The Writers’ Museum and Makar’s Court

The Writers' Museum, contains a rich collection of manuscripts, first editions and portraits dedicated to the lives and work of Scotland’s great literary figures, particularly Robert Burns, Sir Walter Scott and Robert Louis Stevenson.

The adjacent Makars’ (Scots for poet) Court with its inscribed flagstones celebrates Scottish writers from the 14th century John Barbour to the present day.

Admission: Free
Monday to Saturday 10am–5pm
Sundays during August only 12 noon–5pm

For more information please visit,www.edinburgh.gov.uk/museums.

Museum of Childhood

The Museum of Childhood is a favourite with adults and children alike. It is a treasure house crammed full of objects telling of childhood past and present.

Discover how children have been brought up, dressed and educated in decades gone by and enjoy one of the regular temporary exhibitions and events.

Admission: Free
Monday-Saturday 10am–5pm
Sunday 12-5pm

For more information please visit,www.edinburgh.gov.uk/museums.

The People’s Story

Housed in the Cannongate Tolbooth, a former tax collecting house, court and prison, The People’s Story is a museum dedicated to the history of the people of Edinburgh.

The museum is filled with the sights, sounds and smells of the past. Feel the despair of the dungeon; the convivial camaraderie of the ‘pub’; the declarations of the town crier and the demands of political and social reformers.

Admission: Free
Monday–Saturday 10am–5pm (Sundays during August only 12 noon-5pm)

For more information please visit,www.edinburgh.gov.uk/museums.

The Museum of Edinburgh

Set in a series of interconnected 16th and 17th century buildings the Museum is packed with artefacts illustrating the development of the city, from the earliest settlement to the present day.
Highlights of the collection include the National Covenant, the great petition for religious freedom signed by Scotland’s Presbyterians in 1638, and the collar and feeding bowl of Grayfriars Bobby’s.

Admission: Free
Monday-Saturday 10am-5pm (Sundays during August only 12 noon-5pm)
Access by stairs only. Guide dogs welcome.

For more information please visit,www.edinburgh.gov.uk/museums.

The Edinburgh Brass Rubbing Centre

Making a brass rubbing is easy and fun for all the family. There’s a great range of monumental facsimile brasses from which to choose including medieval knights, Scottish Pictish symbols and Celtic designs.
No experience is required and helpful staff are always on hand to demonstrate how.

Admission: Free
Cost for brass rubbing: varies depending on size.
April to September: Monday-Saturday 10am–5pm (Sundays August only 12-5pm)
Closed October to March, but open to groups. Please call to arrange.

For more information please visit,www.edinburgh.gov.uk/museums.

Queensferry Museum

Situated in the historic former Royal Burgh of Queensferry, the museum commands magnificent views of the great bridges spanning the Forth.

It traces the history of the people of Queensferry and Dalmeny, the historic ferry passage to Fife, the construction of the rail and road bridges, and spotlights the wildlife of the Forth estuary.

Admission: Free
Monday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday 10am–1pm and 2.15pm–5pm
Sundays 12 noon–5pm
Closed Tuesday and Wednesdays

For more information please visit,www.edinburgh.gov.uk/museums.

City Art Centre

Located in the heart of Edinburgh by Waverley Station, with six exhibition galleries, the City Art Centre is both home to the City of Edinburgh’s outstanding collection of Scottish art and one of the United Kingdom’s top temporary exhibition spaces.

Admission: Free to our permanent collection
Most temporary exhibitions are free but occasionally there is a small admission charge.

For more information please visit,www.edinburgh.gov.uk/cityartcentre