiring a car: After your stay in Edinburgh, to set off and explore the rest of Scotland, you can hire a car at Edinburgh airport.
Find the account of another of our trips to Scotland: our 10-day road trip in the Highlands with the Isle of Skye and Glencoe.

Reading on the theme of Edinburgh

For your teenager: the Harry Potter saga, obviously, to get in the mood.
For you: the books by Ian Rankin with his crime series on the investigations of Inspector Rebus.