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Travel

19th Jan 2019

How To Do Edinburgh In A Day And A Half

Brian Dillon

It’s some city for one city!

A few weeks ago, my friend surprised me with a wee trip to Edinburgh. She got a super cheap deal, so we headed over for one night and were there for a day and a half in total.

In fairness to us, we packed a fair amount into a day and a half. It’s not the kind of city you go to for a relaxing trip away where you lounge around. There is far too much to do.

We got the earliest flight over, so we were standing in the centre of Edinburgh by 8.30am and couldn’t check into our hotel until 3pm. We had some amount of time to kill…

Being there early meant we could head up to the castle before it was super crowded, and it was well worth being there early. There was barely anyone there to spoil our photos, and it was wonderful.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BxaFOBLhlMb/

After gallivanting around the castle for a bit, we needed caffeine, because it was only 9.30am at this stage. So we found a cute little cafe in the old town and planned the rest of the day.

We headed to Camera Obscura and World of Illusions next, and honestly, it was so much fun. It was six floors full of optical illusions and installations that seriously messed with my brain, and we spent about two hours here because it was such good craic. It provided us with some gasssss photos, like this gorgeous one of me…

https://www.instagram.com/p/BvfCLtHAjeH/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

Anyways, horrendous photos aside, it was one of the most fun experiences I’ve had in a while.

But what we did next was definitely the highlight.

We weren’t planning on heading to the Edinburgh Dungeons, but we stumbled across it and decided to try it out as it was only 17 quid.

And I’m so glad we did. Honestly, if you’re in Edinburgh, make sure this is definitely on your list of things to do.

You’re basically lead through underground dungeons, put on trial for various crimes, and put through one of the most frightening hours of your life.

Be warned, it is actually very very very scary. I screamed, laughed, and I’m not gonna lie, also cried a little bit, but it was so much fun.

Character actors scream in your face and chase you through dark dungeons, but don’t worry, they never actually touch you. Still though, it was terrifying.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BsgKRp2lf5a/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

So, by the time we got all of that fun stuff done, we were able to check into the hotel and chill for a bit before heading for dinner. Because we had been up so early and had already done so much, we just stayed in the hotel for dinner, which I’m kind of annoyed at myself about.

Edinburgh is known to have some unreal pubs and restaurants, but hey, I’ll know for next time. Because there definitely will be a next time.

The next day, we just headed out and did a spot of shopping, like you would on any standard city break. But before heading to the airport, we did manage to squeeze in a bus tour with our leftover pounds. It only cost £15, so why not?

I don’t know about you, but I love a good bus tour. I think it’s sometimes the best way to see a city when you’re away. And when you get a proper expert like we did, you actually walk away having learned loads of stuff you didn’t know before.

Honestly, I was pretty surprised by the amount we managed to squeeze into just a day and a half. 10/10 would recommend. I was absolutely destroyed when I got home, but it was definitely worth it.

For a small enough city, it is absolutely jam-packed with gas things to do.

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