Canongate

The historic street of Canongate makes up the eastern section of the Royal Mile, leading up to the grounds of Holywood Palace and is home to many of the key attractions of Edinburgh’s Old Town. Taking its name from the canons of the neighboring Holyrood Abbey, modern-day Canongate is one of the most architectural diverse sections of the Old Town, with the strikingly modern Scottish Parliament building standing in contrast to the grand Holyrood Palace and the futuristic, tent-like structure housing the Our Dynamic Earth exhibition.

Canongate is also home to a number of significant 16th and 17th century buildings including the painstakingly preserved Canongate Tolbooth, dating back to 1591 and 17th century townhouses like Russel House and Queensbury house. In between browsing the many souvenir stores and sipping a pint in the legendary World’s End pub, be sure to visit the Museum of Edinburgh, the headquarters of the Edinburgh World Heritage Trust in the Acheson House and the churchyard of the 17th-century Canongate Kirk, where famous Scots like economist Adam Smith and poet Robert Fergusson are buried.