Calton Hill
Address: Calton Hill, Edinburgh, EH7 5AA
Calton Hill is an iconic hill in Edinburgh. It is a short and easy walk to the top for beautiful panoramic views of the city. The entrance for the path to walk up Calton Hill is on Regent Road, to the east of Princes Street. The hill is a landmark in itself, with a collection of neoclassical monuments filling the skyline. Monuments and landmarks on Calton Hill include the National Monument, Nelson Monument, City Observatory, Dugald Stewart Monument, Burns Monument and the Portuguese Cannon.
This is the venue for many events throughout the year, including the annual Beltane Fire Festival in April. It is also a great place to view the fireworks at the end of Edinburgh International Festival in August/September and during the Hogmanay celebrations at the stroke of midnight on New Year’s Day.
5 things to do on Calton Hill
- Take in spectacular panoramic views of the city from the top of Calton Hill.
- Visit the National Monument. It was meant to be a replica of the Parthenon in Athens, in honour of those who died in the Napoleonic Wars. They began construction on the National Monument in 1826, but then ran out of funds three years later. So, today it stands upon Calton Hill unfinished, with just twelve columns, dubbed “Edinburgh’s shame”.
- Climb the Nelson Monument, a tower designed and built from 1806 to 1816 to commemorate Admiral Nelson’s victory and death at the Battle of Trafalgar. In 1852 they added a Time Ball to the monument as a time signal for ships, which still drops at 1 pm six days a week. On the anniversary of the battle 21st October each year, Trafalgar Day, flags fly from the monument.
- Look around the City Observatory or Old Observatory. This is an astronomical building, designed by William Playfair in 1818, based on a Greek temple. It is now open to the public as an exhibition venue.
- Visit the historic Old Calton Burial Ground at the bottom of the hill, the resting place of several famous Scots, including philosopher David Hume and scientist John Playfair. There are also two monuments; the Political Martyrs’ Monument and the American Civil War Memorial.
