The best walks and hikes around Old Town

Once a marshy path, now a lovely pond. Home to countless swans and ducks, overlooking the ruins of St. Antonius Chapel. Together with Dunsapie Loch, this is an artificial lake, created at the request of Prince Albert in 1856, as part of his project to embellish the royal estate. (The Scottish Pearl)

Nice view of the city and the Firth of Forth when the weather is clear.

The Salisbury Crags offer a beautiful view of Edinburgh and the surrounding area, as well as the Firth of Forth.

This castle stands on one of the oldest inhabited sites in Edinburgh – archaeologists have determined that people inhabited this area as early as the 2nd century AD. However, the castle you see here was only built a millennium later. It began in 1124 as the royal residence of David I, King of Scotland. It fulfilled that role until 1633, when it was converted into a military barracks, where soldiers slept in the place where the royal family used to live. Edinburgh Castle was involved in various conflicts, including the Scottish Wars of Independence. In total, the castle has undergone 26 sieges, making it the most besieged location in Scotland and one of the most attacked locations in the world. (Free Tours by Foot)

The church was built in 1846-1847 in an early English Gothic style, to a design by architect John Henderson. The stones for the building came from the palace on the Royal Mile of Mary of Guise, the 16th-century regent of Scotland. The layout was inspired by reforms in Anglican worship that arose from the Oxford Movement. (Wikipedia)

Victoria Street in Edinburgh is known for its unique, curved, cobbled design, the vibrant rainbow-coloured shop fronts, and the characteristic two-storey layout with an upper terrace. The street, built between 1829 and 1834, is believed by many to have been the inspiration for Diagon Alley in the Harry Potter books. (Facebook)

Greyfriars Bobby was a Skye Terrier from 19th century Edinburgh. He became famous because, according to legend, he guarded the grave of his owner in Greyfriars Kirkyard for fourteen years. Bobby himself died on January 14, 1872. The story is still very well known in Scotland. Books and films have been made about it, and a statue of Greyfriars Bobby is a popular attraction in Edinburgh. (Wikipedia)

The parliament is housed in the Scottish Parliament Building, a building completed in 2004 by the Spanish-Italian architects Enric Miralles and Benedetta Tagliabue, and is located on the grounds of Holyroodhouse in the Scottish capital Edinburgh. The name Holyrood is also used informally as a reference to the parliament (to distinguish it from London's "Westminster"). (Wikipedia) In the wall of the Scottish Parliament, a sculpture called "Canongate Wall" is incorporated. This artwork consists of a selection of igneous, metamorphic, and sedimentary rocks from all over Scotland with geological or historical significance. Most of the stones are engraved with quotes, chosen by the Scottish people. The sculpture, created by Gillian Forbes and Martin Reilly in 2002, consists of flat panels with quotes, various vertical pieces of dolerite, an engraved paving stone, and numerous other large objects.