Luxury things to do in Edinburgh
Tasting menus at LYLA, Timberyard and Avery, plus Calton Hill and Stockbridge.
This is Edinburgh for people who want the best table in the room, every time. Three days move between New Town's grand Georgian streets and the Old Town's closes, with tasting menus bookending each evening and serious shopping and culture filling the hours in between. If you've done Edinburgh before and want to do it properly this time, this is the itinerary.
Day 1: New Town, Calton Hill, and LYLA
Coffee at Ante, the view from Calton Hill, Harvey Nichols after lunch, then LYLA's seafood tasting menu and a nightcap at The Ox.
- 9:30 AM
Ante
A small New Town café for a proper flat white and breakfast before the climb up Calton Hill.
Map - 10:30 AM
Calton Hill
Stroll Calton Hill for Edinburgh's most iconic panorama, the monuments, the city skyline, and the Firth of Forth all at once.
Map - 12:30 PM
Brasserie Prince
Brasserie Prince at the Balmoral is Edinburgh's most celebrated grand lunch, classic French brasserie at its most glamorous.
Map - 2:30 PM
Harvey Nichols
Harvey Nichols Edinburgh is the city's grandest luxury department store, four floors of high fashion and beauty right in New Town.
Map - 7:30 PM
- 9:30 PM
Day 2: Old Town museums, the Royal Mile, and TIMBERYARD
A morning at the National Museum of Scotland, an afternoon walk down Edinburgh's most storied street, and dinner at TIMBERYARD followed by serious whisky at The Devil's Advocate.
- 9:30 AM
Margot
A Bruntsfield neighbourhood café for coffee and a pastry, then a walk across the Meadows to the museum.
Map - 10:30 AM
National Museum of Scotland
Free and huge: Dolly the sheep, the Lewis Chessmen and a roof terrace looking across to the castle.
Map - 12:30 PM
The Witchery by the Castle
Lunch in a candlelit 16th-century house by the castle gates, all oak panels and red leather.
Map - 2:15 PM
Royal Mile
Walk it downhill from the castle towards Holyrood, ducking into the closes as you go.
Map - 7:30 PM
TIMBERYARD
A family-run warehouse kitchen cooking Scottish produce over fire; the long tasting menu is the move.
Map - 9:30 PM
The Devil's Advocate
Whisky-heavy cocktail bar in a Victorian pump house down Advocate's Close; ask for a dram flight.
Map
Day 3: Stockbridge, Avery, and Panda and Sons
Begin with pastries at Lannan Bakery, take in a Playfair church, browse Golden Hare Books, then spend the evening at Avery's creative tasting menu before cocktails a short walk away.
- 9:30 AM
Lannan Bakery
Queue early for the laminated pastries; the croissants and seasonal buns sell out by late morning.
Map - 10:15 AM
St Stephen's Church
Playfair's 1820s church with a towering clock face at the foot of St Vincent Street; admire it from outside.
Map - 12:30 PM
Under The Table
A small seasonal bistro on Dundas Street for an easy lunch before the Stockbridge browse.
Map - 2:30 PM
Golden Hare Books
A small, carefully stocked bookshop on St Stephen Street with a strong fiction and Scottish shelf.
Map - 7:30 PM
Avery Restaurant
A short, creative tasting menu in a Stockbridge dining room; book the full menu with pairings.
Map - 10:00 PM
Panda & Sons
A speakeasy behind a barbershop front on Queen Street; the house cocktails change with the seasons.
Map
Where to stay
The Balmoral, a Rocco Forte hotel
The Balmoral is the address in Edinburgh: Rocco Forte, right on Princes Street, and home to Brasserie Prince where you'll already be having lunch on day one.
Gleneagles Townhouse
Gleneagles Townhouse brings the legendary Perthshire hotel's service and style to a New Town townhouse, keeping you steps from LYLA, Harvey Nichols, and Avery.
Make Edinburgh your trip
Swearby drafts the days from places people swear by. Swap any stop, then invite the crew by text, even friends without the app. Vote on dates, track costs as you go, and everyone gets one number at the end.
Get Swearby on the App StoreBefore you go
Book ahead
- Edinburgh Castle: weeks ahead
- The Scotch Whisky Experience: a few days ahead
- Johnnie Walker Princes Street: a few days ahead
- The Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo: months ahead
- Muirfield: months ahead
- Rosslyn Chapel: a few days ahead
Skip these
- Eating and shopping on the Royal Mile itself, which charges a location premium for worse product.
- The 12 plus hour Loch Ness coach day, mostly motorway for a photo stop.
- Harry Potter merch shops and generic ghost tours, use Mary King's Close for underground Edinburgh.
- Royal Mile tartan shops selling mass produced imports at heritage prices. Look for a mill label or buy in a specialist kiltmaker.
The full Edinburgh travel guide: when to go, safety, getting around