Calton Hill

This was well worth getting to the top of the hill for. Plenty of monuments to take photos of. The view of the city and Arthur's seat is uninterrupted as well which makes it a great spot to hang about for an extended period.

Highly recommend.

An enjoyable walk for great views!
Our family of 4, including 10 and 8 year old, loved this stroll for brilliant views.
We climbed Jacob's Ladder steps to visit the Burns Monument first, then strolled by the Scottish Government Building and across the road to go up some more steps to the top of the hill.
Plenty of monuments to see and learn about on Calton Hill itself (Nelson Monument, National Monument, Dugald Stewart Monument, the Observatory), as well as fantastic views of the city, the castle, Arthur's Seat, Holyrood palace, River Forthit's well worth the stroll and it's hardly any distance at from the city centre.
Highly recommended!

My boyfriend and I found it very overpriced. It was £40 for us both to watch the festival but you couldn’t see what was going on half of the time due to crowds of people and no space and when you finally got a space the performers would leave and randomly move somewhere else with nothing to tell you where there going or a time schedule. It also was just very underwhelming at the rare chance you did get to see something in our opinion as the performances were quite repetitive.

We visited in the evening during golden hour and it was lovely to check out the view of the city. Really nice and chill. The steps up weren't to difficult to come up either. Lots of youths hanging around the area having fun.

My first time to Edinburgh and I can say: nothing compares to a view from Calton Hill, except maybe a view during sunset (which I didn't quite get to do!) True to the pictures and other reviews, it is a truly remarkable vista in all directions. Perhaps that's what makes it so unique. You can see the Mound and Edinburgh Castle plus the sprawling city beyond to the west, the borough of Leith and the Forth to the North (hey that rhymes), and of course Arthur's Seat to the south and east (also a splendid view from the top), so I recommend bringing binoculars if you want to get a zoom-in view, since I don't recall them having telescopes there. It's also renowned for having neo-classical architecture on there, like Nelson's Monument and the Waterloo Monument.

This is the place to walk up and get the best panoramic views of the city. Now, if you are mobility challenged, it is a difficult set of stairs on the New town side, so take your time. Also be careful on the walking tracks, as with a bit of rain, they are very slick.
Otherwise, it affords tremendous views of the city. On the way back down, take in the old Calton burial ground. It’s well worth an explore.
Recommend

What can I say the views are spectacular - if you don't want to climb Arthur's Seat for the views this is the easiest one to do for the all round views.

Even in February there were lots of people but still managed to get some great photos.

We walked up waterloo place and climbed the stairs from this part of the city this seemed quite easy but there are other routes you can take

We headed to this area one evening specifically to take photographs of the city. You get great views of Edinburgh & if you get a good sunset it’s spectacular.
The place was busy with tourists & it felt quiet safe in the early evening when it was still light.

At the top of Carlton Hill are monuments to Nelson and Robert Burns and the unfinished National Monument with a predominant Greek architectural style reinforcing Edinburgh's title of 'Athens of the North'.

Less well-known is the City Observatory which for many years was the Royal Observatory before its move to Blackford Hill in 1896.

The origins of the observatory on Carlton Hill go back to the mid-18th century when a joint private and university observatory was created in buildings which are Gothic in style. Playfair's neoclassical temple with its four wings round a central dome came in 1822 as the Royal Observatory.

The Observatory was latterly occupied by the Edinburgh Astronomical Society, but they moved out in 2009 and the buildings had various temporary uses until a £1million refurbishment project by Edinburgh City Council in partnership with the Collective contemporary art gallery, restoring the buildings, creating a visitor centre and new art spaces plus, in a new building, a restaurant with incredible views across Edinburgh.

Today, therefore, all the buildings are open to the public in one way or another, and there are amazing views across Edinburgh.

A different vantage point of the city compared to the other hills in Edinburgh. Calton Hill is the closest to the city centre of the hills with the buildings creating a contrasting backdrop in photos. The partly finished monument atop the hill can be climbed onto with tourists and locals alike often venturing up. There are informative signs and plaques pointing out interesting points from the lookout. The Lookout by Gardeners Cottage is located within the art gallery grounds on the hill. The walk up the steps to Calton Hill can be strenuous but there are other flatter paths to get up.