Edinburgh is two cities facing each other across a valley. On one side the medieval Old Town clings to its ridge; on the other lies the New Town, a planned grid of broad streets, airy squares and honey-colored terraces that the city's leaders built in the late 1700s to tempt the well-off out of the crowded tenements. This walk explores that second Edinburgh. It starts in elegant Charlotte Square, drops into Princes Street Gardens beneath the Castle Rock, passes the Gothic spire of the Scott Monument and the banks of St Andrew Square, and climbs to the top of Calton Hill for the finest view in the city. It covers about two and a half kilometers and shares no stops with the Royal Mile walk, so the two pair up well, and it is one of the most satisfying self-guided walking tours in Britain for the sheer grace of its streets.

Before you set off

Allow about two hours at a stroll, more if you climb the Scott Monument or go into the Georgian House on Charlotte Square, both of which charge admission and keep their own hours, so check before you go. The New Town itself is gentle, but there are steps down into Princes Street Gardens and over the Mound, and the walk ends with a short, steep climb up Calton Hill. The Scott Monument's stairs are narrow and spiral, and not for anyone who dislikes tight spaces. Edinburgh weather changes by the hour, so bring a waterproof layer whatever the forecast, and expect wind on Calton Hill. Princes Street Gardens close their gates in the evening, at times that change with the seasons. Mornings are quietest. In August, when the festivals take over the city, every street is busier and livelier, so give yourself extra time. If you can, plan to reach Calton Hill near the end of the day, because sunset over the castle and the Old Town is the best way to finish.

Charlotte Square

Stand in Charlotte Square and look at its north side, a single, palace-like front of columns and pediments that is in fact a row of separate townhouses. It was designed by Robert Adam, the most celebrated Scottish architect of his day, in 1791, and he died the following year, long before it was finished. The square was the last piece of a bold plan. In 1766 the town council held a competition to design a new town on the open fields north of the Old Town, and it was won by James Craig, a young and little-known architect. His plan was simple and elegant: three parallel streets, with George Street as the spine and a grand square at each end. Princes Street and Queen Street were built on one side only, so their houses would look out over gardens. The names flattered the new Hanoverian royal family and the union with England, with Thistle Street and Rose Street for Scotland and England. This square was meant to be St George's Square, and was renamed for Queen Charlotte. Today No. 6, Bute House, is the official residence of Scotland's First Minister, and No. 7 is the Georgian House, furnished as it would have been around 1800. The statue in the middle is Prince Albert. Leave by the southeast corner along South Charlotte Street, where Alexander Graham Bell was born, cross Princes Street, and enter West Princes Street Gardens. Follow the paths east to the gilded fountain below the castle, about seven minutes.

Ross Fountain

The Scott Monument, Edinburgh You are standing below the Castle Rock, in what was once the bottom of a loch. The Nor Loch filled this valley for centuries, a defensive moat for the Old Town and, by all accounts, a filthy dumping ground. It was drained from the 1760s as the New Town went up, and the gardens around you replaced it. Now look at the Ross Fountain, a riot of cast iron, with four seated women representing science, the arts, poetry and industry around the base and a female figure crowning the top. It was made in France at the Durenne foundry and shown at the great London exhibition of 1862, where an Edinburgh gunmaker named Daniel Ross saw it and bought it for his city. It arrived in more than a hundred pieces, and it was finally set up here in 1872. Not everyone was pleased. Some of the city's churchmen thought the lightly dressed figures were indecent and wanted them gone. The fountain stayed, and after a long restoration in 2018 it shines again in teal and gold. Step back toward the path and frame it with the castle above you; this is one of the classic photographs of Edinburgh. When you are ready, walk east through the gardens along the main path. At the end of West Princes Street Gardens, climb the steps up to the Mound, pass the two classical galleries, and drop into East Princes Street Gardens. The tall spire ahead is your next stop, about ten minutes away.

Scott Monument

On the way you crossed the Mound, the great ridge of earth that links the New Town to the Old. It was built largely from the soil dug out for the New Town's foundations, an estimated two million cartloads of it, dumped here over many years. Now crane your neck. The Scott Monument rises about 60 meters above Princes Street, a fantastically ornate Gothic spire often called the largest monument to a writer anywhere. Sir Walter Scott was one of the most famous authors in the world in his day. His Waverley novels, published without his name for years, made Scotland's history romantic to readers everywhere, and Edinburgh's main station, just below you, is named after them. He also stage-managed King George IV's visit to Edinburgh in 1822, wrapping the occasion in tartan and pageantry, and helped turn Highland dress into the national costume. The monument has a story of its own. Its designer, George Meikle Kemp, was a self-taught draftsman who entered the design competition under a false name, won, and then drowned in the Union Canal one foggy night in 1844, before the work was done. Seated beneath the arches is Scott himself in white marble, with his deerhound Maida at his feet, and the niches above hold characters from his books. The stone is dark from a century and more of coal smoke. If you have the legs for it, 287 steps lead to the top. From here, cross Princes Street at the lights and walk north up South St Andrew Street. The square is about four minutes ahead.