Andrew and his brother took a bucket list trip to Scotland. (Make sure to read Part One here.) After spending five days on the West coast of Scotland, we ventured to the beautiful East coast city of Edinburgh for some sightseeing, one more round of golf, and the Open Championship at St. Andrew’s. Read on for more details.
Day 5: The Sights and Sounds of Edinburgh
After running back to Prestwick Golf Club to pick up some forgotten swag, we hit the road early in the morning to maximize our time in Edinburgh. 90 minutes later, we arrived at the George Hotel Edinburgh, our home for the next few nights. Just like any major city, the last 10 miles of our drive took quite a bit of time with all of the lights, roundabouts, etc.
Hotel: The George Hotel Edinburgh
The George Hotel Edinburgh on George Street has been welcoming hotel guests since 1881. At its heart are five listed Georgian townhouses, built in 1775 as homes for Edinburgh’s most prosperous citizens. Located two blocks from Princes Street, four blocks from the Train Station, and walking distance to Old Town Edinburgh including the Royal Mile and Edinburgh Castle, this was a great location for seeing the city. Click here to read the full George Hotel Edinburgh Review.
George Hotel Edinburgh
Lobby of the George Hotel Edinburgh
Festival Village in Edinburgh
Located on Princes Street next to the Train Station, Festival Village (also known as Waverly Market) is a great place to get a bite to eat, a good beer, and enjoy live music. This area looked temporary as part of a city-wide festival. After a long drive, we went looking for a quick meal before setting out on the city. In the festival village, we came across a grilled cheese food truck that served delicious sandwiches and fried cheese bites.
Edinburgh Castle
After a quick bite to eat, we headed up the hill towards the Edinburgh Castle, which is one of the oldest fortified places in Europe. It isn’t that long of a walk from Princes Street to the castle but it is a steep climb. With a long rich history as a royal residence, military garrison, prison and fortress, it is alive with many exciting tales. When you climb Castle Hill, you will walk in the footsteps of soldiers, kings and queens – and even the odd pirate or two. Though parts of it remain in military use, the castle is now a world-famous visitor attraction. It’s also an iconic part of the Old and New Towns of Edinburgh World Heritage Site.
Unfortunately for us, we didn't purchase tickets to tour the castle ahead of time and they were sold out for the day by the time we arrived. Our advice would be if you really want to tour the castle, buy tickets ahead of time. However, the exterior of the castle is stunning and worth the walk up the hill even if you don’t get a ticket.
Edinburgh Castle
Royal Mile
The entrance to the castle is where the Royal Mile begins working its way down the hill towards the Firth of Forth. Actually a ‘Scots Mile’ long (roughly 1.13 Miles), the road connects two royal residences, the Edinburgh Castle and the palace of Holyrood House. The Royal Mile is also home to parliaments old and new, law courts, a cathedral and churches, and a vast range of visitor attractions, walking tours, shops, restaurants, cafes and pubs. The highlights for us were street performers, a handful of really good Whiskey Shops, St. Giles Cathedral, and just a fun atmosphere. While we didn’t get anything to eat, there were plenty of places to stop for a quick pint or a full meal.
Royal Mile in Edinburgh, Scotland
A Little Harry Potter History
You read that right, Harry Potter. We had no idea about the connection between Harry Potter and Edinburgh until someone at a local shop filled us in.
The Elephant House is a Coffee & Tea Shop where JK Rowling wrote the first book in the Harry Potter series. Unfortunately, in August 2021, a fire devastated the Coffee Shop and is currently being repaired so visitors are unable to go inside.
Behind The Elephant House sits the Greyfriars Cemetery, where JK Rowling got inspiration for a handful of Harry Potter characters. One headstone that really stood out read “Thomas Riddle,” more commonly known as Voldemort. Other names that can be found include Charles Black, Potter, McGonagall and Moodie.
Today, Greyfriars is known as the most haunted graveyard in the world due to lots of spooky goings-on. It all started with Sir George MacKenzie’s mausoleum (aka the Black Tomb) in 1998. His tomb stood quietly in the graveyard for centuries until a homeless man seeking shelter broke into the grave. While he was breaking in, the floor collapsed beneath his feet and he fell into a pit full of bones of old plague victims! He managed to pull himself out and run away, however, it is said that this unearthed something terrible – MacKenzie’s ghost! Ever since, visitors of the mausoleum left with scratches, bites, bruises and even broken bones.
The Elephant House Coffee & Tea Shop
Sir George MacKenzie’s Mausoleum (aka The Black Tomb)
Tom Riddle Grave
Greyfriars Cemetery
St. Giles Cathedral
About a third of the way down the Mile from the Edinburgh Castle, we came across the St. Gile Cathedral. Dauíd mac Maíl Choluim (King David I) founded St Giles’ in 1124, during which time the bond between Rome and the Scottish church was becoming closer. St Giles’ was built on the very eastern edge of Edinburgh and pre-dates most of the Old Town. When David I later founded the Abbey of Holyrood he gave the abbot permission to build houses up the ridge towards St Giles’, establishing the Canongate burgh and forming what is now known as the Royal Mile.
To enter and walk around, they ask that you make a small donation of £5/person. We were lucky enough to visit during choir practice along with the organ being played and the sound was just amazing. We spent about 30 minutes in the cathedral viewing all of the cutouts on the outer walls including smaller areas of worship, numerous memorials to individuals and soldiers from past wars, and the incredible stained glass windows.
The Cathedral offers two 45 minute guided tours per day which are included with the donation and can be booked in advance. They also just introduced an Audio Tour for £5.50 where guests scan a QR code and use their own smartphone and headphones.
