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Edinburgh Leasing

Did You Know?

Edinburgh has got to be one of the most mysterious cities in Europe. Its dark, medieval walls hold so many secrets, most of which we probably don’t even know about. Did you know about Edinburgh’s knighted penguin? Or the misleading Royal ‘Mile’? With the Edinburgh Fringe just around the corner, what better time to learn some more about the city. 

There will be over 3000 shows will be staged with a total of 50,000 performances across 300 venues. The population of Edinburgh doubles in size during Fringe with people travelling from far and wide just to experience it. This festival should be on everyone’s bucket list, this year it kicks off on 3 August.

Much of J K Rowling’s inspiration for the Harry Potter books derived from Edinburgh. In fact, she wrote the majority of Harry Potter books while living in the city and you can visit some of the coffee shops and hotels such as Elephant House and Balmoral Hotel where she spent time writing the novels.

Edinburgh Castle sits on Castle Rock, a 700 million year old extinct volcano. Make sure you're here at 1pm to see the 'One O'Clock Gun' fires be shot from the castle. This takes place every day in the capital (except Sundays) where spectators gather in the park to watch.

After a long post out in Sri Lanka in 1838, the 78th Highlanders came back to Edinburgh Castle with a surprise… They brought an elephant back with them as their regimental mascot and, in true Scottish style, it quickly developed a love for beer.

Who knew? We've already talked about The Edinburgh Fringe Festival in August is the biggest arts festival in the world. Then there's the Edinburgh International Book Festival, the largest festival of its kind.

This vibrant and happening city has a deep dark past though. Witch hunts, gruesome murders, lakes filled with dead bodies: Edinburgh had it all. To this day, it is considered to be one of the most haunted cities in the world. Apparently spending the night at Edinburgh Castle is terrifying.

Back in the 1800s, Edinburgh had the nickname of Auld Reekie, meaning “old smokey”. It gained this title due to the poor air quality created by the many coal and wood fires in the city. From a distance the city appeared to be sitting in a cloud of smoke.

One of the funniest Edinburgh city facts is that the Royal Mile isn’t technically a mile long. Sitting in the Old Town, stretching from Edinburgh Castle to Holyrood Palace, the Royal Mile is actually 1.13 miles and composed of several shorter streets. Furthermore, this isn’t the road’s official name, and businesses along it must use their real postal addresses.

Many scenes in the Harry Potter films were also shot in Edinburgh; you’ll find a lot of familiar locations if you know where to look. You can take a Harry Potter tour, find a location guide online, or simply take a wander and see where you recognise. There are a few Potter themed shops that will get you in the mood too.