Hotels near Calton Hill

Calton Hill is the easiest climb on this list and gives you the postcard view of Edinburgh - castle and Old Town silhouetted against the Pentland Hills, with Arthur's Seat looming behind. It is around 103 metres high, and the path from Regent Road takes ten minutes at a leisurely pace.

The summit is dotted with neoclassical monuments that earned Edinburgh the nickname 'Athens of the North'. The National Monument of Scotland - an unfinished Parthenon replica abandoned in 1829 when funds ran out - is the most photographed, alongside the Nelson Monument (a stone telescope you can climb for around £8) and the columned Dugald Stewart Monument, the structure that appears in nearly every Edinburgh skyline shot. Bring a flask, claim a bench, and time your visit for sunset, when the Old Town turns gold and the wind drops.

Pro Tip: Approach from Regent Road's stepped path (off Waterloo Place) rather than the road - it is shorter, prettier, and avoids the car park. Watch the sunset from the eastern flank looking towards Arthur's Seat for the most dramatic angle.