Crown Princess will anchor in S. Queensferry for our visit to Edinburgh (locally pronounced Edinbra). Click here for a map of Edinburgh. One of the highlights is, of course, Edinburgh Castle, a fortress which dominates the skyline. Edinburgh Castle is Scotland's most visited tourist attraction. Some of the Castle attractions include the Great Hall, the National War Museum, the one o'clock gun and the spectacular views: you can see the entire city stretched in all directions from different ends of the castle. Here's a map of the castle. The price for admission to the castle is £14 for adults and you can purchase tickets in advance online.
A walk along the Royal Mile, one of the most famous streets in the world is also a "must do" in Edinburgh. The Royal Mile has Edinburgh Castle located at the top and Holyrood Palace (Scotland's official residence of the Queen) at the foot and is roughly 1.5 miles long. The best way to see the Royal Mile is on foot, but a city bus tour will also give one the feel of it. This is the place to buy your souvenirs... kilts anyone?
Plan to stop at a pub or cafe for a refreshment! Into local cuisine? Then you must try haggis, one of the traditional Scottish dishes. Haggis is a kind of sausage, or savoury pudding cooked in a casing of sheep's intestine, as many sausages are. The haggis is a traditional Scottish dish memorialised as the national dish of Scotland by Robert Burns' poem "Address to a Haggis" in 1787. Haggis is traditionally served with "neeps and tatties" (Scots: swede, yellow turnip or rutabaga and potatoes, boiled and mashed separately) and a "dram" (i.e. a glass of Scotch whiskey. Sound yummy?
After experiencing some history and a tasty Scottish lunch, how about a Scottish whiskey tour? Visit the new Scotch Whisky Experience for a sensational journey! Take a swirling, bubbling barrel ride through a replica distillery as you become part of the whisky making process. Along the way you’ll hear the stories behind this magical craft, with expert tour guides and whisky advisors with you every sip of the way.
Princess offers a variety of excursions for Edinburgh. As Ken & I love to do things "on our own" when we can, we are planning to book the Princess "on your own" tour which will provide transportation to/from Edinburgh. I haven't had much luck in discovering if the city of Edinburgh provides shuttles from the pier at Queensferry that may be less expensive than a Princess tour. So, to be safe, the Princess on your own is on my agenda!
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