The moment I found out Holyrood Park is an extinct volcano, I knew I was going to love it. In fact, I think “park” is a bit of an understatement for such vast and rugged plains, even if they are in the middle of the city. The park sits at one end of the Royal Mile, rising proudly out of the ground and towering over Edinburgh.
With three lochs, religious ruins, forts from the Dark Ages and even a palace, Holyrood Park is a monument to both modern and ancient history. There is way more to see than you’d believe in its 650 acres, and I ended up passing a whole day in the park’s wild expanse.
Here are my five highlights to spend a day exploring Holyrood Park.
Holyrood Abbey
Holyrood Abbey gives the park its name, and was founded in 1128 by King David I. The story goes that the king was out hunting one day when he fell from his horse and was charged at by a stag. Instead of being killed by the animal, a vision of a cross appeared between the stag’s antlers, which then left him in peace. In honour and thanks of this, the king thereby named the abbey ‘Holyrood’, meaning “holy cross”.
In the centuries since then, many Scottish kings and queens were born, married, crowned or buried there. However, during the Reformation in the mid-1500s Holyrood Abbey was sacked multiple times. It was then desecrated again 100 years later during the Glorious Revolution. Now all that remains is the skeleton of the original abbey, with crumbling pillars and no roof.
Yet as I wandered through the abbey, I decided it was still quite impressive. The high ceilings of the aisle vault and the giant arched window of the nave remain. They gave me a little sense of the religious grandeur that Holyrood Abbey once emanated. It’s sad that it didn’t survive Great Britain’s turbid religious conflicts.
Palace of Holyroodhouse
Luckily Holyrood Palace didn’t go the same way as the abbey! It was built in the early 1500s right next to the abbey, and as the abbey began to deteriorate, the palace flourished and grew. It’s still a working palace and remains the official residence of the Scottish monarch (in this case Queen Elizabeth II).
It’s fortunate she wasn’t at home while I was in Edinburgh, as this meant I could pay the palace visit. Though many of the rooms are frequently in use, it’s still possible to meander through the palace. Equipped with my trusty audio guide, I wove through the state apartments, great gallery and throne room.
I was most excited to visit Mary, Queen of Scots’ chambers. She lived at Holyrood Palace when she returned from France to rule Scotland, and married both her Scottish husbands in the palace. I stood in the spot where her second husband famously and brutally murdered her private secretary right in front of her, thinking about the generations of royal secrets the palace must have seen.
Arthur’s Seat
According to legend, Arthur’s Seat was once the location of Camelot, and is thus named after King Arthur. It is the largest of three volcanic fragments that remain in Edinburgh. As the city’s highest point, it dominates the skyline and it was my first impression of Edinburgh as my train pulled into the station.
I decided to climb up Arthur’s Seat on my first evening, too impatient to wait until my planned trip to Holyrood Park the following day. I hiked the steepest, shortest path, and had the many tacking steps to myself. The path wasn’t difficult, but the wind was ferocious and I scrambled up the last section on all fours. Eventually I made it to the summit, arriving just in time for sunset.
From the top I could see as far as Leith and Edinburgh’s coastline, the city itself, and the great expanse of Holyrood Park, which was dyed reddish by the setting sun. Despite the intense wind, I stayed rooted to the summit, watching the sun disappear. I only began to descend when I realised how dark it had become.
The whole experience was exhilarating. I enjoyed it so much that I hiked up again for sunrise the next morning, an early but invigorating start to my day in Holyrood Park.
Salisbury Crags
However much I loved climbing to Arthur’s Seat, I think Salisbury Crags is the most beautiful part of Holyrood Park. Not necessarily from the city centre, though the rocky cliff face hovering over Edinburgh is definitely pretty cool. Instead, my favourite view of Holyrood Park is from the steep hike up Arthur’s Seat from the west.
I’m so pleased I turned my attention from the winding stone stairs as I climbed up to the summit. Behind me was Salisbury Crags, sweeping outwards and upwards towards the sky.
Created by a combination of volcanic and glacial activity millions of years ago, this view of the crags was unlike anything I’ve ever seen. It juts out at such a strange angle. It looked to me like a giant spaceship crash-landed in the city so long ago that grass had since taken root and covered it. All over, meandering paths were etched into the earth like stretch marks.
If I hadn’t been racing the sun to reach Arthur’s Seat before dusk, I could have stared at the strange and beautiful crags all evening.
Saint Anthony’s Chapel
From Arthur’s Seat and Salisbury Crags, the ruins of Saint Anthony’s Chapel are easy to spot protruding from the cliff edge. No one seems to know what the chapel’s origins are, or when it was built. However, it’s likely that, along with Holyrood Abbey, it fell into disrepair after the Reformation.
In its prime, it must have been an impressive beacon to hikers in the park, or even in the city below. Yet now, so little of the chapel remains that it’s hard to tell it was once a religious building of any kind.
Though it’s easy to glimpse from afar, the chapel is harder to reach than it appears. I nearly missed it as I explored Holyrood Park, because it was so hidden. At the last minute I remembered to turn off the main path and down a little track that I hoped would lead me in the direction of the chapel. After fighting through the yellow gorse that had engulfed the track, I eventually reached the ruins.
The chapel is perched on a cliff edge, with a sheer drop down to St Margaret’s Loch. From one side the ruins overlook the city of Edinburgh and Holyrood Palace. Stepping through the stark doorway and towards the edge of the cliff, I turned to look back at the ruins. From here, Salisbury Crags and Holyrood’s rugged landscape were framed by the chapel’s desolated form.
What I loved above all about Holyrood Park was how untamed it is. It’s an amazing example of how wilderness can be found right in the middle of a city. Even after summitting the volcano, there’s still so much to see and do within the park’s acres. Exploring Holyrood Park was the absolute highlight of my time in Edinburgh.
Equipped with these highlights, I hope you also enjoy a day in the park as much as I did!
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