The Royal Mile

The Royal Mile is the street that links Edinburgh's two royal residences, and walking it end to end is the best free introduction to the city. It is not a single street name but a sequence: Castlehill at the top beneath the castle Esplanade, then the Lawnmarket, the High Street and finally the Canongate, which was a separate burgh until the nineteenth century, ending at the gates of the Palace of Holyroodhouse and the Scottish Parliament. The route runs along the spine of the ridge left by the glacier that flowed around Castle Rock, which is why the land falls away so steeply on either side — and why the Old Town's characteristic closes and wynds, narrow lanes and stairways, plunge off the main street like ribs. Walking downhill is the way to do it. The upper stretch is the busiest, with the Scotch Whisky Experience, the Camera Obscura and tartan shops; then come Gladstone's Land and Riddle's Court, a 1590s mansion complex where a royal banquet was held for James VI and Anne of Denmark; Lady Stair's Close and the Writers' Museum; and St Giles' Cathedral with Parliament House behind it and the Real Mary King's Close opposite. Below the North Bridge crossing, the street quietens: John Knox House, the Museum of Childhood, the Museum of Edinburgh in a sixteenth-century building and The People's Story across the road (both free), Canongate Kirk and its churchyard, and Dunbar's Close, where a recreated seventeenth-century garden offers a quiet bench. During the Fringe in August the High Street becomes a heaving open-air stage of performers handing out flyers; the rest of the year it is easier to enjoy the architecture and duck into the closes.

Why the closes matter: each close was a private world of tenements, workshops and courtyards, and many are named after a merchant, a trade or an event. Some open into calm courtyards, some drop down hundreds of steps to Cowgate or Market Street, and a few — such as Advocate's Close, framing a view of the Scott Monument across the valley — are among the best photo spots in Edinburgh. Look for Wardrop's Close with its sculpted dragons, Old Fishmarket Close, first recorded in the sixteenth century, and the courtyards off the Lawnmarket. Most are public rights of way; respect the residents, as people still live in many of them.

A walking plan: start at the castle Esplanade early, before the coaches, and allow two to three hours to walk the length slowly with stops, or half a day if you go into the free museums. Mid-morning, step into St Giles' Cathedral (now a paid visit for non-Scottish-resident adults) and look up at its crown spire from Parliament Square. Near the bottom, the Canongate's free museums are some of the most overlooked in the city — the Museum of Edinburgh's collection includes the original National Covenant of 1638 — and Canongate Kirkyard holds the grave of economist Adam Smith. Finish at Holyroodhouse, the Parliament building, or keep walking into Holyrood Park and up Arthur's Seat.

Shopping and eating honestly: the upper Mile is full of tartan and souvenir shops of mixed quality — if you want genuine Scottish wool or tweed, buy from specialists rather than the cheapest windows. Food on the Mile itself tends to be priced for tourists; the side streets, Victoria Street, the Grassmarket below and the Southside around the National Museum offer better value and more character. In winter, the Mile is quieter and moodier, and the closes are at their most atmospheric in the early dark; in August, budget twice the time to cover the same distance.