I love Edinburgh, and the Royal Mile gives you a taste of everything. A castle at one end, and a palace and a parliament at the other. Start at the castle and work your way down the mile to the parliament which will bring you to the foot of Arthers Seat, an extinct volcano. A short hike later and you can have views almost to Glasgow.

The Royal Mile is the street between Edinburgh Castle and the Palace of Holyroodhouse. It is actually 1.7 miles in length. The street itself is not named the Royal Mile but actually several streets connected (Castlehill, Lawnmarket, High Street and Canongate).The Royal Mile contains many pubs, restaurants, shops, tenement houses dating back to the middle ages such as Gladstone's Land, St. Giles Cathedral, John Lock House, Brass Rubbing Center.We took a one and a half hour walking tour called Secrets of the Royal Mile given by Mercat Tours. The tour was very interesting and we did learn many things about t he Royal Mile that were not pointed out such as John Knox's burial place is not in the middle of a parking lot, a statue is misnamed, what the heart-shaped brick mosaic on the Royal Mile represents. We bought the Edinburgh Pass which allows many entrance fees for one price. Many of the attractions are located on the Royal Mile.

This great old street makes you feel your back in medievel times. There is a great backpackers hostel (royal mile backpackers) and in the Italian Restaurant they serve the best risotto and pizza's in town. A family restaurant with great people who prepare your food with passion for normal prices.
At the royal mile you also find a great tourism office, Haggis. Where you book you WildSexy tours through the higlands of Scotland. Really cool. Well, Royal mile is just a really cool street but especially during the Fringe Festival in summer it is really cool, everywhere markets, street artist, music and theatre everywhere!

The Royal Mile is a great walk from Edinburgh Castle to Holyrood House. It's where most walking tours start from and it's very touristy, but that's for a reason! The backpackers hostel is fantastic (across from the Castle) and there are a lot of great places to shop and eat (just expect to pay more because there are so many tourists!). It's the perfect starting point for most of the great attractions in Edinburgh. I'd recommend checking out Camera Obscura and Mary Kings Close, to name a few places.

I loved the Royal Mile! Not only is there great shopping for authentic Scottish products, but the history and scenery is incredible! You feel like you are taking a walk back in time when strolling along this street. I also remember finding a little shop selling meat pies. Eating the pie and drinking tea while watching the people on the street was so great. I hope everyone visiting Edinburgh will have the opportunity to visit this place!