This was one of those impromptu trips where, upon deciding that a whole bank holiday weekend is too long to be wasted doing nothing at home, google came up with some cheap flights a short hours flight away and that was it already decided. The May bank holiday of 2017 was going to be spent in Edinburgh.

We arrived early Saturday morning, wandered through town to our AirBnB, dropped our bags off and went for breakfast. I can’t quite remember exactly where we ate (somewhere in the streets off behind the castle which was also mid cherry blossom season wahey), but all of the food we had over the weekend turned out to be excellent!

First stop was the castle itself, where we skipped the long queue by buying tickets online on our phones a foot away from the entrance. The castle and all its exhibits are amazing, as are the views from the castle and the staff in medieval outfits with their great reenactments!!

Wandering down the impressive Royal Mile brings you past a lot of tourist shops selling shortbread, wooly knits and scarves (guilty – we bought the tartan scarves immediately), churches, old buildings and on to Balmoral. Its a short stroll from there to Calto hill with a good view over the city (and a good lunch spot at its foot). We continued walking and talking in the sights of the town before heading home and preparing ourselves for dinner.

The most memorable restaurant was the Gardener’s Cottage – no photos since the food was to be experienced in person instead of through a lense, but it was some great food (and wine of course) in a gorgeous little house for a very reasonable price.

Since time was short we had booked ourselves in for a trip around the highlands and a hunt for nessie, passing Ben Bulben on the way. As good as it was I’d rent a car next time – we passed by so many beautiful spots and I’ll have to come back with some decent hiking boots… The boat tour itself but is overrated as you’ll sail on by some great castles and waterfalls without getting a decent look. Dinner that night for two weary tourists was in a less elaborate (but no less tasty) vegetarian restaurant off the old mile.

With some time to kill before the return flight, breakfast croissants at Victors were a must, as was a wander over to the botanic gardens (which also has some spectacular looking food places in and around its many gates).

Edinburgh is gorgeous, so I couldn’t say no to popping over a week later for a rugby match. Less sightseeing and more alcohol consumption made it no less enjoyable, Edinburgh seems to have something for everyone!