Edinburgh’s volcano, and how to climb it

Edinburgh: Guided Hike to Arthur’s Seat and Holyrood Park

The straightforward way to climb the hill with someone who knows it: a two-hour guided walk from Holyrood through the park to the summit and back, with the story of the volcano, the royal park and the city laid out below you. Rated 4.9 by well over a hundred walkers and one of the lowest-priced guided hikes in Edinburgh.

• The summit of Arthur’s Seat at 251 m
• Volcano geology, history and legends explained
• Small group, limited to about 10 walkers

Edinburgh: Hike Arthur’s Seat & Calton Hill

A three-hour walk that links the city’s two classic viewpoints: first the monuments of Calton Hill, then down past Holyrood Palace and the Scottish Parliament and up through Holyrood Park to the top of Arthur’s Seat. A lot of Edinburgh for the price, and highly rated.

• Two of Edinburgh’s seven hills in one morning
• Calton Hill’s monuments, then Holyrood Park
• Small group with a local guide

Edinburgh: Arthur’s Seat Sunset Hike

An evening ascent timed so you reach the top as the sun drops behind the castle and the Old Town skyline. The guide picks quieter paths and, importantly, gets you down again safely in fading light. A perfect five-star rating from more than eighty guests.

• Timed for golden hour over the city
• Led by a qualified guide on quieter paths
• Safe descent as the light fades

Edinburgh: Palace of Holyroodhouse Entry Ticket

The King’s official residence in Scotland stands at the very foot of Arthur’s Seat, which makes it the natural pairing for the climb. The ticket covers the State Apartments, the rooms where Mary, Queen of Scots lived, the roofless 12th-century abbey and the gardens. The palace closes during royal visits — check dates when you book.

• The State Apartments and Mary, Queen of Scots’ chambers
• The ruins of Holyrood Abbey and the gardens
• Multimedia guide included

Edinburgh: Holyrood Distillery Whisky & Gin Tour

A working single malt and gin distillery in a converted Victorian railway building on the edge of Holyrood Park — close enough that you can walk off the hill and straight into a tasting. An hour-long guided tour with samples; over a thousand reviews.

• A working distillery beside Holyrood Park
• Guided tour with tastings
• Five minutes from the Salisbury Crags paths

Edinburgh Castle: Guided Walking Tour with Entry Ticket

Edinburgh’s other volcano. This best-selling tour — more than 14,000 reviews — includes your castle ticket and a guide who walks you through 900 years of sieges, kings and prisoners before leaving you free to explore. Castle tickets regularly sell out in summer, so book ahead.

• Castle entry ticket included
• The Honours of Scotland and St Margaret’s Chapel
• Stay on inside after the tour

Edinburgh: Harry Potter Magical Guided Walking Tour

Edinburgh is where much of Harry Potter was written, and this hugely popular tour visits the places said to have inspired it: the curve of Victoria Street, the gravestones of Greyfriars Kirkyard and the cafés where the early chapters took shape. Light-hearted, family-friendly and very well reviewed.

• Victoria Street and Greyfriars Kirkyard
• The cafés and schools linked to the books
• Fun for families — more than 13,000 reviews

Edinburgh: Haunted Underground Vaults and Graveyard Tour

The classic Edinburgh evening: down into the 18th-century vaults beneath the South Bridge, then on to a graveyard by night, with tales of body-snatchers, plague and witch trials along the way. More than 7,000 reviews. Not for small children or the claustrophobic.

• The vaults beneath the South Bridge
• A historic Old Town graveyard after dark
• Dark history told by a costumed guide

Edinburgh: Loch Ness, Glencoe & the Scottish Highlands Tour

The best-selling day trip from Edinburgh, with more than 20,000 reviews: a long but spectacular loop north through Glencoe to Loch Ness and back through the Cairngorms and Perthshire. It is a lot of coach time, but if you have a single day for the Highlands, this is how most people spend it.

• Glencoe and Rannoch Moor
• Free time at Loch Ness (cruise optional)
• A full circuit of the Highlands in one day

Arthur’s Seat Summit

The 251-metre top of Edinburgh

The rocky crown of an extinct volcano and the highest point in Edinburgh: 251 metres above the sea, a mile from the Royal Mile, with a 360-degree view from the castle to the Forth bridges, Fife and the Pentland Hills. It is free, open at all hours and takes most people between 30 and 60 minutes to climb.

Salisbury Crags & Hutton’s Section

The cliffs where geology began

A curving wall of dark dolerite cliffs, up to 46 metres high, facing the Old Town. The Radical Road runs along their foot, the best skyline view of Edinburgh runs along their top, and at Hutton’s Section the 18th-century scientist James Hutton found evidence that changed how we understand the age of the Earth.

St Anthony’s Chapel & St Margaret’s Loch

A medieval ruin above the swans

The gaunt remains of a 15th-century chapel on a rocky shelf above St Margaret’s Loch, ten minutes from Holyrood Palace. Nobody is quite sure who built it or why, which is part of its charm. With the swans on the loch below and the Forth beyond, it is the best short walk in the park.

Duddingston Village & Loch

A country village and a very old pub

On the far side of the hill lies a village that still feels like the countryside: a 12th-century kirk, a reed-fringed loch that is a bird sanctuary, a secret garden, and the Sheep Heid Inn — which claims a history going back to 1360 and has a good case for being Scotland’s oldest surviving pub.

Palace of Holyroodhouse & Abbey

The King’s house at the foot of the hill

The monarch’s official residence in Scotland, at the bottom of the Royal Mile and directly beneath Arthur’s Seat. Visit the State Apartments, the chambers of Mary, Queen of Scots, and the roofless nave of Holyrood Abbey, founded in 1128 — the abbey that gave the park its name.

Edinburgh Castle

The city’s other volcano

Castle Rock is a volcanic plug of much the same age as Arthur’s Seat, and the fortress on top of it is Scotland’s most visited paid attraction. Inside are the Honours of Scotland, the tiny 12th-century St Margaret’s Chapel, the giant cannon Mons Meg and the One o’Clock Gun.