AROUND TOWN | Museums & Attractions
Sat 10am–5pm; Fri & Sun 11am–5pm; closed Mon. Free. Another wonderful building designed by Charles Rennie Mackintosh, the museum details the history of the country’s education system from the time of Queen Victoria right through to the swinging 60s. The Games We Play An exhibition looking at the culture of game playing across centuries and countries. ■ THE SCOTTISH FOOTBALL MUSEUM Hampden Park, 616 6139, scottishfootballmuseum.org.uk Mon–Sat 10am–5pm; Sun 11am–5pm. Stadium tour £8 (£3.50); museum entry £7 (£3); combined ticket £11 (£5); under 5s free. Located inside Scotland’s national football stadium a couple of miles south of the city centre, this museum displays all kinds of memorabilia and offers tours of the stadium itself.
■ ST MUNGO MUSEUM OF RELIGIOUS ART & LIFE 2 Castle Street, 276 1625, glasgowlife. org.uk/museums Tue–Thu & Sat 10am– 5pm; Fri & Sun 11am–5pm; closed Mon. Free. Situated across the road from the Provand’s Lordship, this museum holds artwork and historical artefacts exploring the role of religion in people’s lives, promoting understanding and respect between faiths. In Honour’s Cause: Glasgow’s World War I Memorials Until Apr 2015. Photographic exhibition documenting the city’s WWI memorials, from plaques to monuments. ■ THE TALL SHIP AT RIVERSIDE 150 Pointhouse Place, 357 3699, thetallship.com Daily 10am–5pm (last entry 4.30pm). Free. Step aboard the Glenlee, one of only five Clyde-built ships still afloat today. Learn about the maritime history of the area through talks, tours and costume days.
EDINBURGH
■ CAMERA OBSCURA & WORLD OF ILLUSIONS Castlehill, 226 3709, camera-obscura. co.uk 9.30am–7pm (8pm on school holidays) £12.95 (£10.95; under 16s £9.50; under 5s free). The ‘camera’ is a giant periscope inside a Victorian rooftop tower on the Royal Mile, giving a spectacular 360° perspective on Edinburgh, plus there’s interactive optical fun galore.
■ DEEP SEA WORLD Battery Quarry, North Queensferry, 01383 411880, deepseaworld.com Mon– Fri 10am–5pm; Sat & Sun 10am–6pm. £13.50 (£11.50; under 13s £9.50; under 3s free; family £40–£44). Home to everything from seals to piranhas, this marine life centre has a petting area and underwater tunnel so you can get to grips with the deep. Approximately a 20-minute drive from Edinburgh.
■ EDINBURGH CASTLE AND NATIONAL WAR MUSEUM OF SCOTLAND Castlehill, 225 9846 (info)/ 668 8081 (bookings), edinburghcastle.gov.uk / nms.ac.uk/war Until 30 Sep daily 9.30am–6pm (last entry 5pm); From 1 Oct 9.30am–5pm (last entry 4pm). £16 (£12.80; children £9.60; under 5s free). Perhaps Edinburgh’s most visible landmark, the Castle includes ceremonial rooms, fortifications, dungeons and Scotland’s Honours or crown jewels. Inside, the National War Museum delves into the past 400 years of the country’s military history. Next of Kin Until Mar 2015. A look at Scotland at war, and how people at home deal with the absence or loss of loved ones. ■ THE EDINBURGH DUNGEON 31 Market Street, 240 1001 (info) / 0871 423 2250 (bookings), thedungeons.com
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10am–5pm. £10.95–£16.50 (£10.50– 15.60; under 16s £9.50–£12.60; family £39–£49.80). A grizzly look into historical Edinburgh, with actor-led tours and rides, just above Waverley Station. With special opening hours around Hallowe’en. ■ EDINBURGH ZOO Corstorphine Road, 334 9171, edinburghzoo.org.uk Until 30 Sep daily 9am–6pm (last entry 5pm); From 1 Oct 9am–5pm (last entry 4pm). £16.50 (£14; under 16s £12; under 3s free; family £36.45–£62.10). Visitors can see the headline-grabbing giant pandas, the famous Penguin Parade and over 1000 other rare and interesting animals and birds at this site three miles west of the city centre.
■ HOLYROOD PARK Holyrood Park Road, 652 8150, historic-scotland.gov.uk Open at all times; Holyrood Lodge Information Centre daily 9.30am–3pm. Free. The main entrance to this large royal park, east of the city centre, is flanked by the Palace of Holyrood House and the Scottish Parliament Building. Its main feature is Arthur’s Seat, an 823-foot hill which has a number of smaller peaks and ponds surrounding it.
■ MUSEUM OF CHILDHOOD 42 High Street, 529 4142, edinburghmuseums.org.uk Mon–Sat 10am–5pm; Sun noon–5pm. Free. Kids can learn about the toys, clothes and lifestyles of children of the past in this Royal Mile museum. ■ MUSEUM ON THE MOUND The Mound, 243 5464, museumonthemound.com Tue–Fri 10am–5pm; Sat & Sun 1–5pm; closed Mon. Free. Hosted inside the Bank of Scotland’s head office, this museum is all about money. Learn how money has evolved over the past 4000 years or try cracking a safe.
n NATIONAL MINING MUSEUM SCOTLAND Lady Victoria Colliery, Newtongrange, 663 7519, scottishminingmuseum.com Daily 10am–5pm. £8.50 (£6.50; children free). Nine miles south of Edinburgh, this museum is one of the best-preserved Victorian collieries in Europe.
