One Day in Edinburgh

Upon a Star Travel Advisor Susan Burks at Edinburgh Castle in Scotland.

Similar to my one day in Geneva, a few months back I had an opportunity to spend one day in Edinburgh. Edinburgh had been on my list of places to visit for a while, and I was concerned about how much I could actually see with only a day there. I was surprised and you may be, too!

Our hotel was in the heart of Edinburgh, so it was a quick walk to shopping and a good bit of sightseeing. We started with walk down Victoria Street which is widely believed to be the inspiration for Diagon Alley in the Harry Potter books, and it looks like a modern version of it! Then we grabbed a donut and a coffee at Kilted Donut on Grassmarket Square just because the name made us laugh!

Then we climbed about a million stairs to reach Edinburgh Castle. (Do you see it sitting up on that hill?) This ancient fortress towers over the city and is the apex of the city. You could spend hours exploring Edinburgh Castle, and we did. I’m not sure you can see it all, so you have to prioritize your day. We arrived just in time for the daily canon fire which is full of the pomp and circumstance you’d expect for a cannon firing in Scotland! The appropriately named One O’Clock gun is fired daily at 1:00 pm! We wandered through a few of the museums on the grounds including The Royal Scots & Royal Regiment of Scotland Museum, but the highlight for me was the Honours of Scotland. Here in the Crown Room you can see the oldest Crown Jewels in Britain. The crown made for James V dates to 1540 while the scepter dates back even further. (No photos allowed!) There are also amazing views of the Firth of Forth. (Try saying that three times fast!)

Due to the rain, we opted to head out but we’ll go back to explore some more! From Edinburgh Castle we walked down the Royal Mile which is a street full of shopping and dining and cafes. Here you can shop for and buy shortbread and every wool product you can imagine—sweaters, scarves, and the most amazing tweed bags! Yes, I absolutely took home shortbread in the shape of Scotty dogs! Ha!

By now, our donuts had worn off, so we went in search of dinner, and we ended up back on Grassmarket where you can find restaurants like the White Hart Inn, Petit Paris, Beehive Inn, and The Black Bull. We stopped in the White Hart Inn and ordered drinks and some traditional fish and chips and blood sausage, but of course we had to order the haggis, too, which came with a side of neeps and tatties.  If you don’t know what haggis is, this is a traditional Scottish dish, a savory pudding made with minced sheep heart, liver, and lungs, oatmeal, onions, and spices. It is traditionally served encased in a sheep stomach and boiled, but ours was not. It was surprisingly actually quite good! I took a very tiny tentative taste and was pleasantly surprised! (Neeps are a type of turnip, served boiled and mashed, and tatties are mashed potatoes!)

Greyfriar’s Kirk (church) in downtown Edinburgh.

By now, we had wet shoes, so we went back to the hotel to change shoes and dry out a little bit before heading down to Greyfriar Kirkyard (Scottish name for a churchyard or a graveyard). This is right down the street from the original Elephant House where J.K. Rowling supposedly wrote most of the Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone (also known as Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone in the US.) The kirkyard is full of ancient graves and headstones many of which are reminiscent of names found throughout the Harry Potter series of books. The story goes that J.K. Rowling would take walks while writing at the Elephant House and wander through this kirkyard picking up ideas for names. This is a fun location for a self-tour or a guided tour, and you can find names like Crookshanks (Hermione’s cat), Thomas Riddle (Voldemort’s real name), and McGonagall. This is a beautiful and peaceful experience.

There’s also a fun story about a dog named Bobby. Bobby was owned by a local policeman, John Gray, and after his death, Bobby reportedly guarded his grave for another 14 years. He captured the hearts of the locals who would bring him food and other treats.

We wrapped up the evening walking Victoria Street at night, and it’s even more stunning at night especially with wet roads and sidewalks. Poke into some shops—lots of Harry Potter themed shops and the most amazing specialized hot chocolate café.

I was amazed at much we got done in one day.

What would I do next time? Well, there’s still tons more to see in Edinburgh Castle and a visit to the Royal Yacht Brittania, Queen Elizabeth’s decommissioned royal yacht, is a must-do.

A quick trip back to the Edinburgh airport the next morning in the cutest black cab and my first, but not last, Edinburgh trip came to an end. I will absolutely go back to Edinburgh and explore more of the city.

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Group Travel: It Might Not Be What You Think!

Have you ever thought about trying group travel?  Or, have you ever thought about running as far from it as you can?  If your idea of group travel is a bus trip to a casino, think again!  Group travel can be an amazing way to see an unfamiliar area – and to try some things you’d never think to do on your own!

Admittedly, I never dreamed that I’d enjoy any sort of travel with a group. I’m fairly introverted, and the idea of spending time with strangers did not appeal.  Then, too, there’s the loss of autonomy that comes with traveling with a group.  It was not at all something that I thought was for me.

Then I took my first group tour.

I was in college, studying abroad in Spain.  It was my first time going to Europe, and I couldn’t wait to see all that Spain had to offer.  Fortunately, the program I studied with had organized a group tour for the first week of the study abroad experience which would take us from Madrid, to Toledo, through Sevilla, Granada, and Cordoba in southern Spain, and back up to Salamanca, where I would be studying.

