This guide provides 5 days of itineraries for exploring Edinburgh, Scotland. Each daily "Wander" consists of 7 segments broken into times of day (breakfast, morning, etc.) and focuses on specific locations and activities. The guide aims to take the stress out of planning by giving flexible options that allow travelers to enjoy their time without feeling rushed or worried about what's next. It provides enough structure for each day but also encourages flexibility to mix things up if needed.

1. Days in
5 Edinburgh
Inner Bohemian

2. 2
Introduction 5 Days in Edinburgh
Introduction
About This Guide............................................. 3
How to Use This Guide ...................................... 5
Before you go
About Edinburgh ............................................. 9
What to consider............................................. 10
What to Bring................................................. 14
Itineraries
Wander 1: Holyrood Park & Arthur’s Seat ................ 16
Wander 2: The Royal Mile................................... 21
Wander 3: Dark Edinburgh .................................. 26
Wander 4: A Bit O' Culture.................................. 31
Wander 5: Path of Leith Resistance ....................... 36
Listings ............................................................... 43
References and Further Reading.................................. 50

3. 3
Introduction 5 Days in Edinburgh
About this guide
Who the hell do we think we are, exactly?
Vacations are supposedtobe fun. An escape from usual. A wandering down
unexplored paths. A wild dive intonew terrain, new culture, and new people. The
specific purpose of getting away is unique toeach individual, but the core is
always the same: toenjoy yourself.
Why, then, do vacations sooften turn to crap? Well, lots of reasons. Maybeyou
can't stop thinking about the Myers contract, or Aunt Sarah's new weirdo
boyfriend. Maybe you and yourphone decided tospend a week on aPuntaCana
beach finalizing powerpoint presentations. Wecan't help you with that kind of
stuff. We'reguidemakers, dammit, not psychologists!
But wecan do something about theother sideof the equation, what we'llcall
vacation itinerization. That's alltheplanning, prep work, and decision making
that goes into travelling. On it's own, it can become a wearisomeburden of time-
consuming drudgery that drains colour from yourtime away. When you feed it too
much, it can devolve into a monster that rips thebeating heart from your trip and
squashes it under a cloven hoof of maps, deadlines, arguments, andharried
exhaustion.
Ourgoal is totake a knife and stab that little voice in yourhead. Repeatedly. The
one that's endlessly chatting about closing times and fretting overwhat todo
next. Wewant it good and dead soyou can meander down cobblestones, scrabble
up hillsides, andrelax at streetsidecafés, secure in theknowledge that thelittle
stuff is taken care of. Wewant todeal with as much of that vacation itinerization
for you as possible.

4. 4
Introduction 5 Days in Edinburgh
What this guide isn't
o a massive, comprehensivetome, an encyclopedia of yourdestination that is
as inaccessible and charmless as it is toaster-oven bulky.
What this guide is
o brief andtothe point
o a culling of what wethinkare themost essentialcharacteristics of the
destination-the places, people, and events that makeit what it is.
o a quick-access reference that gives you structureforyour day but the
flexibility tomix things up.
o a guide totravel that is realistic about thetime it takes todothings
You should usethis guide if
o you are spending a week or less at thedestination,
o you want toavoid feeling pushed, pulled, rushed, and stressedout,
o you want tosee and experience thethings that makethe destination what it
is,
o you can't or don't want toresearch and plan your own itineraries.

5. 5
Introduction 5 Days in Edinburgh
How to use this guide
It's all about Wandering
In this guide, weoffer daily itineraries called Wanders. Each Wanderis a series of
locations oractivities meant totake you through a full day of vacation exploration.
Themain things tounderstandabout Wanders are
o They are self-contained.
You can do any Wander on any day. Youaren't required to do Wander 2 immediately
after Wander 1.
o They are flexible.
Not into museums? Is it raining too hard for a walk along thestream? Restaurant under
reconstruction? Not to worry, each stop on your way is linked to multiplealternatives
you can switch to with theflip of a page.There are always alternatives.
o They are designed tobe done comfortably.
We are mindful of thegoldenrule of travel: thingshappen that youcan't planfor. Delay,
interruption, wandering and sidetracking are a part of vacations too.We make sure
there's ample timeto enjoy your Wanders, not burn through themin hurry and worry.
We break a Wander intoseven distinct segments basedon timeof day. Each
segment involves a specific location and is either a Food Interlude oraPlotPoint
(sorry, it's thepoet in us). It's pretty straightforward:
Breakfast - Morning - Lunch - Afternoon - Supper - Evening - AfterHours
Segment descriptions are designed tobe easily accessible and quickly digestible,
so you can find out what you need toknow without having yournose stuckin a
guidebook all day. FoodInterludes and Plot Points differ slightly in layout and
information content, as you'llsee below andon thefollowing page.

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Introduction 5 Days in Edinburgh
Sample Food Interlude
£5
Foodies at Holyroodbreakfast
67 HolyroodRoad
+44131 652 3591
www.foodiesatholyrood.com
J TE
7:30AM  6PM
7:30AM  6PM
7:30AM  6PM
7:30AM  6PM
7:30AM  6PM
10AM 6PM
10AM 6PMSu
F
Th
W
Tu
M
Sa  foodis high quality and locally sourced
 generousportions
 excellent cuppa
 morning atmosphere is typically quiet andpleasant
sandwich wrap soup
cake