A few months after our visit to St. Giles Cathedral, visitors were able to pay their respects to Queen Elizabeth II over a period of two days following her passing at Balmoral Castle in Scotland.
St. Giles Cathedral, Edinburgh
Inside St. Giles Cathedral
Dinner: Tigerlily
Knowing very little about what was around the hotel, we asked the Concierge what he recommended for dinner. After a quick phone call, he was able to get us a reservation at Tigerlily, located three blocks from the hotel on George Street.
The front of the restaurant is a bar and a pair of lounges with different themes. Moving towards the back is the main dining room split up into a handful of different themed rooms and a large bar. Andrew ordered the Chargrilled Sirloin with triple cooked chips, roast Portobello mushrooms, rocket, and a side of Béarnaise. Chris had the Scottish steak burger with Tigerlily burger sauce, smoked Applewood cheddar and fries. We both enjoyed our meals and thought the pricing was good, especially for a restaurant located in the middle of the city.
Tigerlily Dining Room.
Outside of meal times, Tigerlily offers an Afternoon Tea with delicious savouries, homemade fruit scones and chocolate treats. Guests can upgrade their tea to include champagne, wine, or a cocktail.
They also have their own Gin available in two flavors, one of which I brought home for Julie.
Tigerlily Lounge
Tigerlily Main Dining Room & Bar
Day 6: Golf with a View
4th Round of Golf: Gullane No. 1
Gullane No. 1 (built in 1884) has a long history of hosting national and international championship golf events, including the 2018 Aberdeen Standard Investments Scottish Open and Ladies Scottish Open, the Aberdeen Asset Management Scottish Open in 2015 as well as Local Final Qualifying for the Open Championship. Gullane No. 1 was the hilliest of the four courses we played as the routing went up and down a large hill located in the center of the course. The visibility was incredible the day we played so from a handful of holes, the views across the Firth of Forth to Edinburgh were amazing.
As for the golf course itself, it was very fair and one of the easiest we played all week (Andrew shot his best round here). The wind didn’t pick up until the end of the round and the best caddie Andrew had all week was at Gullane No. 1.
After picking up some golf course swag, we didn’t hang around too long for two reasons. Although Gullane No. 1 has hosted some prestigious golf tournaments, most of the memorabilia must have been in the Members Clubhouse because we didn’t see much in the pro shop for No. 1 or in the clubhouse for the other two courses (No. 2 and 3). We didn’t learn until we got home that we could have gone in the Members Clubhouse because we played Gullane No. 1. Secondly, we wanted to get back to Edinburgh to explore more of the city and eat at a local restaurant.
Click here to read the full article on Gullane No. 1.
ADD MORE PICTURES
Amazing views of Edinburgh - 7th Tee at Gullane No. 1
1st Hole at Gullane No. 1
Dinner: Auld Hundred Pub & Dining Room
The Auld Hundred is one of the earliest of Rose Street's many and varied pubs. The building itself started life as a mission hall before being converted for use as a pub in 1800. This history is thought to have given rise to the origin of its name “Auld Hundred”: a name given to the traditional tune to which the 23rd Psalm is sung. Situated in the centre of Edinburgh’s New town, it is in close proximity to Queen Street Gardens, Princes Street shopping destinations and Waverley train station is also minutes away. For us, it was about a five minute walk from our hotel.
Dining Room in the Auld Hundred Pub
On entering the Auld Hundred, you are greeted by a traditional bar with exposed warm sandstone walls and a range of seating including comfortable settees. A spiral wrought iron staircase leads upstairs to the restaurant, Edinburgh’s hidden dining room.
Both Chris and Andrew went with basic meals getting Fish & Chips and the Scottish burger with chips. We both enjoyed our meal and found the prices to be very reasonable given we were in the middle of a tourist area in a major city. Everyone working at the Auld Hundred Pub was very friendly and welcoming.
Auld Hundred Pub
Bill Murray Inspiring People in Edinburgh
Day 7: Open Championship at The Home of Golf
The Open Championship is held every year in the United Kingdom. We were lucky enough to get tickets as part of a lottery to this year’s tournament, which is special for two reasons. The first being this is the 150th playing of the Championship and the second is that this year’s tournament is taking place at the home of golf, The Old Course at St. Andrew’s, Scotland. Located about an hour north of Edinburgh, golf has been played on the grounds of St. Andrew’s for over 600 years.
Royal & Ancient Clubhouse - 1st Tee & 18th Green
Getting tickets to the Open Championship at St. Andrew’s was the impetuous for the entire trip. Once we found out we had been chosen to purchase tickets, there was no way we were going to turn that down.
We got the most out of our day as we arrived on site at 8:00 and didn’t leave until around 6:00 in the evening. We walked the entire golf course, did some damage in the massive Open Shop, ate some good food, and got to see some of our favorite golfers.
Click here to read the full article on attending the Open Championship.
Day 8: Time to Head Home
After an amazing week in Scotland, it was time to start the long trip home. For me, it included two full days and three flights. Of course we will always remember the golf courses, the food, and the amazing sights. However, the one thing that really stood out was how friendly the Scots are. I can’t remember a single negative interaction throughout our entire trip.
One really cool surprise during the final minutes of my flight into Orlando was that I got to see a rocket launch from the plane.
New York City from 30,000 Feet
Rocket Launch
This was absolutely the trip of a lifetime and very much something that has been on my bucket list. I truly never thought I would get a chance to experience something like this. Special thank you to Julie and Kelly (Chris’s wife) for listening to our constant conversations about this trip for the last eight months and for taking care of the households while we were away having an amazing time.
We got the opportunity to play Bay Hill Golf Club thanks to winning a charity auction a few months back. Here are our thoughts on playing a course where some of the best to ever play the game have competed and won.