The Royal Mile is the main street of the Old Town, which leads from the castle at the top of the hill straight to Holyrood House: on this magnificent downhill street you can see all the main attractions of the old town, wonderful period buildings, shops of typical products and old pubs, warm and cosy.
The very long mile is divided into four distinct sections, Castlehill, Lawnmarket, High Street and Canongate, each with its own distinctive character. From these streets an intricate series of closes opens outwards, narrow covered passageways leading to inner courtyards, or pends, steep alleys that descend almost vertically from the hill. These ravines give the city a particularly suggestive atmosphere, the unmistakable medieval and Gothic character of Edinburgh, especially thanks to the grey stones of the palaces.