■ NATIONAL MUSEUM OF SCOTLAND Chambers Street, 0300 123 6789, nms. ac.uk Daily 10am–5pm. Free. Renovated in 2011, this national beacon of culture has exhibitions on natural history, science and technology, Scottish history, art and design and world cultures in galleries surrounding a beautiful naturally lit atrium space.
Ming: The Golden Empire An overview of the legacy of
Commonwealth Scots and the Great War Until
Sun 12 Oct. To commemorate the outbreak of war in 1914, this exhibition looks at the relationship between Scottish identity and the emerging national identities of the former British Empire.
■ OUR DYNAMIC EARTH Holyrood Road, 550 7800, dynamicearth. co.uk Daily 10am–5.30pm (last entry 4.30pm). £11–£12.50 (£9.25–£10.50; under 16s £7.25–£7.95; under 3s free). Take an interactive journey through the history of the earth. Go to the tundra or the bottom of the ocean, never being more than a stone’s throw from the Scottish Parliament and Arthur’s Seat. ■ PALACE OF HOLYROODHOUSE Royal Mile, 556 5100, royalcollection.org. uk Daily 9.30am–6pm (last entry 4.30pm).
SCOTTISH BRAVES HARVEST CHILLI FESTIVAL A two-day food fest that warns us to expect nothing but chilli, chilli and more chilli. Returning to Scone Palace, there’ll be local and national dishes to try – think everything from your regular old chilli, to chilli beer, chilli cocktails and chilli cider, plus the chance to really test your taste buds’ mettle with a variety of hot, hot meals. If you’re less interested in getting involved, you can always watch the chilli-eating competition. ■ Scone Palace, Perth, Sat 20 & Sun 21 Sep, 10am–5pm, £6.30 (children £4.40; family £20).
GREAT DAYS OUT
IDEAS
the Ming Dynasty, which ruled China from 1368 to 1644. See original artefacts from the Nanjing Museum in the only UK showing of this major exhibition. FREE Common Cause:
£11.30 (£10.30; under 17s £6.80; under 5s free; family £29.40). The official Scottish residence of the Queen, this baroque palace was once home to Mary, Queen of Scots and now houses the great artworks and tapestries of its regal residents. Poetry for the Palace: Poets Laureate from Dryden to Duffy Until Sun 2 Nov. Exploration of the relationship between the poet and the monarch, with original manuscripts and images of poets including Dryden, Wordsworth, Tennyson and current Laureate, Carol Ann Duffy. ■ REAL MARY KING’S CLOSE 2 Warriston’s Close, High St, 0845 070 6244, realmarykingsclose.com Daily 10am–9pm. £12.95 (£11.45; children £7.45). Beneath the Royal Mile lies a warren of hidden closes where citizens of Edinburgh lived and died in the 16th and 17th centuries. The underground tours are led by guides in the character of real people who lived in the close.
■ ROYAL BOTANIC GARDEN EDINBURGH Inverleith Row, 552 7171, rbge.org.uk Until 30 Sep daily 10am–6pm; after 1 Oct 10am–5pm. Free; glasshouse entry £5 (£4; children free). These gardens, founded in the 17th century, cover over 70 acres and are just one mile from the city centre.
■ ROYAL OBSERVATORY VISITOR CENTRE Blackford Hill, 668 8404, roe.ac.uk/ vc Entry by arrangement or at Public Astronomy evenings (weekly, Fri 7.30–9pm). Public Astronomy evenings £4 (£3). See the stars through the research centre’s magnificent copper domes at weekly astronomy evenings. ■ ROYAL YACHT BRITANNIA Ocean Terminal, Leith, 555 5566, royalyachtbritannia.co.uk Until 30 Sep daily 9.30am–4.30pm; from 1 Oct 9.30am–4pm. £12.75 (£11.50; under 18s £7.75; under 5s free; family £36.50). Take a guided tour of the ornate floating royal residence (and the naval quarters below) and learn about life aboard the yacht.
■ SCOTCH WHISKY EXPERIENCE 354 Castlehill, 220 0441, scotchwhiskyexperience.co.uk Daily 10am–6pm; entry is as part of a tour. Tours £12.75–£52 (£10.25–£26; under 18s £6.50). Learn more about Scotland’s tastiest export with a tour and tasting session. There is also a bar and restaurant if you need a few more drams to help decide which is your favourite.
■ SCOTTISH PARLIAMENT Horse Wynd, 0800 092 7500, scottish. parliament.uk Opening hours vary according to whether Parliament is in session, see website for details. Free. See Spanish architect Enric Miralles’ magnificent (and controversial) Holyrood building, take a tour of the interior, sit in on a debate or look at the artwork on display. ■ SCOTT MONUMENT Princes Street Gardens East, 529 4068, edinburghmuseums.org.uk Until 30 Sep daily 10am–7pm; from 1 Oct 10am–4pm. £4. Commemorating Sir Walter Scott, this is the largest monument of any writer in the world. Take all 287 steps to the top for a great view of the city, plus occasional exhibitions.
■ SCOTTISH STORYTELLING CENTRE AND JOHN KNOX HOUSE 43–45 High Street, 556 9579, scottishstorytellingcentre.co.uk Mon–Sat 10am–6pm. Free entry to SSC; John Knox House £5 (£4; children £1; under 7s free). A stylish contemporary building appended to the 15th century home of Protestant reformer John Knox, housing materials relating to Scotland’s rich oral culture.