Edinburgh - Athens of the North

The capital of Scotland, Edinburgh is the country'sfour weeks in August. The most popular events in
second largest city after Glasgow. Located in thethe Edinburgh festival include the Edinburgh Fringe
south-east of the country, Edinburgh owes its ruggedwhich is the largest performing arts festival in the
setting to many Medieval and Georgian styleworld, the Edinburgh Comedy Festival which is the
architecture and is often considered one of the mostlargest comedy festival in the world, and the
picturesque cities in Europe.Edinburgh International Book Festival. At the time of
Edinburgh replaced Scone as the capital of Scotland inthese festivals the cities are usually full with tourists
1437 and altogether has around 4,500 listed buildingsand any accommodation should be booked way in
in the city. A census taken in 2001 noted theadvanced. However, finding a hotel or Bed and
population as 448,625. It's one of Europe's majorBreakfast in the city shouldn't be too hard.
tourist attractions bringing nearly 1 million visitors aOther notable tourist attractions in the city are
year and is the second most visited destinations inEdinburgh Castle, Edinburgh Zoo and some of the
the UK after the city of London.many museums including the Museum of Scotland and
Due to the city's vast amount of historic buildings andthe Royal Museum.
monuments, Edinburgh is often given the nick nameGetting around in the city is very easy with so much
'Athens of the North'.public transport available. Many residents of the city
There are many attractions for tourists in Edinburghchoose to use the public transport available for every
and it is notably famous for its festivals. The mostday life including the many busses, trains, trams and
well known of these is the Edinburgh Festival, whichtaxis on offer. Cycling is also big in the city but due
is a collection of both official and independentto the city's landscape it can sometimes seem like a
festivals that are held every year over a space ofmountain bike ride.