For a special festive treat, visit for the spectacular light displays over the Christmas period. A variety of educational programs are also available for those wanting a more immersive experience. For the very best views of Edinburgh and beyond – and for some stunning photos by which to remember your visit – you must take a stroll up Calton Hill. It’s just a short walk from the East End of Princes Street. The walk itself is not too demanding, but absolutely worth the effort. On a clear day, you can see for miles, taking in the city’s skyline and Arthur’s Seat, across to Leith, and the Firth of Forth.

The star of the show is the Camera Obscura itself. A Victorian ancestor of the modern cameras we use today, it projects an image of Edinburgh onto a large, bowl-shaped screen. It may not sound exciting, but it’s actually quite amazing to witness first-hand! We continue to work on Higgs physics, making precision measurements of Higgs boson properties, as well as searching for new phenomena, including long-lived particles, heavy neutral leptons and dark photons. A simulated proton-proton collision within ATLAS Consecrated in 1243, St. Giles Cathedral – also known as the High Kirk of Edinburgh – is Edinburgh's principal church. It's also one of the city's most popular places to visit, attracting upwards of a million visitors each year.This museum is an unforgettable adventure for the whole family, combining a fantastic educational experience with lots of fun. If you are traveling to Edinburgh for the first time, be sure to also read our top tips for visiting Edinburgh. It contains more practical information and important advice for your first visit. Take a look! Take in the Views from Calton Hill and the Scottish National Monument Calton Hill and the Scottish National Monument Within its magnificent 70 acres are a herbarium with a collection of over three million specimens, Britain's biggest palm house, and a tropical house with exotic orchids. There's also an alpine house; a terraced moorland garden; a heather garden; and an extensive arboretum with rare giant trees from the Himalayas, North America, and China.

Paintings of Scotland's leading historic figures from the 16th century to the present day can be seen in the Scottish National Portrait Gallery, one of Edinburgh's three major art galleries. The zoo boasts a diversity of creatures from around the globe, some of whom were born and raised here through its successful breeding programs. Edinburgh Zoo has the distinction of being the only UK zoo park to house koalas and pandas, and was the first to breed penguins. Among its other "star" animals are a troop of chimps and wallabies, as well as an exhibit of smaller creatures, such as amphibians and insects, in an area called "Wee Beasties."Few cities have a history as dark, grisly, and rich in skulduggery as Edinburgh! And you can get to know it all by taking one of the many dark-side tours. Use controls to display a detailed street map of Edinburgh and get a Edinburgh city centre map showing the St Giles Cathedral, the University of Edinburgh, the National Museum of Scotland, the Calton Old Burial Ground, Holyrood House, Holyrood Park, Edinburgh Rail and Haymarket Rail. The first "National Covenant," directed against Charles I's attempt to impose the constitution of the Anglican Church on Scotland, was signed here in 1638, under which framework the church would be subjected to the power of the state. Buried within the Covenanters Prison is James Hutton, considered by many as the father of modern geology. Take a tour that goes beyond tartan and bagpipes to get to the grimly fascinating facts. Learn why the city may have felt less than safe in times gone by when medical schools were happy to pay for dead bodies and murderers roamed the streets in search of likely victims! Hear about Edinburgh’s famous serial killers Burke and Hare, who cold-bloodedly killed 16 people in 10 months and sold them to Dr. Knox for dissection in his anatomy classes. You may also like our guide to the best way to see Edinburgh in one day and our similar guide to the best of Glasgow in one day.