It was wonderful.  

Plaza de España, Sevilla, Spain

Since then, I have taken several group tours in Europe, which have all been just as wonderful.  Let me explain what made them so special.

The tour company arranged every detail.  Flights were booked through them; travelers were met at the airport by their tour director.  The tour director is responsible for everything that happens while you are on tour – he or she will do everything in his/her power to make sure you have a fantastic experience.  If you’re traveling through a country that does not speak English, the tour director will speak, at minimum, English and the language of the country or countries you are visiting.  This skill is invaluable as you navigate a different country.

The price of your tour will include most of what you’ll do while on vacation.  Your flights, hotels, at least two meals, and most activities will all have been paid for before you even pack your suitcase.  There may be extras to pay for, of course, but, like on a cruise, you can do quite a bit without paying additional fees while you’re there.

The schedule of the tour on the day of arrival is dependent upon when the travelers’ flights land.  Unless you are traveling with a private group who is all arriving together, you may have to wait for additional flights to land.  This is actually how I prefer to travel – I’ve been lucky enough to be on the first flight in most times, which means I have free time at the hotel while we wait for the rest of the group to arrive.  I take this time to shower and change (overnight flights are no joke!) and to explore the area around the hotel.

After everyone has arrived, the official tour can begin!  A typical day on tour begins early – your tour director will fill you in on what time your wakeup call has been set, what time breakfast is served, and what time to be ready to roll.  I like a set my own alarm earlier than the hotel wakeup call – they tend to underestimate the amount of time it will take me to get ready.  Also, not every country subscribes to US standards of punctuality, so your wakeup call could be late or not come at all.  It’s better to be ready early, rather than to hold up the group.

Most tours include at least two meals a day, generally breakfast and dinner.  Breakfast is almost always at the hotel, followed by a full day of sight-seeing and activities.  Your tour director will have put together your itinerary, and will make sure that you arrive at each location on time.

The activities will, of course, depend on where you are and what sort of tour you’re taking.  You can expect to do “touristy” things – when in Paris, you will certainly visit the Eiffel Tower; when in Barcelona, a visit to Parc Guell is in order.  However, group travel also gives you the opportunity to do things you may not have considered – taking in a Flamenco show in a Gypsy cave in Granada, or watching a demonstration of sword making in Toledo.  The important thing to remember is that these tour companies and tour directors are experts in the areas you’ll be visiting – they can show you things that you would not necessarily find on your own.

The view of the Alhambra Palace from the entrance Gypsy cave where we saw a Flamenco show.

Schedules are not completely rigid – time is allotted for optional excursions, and tour directors will ask if there is something special you’d like to do while you’re in the area.  For example, a group on my last tour asked to go bike riding through Barcelona.  I joined in – and I am so glad I did.  It was wonderful, and not something I would have thought to do without the input of others.

Your days will also include “free time,” when you can choose your own activities, or explore part of the city more.  I often use this time for shopping, too.  Some of the most fun we’ve had has been wandering around the city after dinner, looking for places to have a drink, or ice cream, or spending time exploring a park or a picturesque neighborhood.

With many tours, lunch is “on your own” – the tour director will provide restaurant suggestions and a meeting point and time, and you are on your own to find lunch.  I love this feature, as it provides an opportunity to try that little café that looks so adorable, or to have some “comfort food” that you miss from home.  And, I always like to follow the advice of Anthony Bourdain – if the locals are there, the restaurant is going to be good.  No one local will keep going to a bad or unsanitary restaurant.

My favorite Spanish lunch – bocadillo de tortilla.

Safety is another appealing aspect of group travel.  I’m not necessarily referring to physical safety – though there is safety in numbers!  There is such a sense of security in knowing that your tour director and the guides who join you along the way know exactly where they are going and how long it will take to reach your destination.  You don’t need to worry about taking a wrong turn, getting on the wrong metro, or stumbling into the wrong neighborhood. 

Beyond that, they take care of any travel difficulties that arise.  For example, during my last tour, we were scheduled to take a night train from Barcelona to Paris.  That week, the train employees went on strike, so there was no way for us to take a train.  Sonja, our tour director, spent a day working on it, and made arrangements for us to fly out of Barcelona that evening, and to spend an extra night in Paris.  However, the hotel where we were to spend our time in Paris could not accommodate us for an extra night – Sonja got us reservations at a different hotel for the first night, and arranged for our transfer to the second hotel on time.  All this happened behind the scenes – we didn’t have to worry about a thing, and the transition from the old itinerary to the new was seamless.  And, all this happened at no additional cost to the travelers.

Group travel is an excellent way to see a new or unfamiliar place.  Activities are planned that will give you a real feel for where you are, but enough free time is provided that you’ll have a chance to explore on your own.  Especially if you don’t speak the language – or even if you do, but the destination is totally unfamiliar – group travel is often your best option.

Have you been on a group tour?  Or, where you would you like to go on one?  Let me know in the comments!

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