- 1.5 h
- 4 km
- Start City Chambers.
Finish Stockbridge Market. Moderate activity level. Stairs and uneven surfaces.
- Audio Tour
- 8.50 pp
- Purchase more than one and receive a discount
Have a listen
A self-guided walking audio tour in the Georgian New Town of Edinburgh.
In 90 minutes, you’ll learn how Edinburgh became the largest planned town development in the world – and a “model city”. The narrator will share old maps and drawings with you.
Although its original Georgian fabric has suffered many alterations, the tour will show you clear traces of the former neoclassical city. You’ll see the often overlooked details in the fanlights and elegant ironwork of the original New Town street lights.
On this route full of breathtaking landscapes, you’ll dive into the economic and political influence of the union between Scotland and England.
- Audio
- 1.5h
Edinburgh’s New Town:
The Architecture of Money
“We’ve done architectural tours in a number of cities and this ranks among the top!”
Highlights
- The only villa in the New Town
- One of the first semi-detached houses in Scotland
- My favourite urban sequence in Edinburgh
- The first planned square in the city
How audio tours work
When you purchase directly from us, you donate £1 from every tour to the Society for Protection of Ancient Buildings.
- After you paid for the tour, you will receive an activation code by email, along with detailed instructions that follow below.
- To go out and do the tour, all you need is a free audio tour VoiceMap app for iPhones and Android devices. Install it on your smartphone via Apple AppStore or Google Play's store.
- Find your tour in the app by entering your code that you received in the email from us.
- Download the tour to your fully charged smartphone. The audio will be available offline along with an offline map.
- Fetch some earphones and explore with our guide in your ear.
- The tours are location aware, so you will hear directions and stories as you move.
- Pause anytime in wonderful cafes and shops, and take as many pictures as you please!
More about the audio tour in Edinburgh New Town
Along the way, I’ll also answer questions like:
- What inspired the designers of the New Town?
- To what extent were the New Towners’ fortunes connected to slavery?
- Why was so much of the now listed Georgian New Town demolished?
- Why won’t Edinburgh clean its blackened sandstone facades?
On this Georgian period history walk we will explore how the orderly, symmetrical Neoclassical masterplan of Edinburgh’s New Town became the physical embodiment of the Scottish Enlightenment.
Indeed, this brave vision would not have been possible without the intellectual curiosity and confidence of the era.
City Chambers - the promise of the New Town
We will start our walk in the dignified courtyard of City Chambers, which was one of the first improvements to the city brought by Lord Provost George Drummond.
While crossing the North Bridge we will appreciate the elegant dome of Robert Adam’s Register House, that was to set the tone for the further development of the splendid New Town.
The First New Town
Further, an unexpected ensemble in Thistle Court will surprise you with its contrasting nature to the rest of the Neoclassical tenements.
Dundas house, the only villa in the New Town, will reveal an exquisite later extension with a starlit dome, serving as a banking hall.
The gem of New Town - Charlotte Square
Once in Charlotte square, you will admire Robert Adam’s magnificent palatial façades, which will help discover the origins of ubiquitous classical details such as bucrania, and sphinxes.
Here we will also find the elegant original ironwork such as street lights, railings, and boot scrapers.
Greek Revival in Moray estate
Built on the slopes, Lord Moray’s development in Greek Revival style will impress even those who travel to far less humble cities than Edinburgh.
More about the audio tour in Edinburgh New Town
Along the way, we’ll answer questions like:
- What inspired the designers of the New Town?
- To what extent were the New Towners’ fortunes connected to slavery?
- Why was so much of the now listed Georgian New Town demolished?
- Why won’t Edinburgh clean its blackened sandstone facades?
On this Georgian period history walk we will explore how the orderly, symmetrical Neoclassical masterplan of Edinburgh’s New Town became the physical embodiment of the Scottish Enlightenment.
Indeed, this brave vision would not have been possible without the intellectual curiosity and confidence of the era.
City Chambers - the promise of the New Town
We will start our walk in the dignified courtyard of City Chambers, which was one of the first improvements to the city brought by Lord Provost George Drummond.
While crossing the North Bridge we will appreciate the elegant dome of Robert Adam’s Register House, that was to set the tone for the further development of the splendid New Town.
The First New Town
Further, an unexpected ensemble in Thistle Court will surprise you with its contrasting nature to the rest of the Neoclassical tenements.
Dundas house, the only villa in the New Town, will reveal an exquisite later extension with a starlit dome, serving as a banking hall.
The gem of New Town - Charlotte Square
Once in Charlotte square, you will admire Robert Adam’s magnificent palatial façades, which will help discover the origins of ubiquitous classical details such as bucrania, and sphinxes.
Here we will also find the elegant original ironwork such as street lights, railings, and boot scrapers.
Greek Revival in Moray estate
Built on the slopes, Lord Moray’s development in Greek Revival style will impress even those who travel to far less humble cities than Edinburgh.
Frequently asked questions
Yes, we offer private walking tours guided by a local architect, for groups of up to 30 people.
Absolutely, if you are curious about cities and culture, an architecture tour will reveal lots of insights about Edinburgh.
Yes, except Dean Village where the audio tour passes through a cemetery.
After you paid for the tour, you will receive an activation code by email, along with detailed instructions.
To go out and do the tour, all you need is a free audio tour VoiceMap app for iPhones and Android devices. Install it on your smartphone via Apple AppStore or Google Play’s store.
Once purchased, Edinburgh audio tours are not refundable. However, your ticket will be valid indefinitely, so you can take the tour at any date, gift it to someone else, or enjoy a virtual tour.
The audio tour is available in English. Guided tours for private groups are also available in French.
On most audio tours of Edinburgh, we climb from 20 to a 100 steps. Our flattest walking audio tour is in the New Town.
Yes, but for the optimal experience and understanding of the content we recommend following a preset order.
Frequently asked questions
Yes, we offer private walking tours guided by a local architect, for groups of up to 30 people.
Absolutely, if you are curious about cities and culture, an architecture tour will reveal lots of insights about Edinburgh.
Yes, except Dean Village where the audio tour passes through a cemetery.
After you paid for the tour, you will receive an activation code by email, along with detailed instructions.
To go out and do the tour, all you need is a free audio tour VoiceMap app for iPhones and Android devices. Install it on your smartphone via Apple AppStore or Google Play’s store.
Once purchased, Edinburgh audio tours are not refundable. However, your ticket will be valid indefinitely, so you can take the tour at any date, gift it to someone else, or enjoy a virtual tour.
The audio tour is available in English. Guided tours for private groups are also available in French.
On most audio tours of Edinburgh, we climb from 20 to a 100 steps. Our flattest walking audio tour is in the New Town.
Yes, but for the optimal experience and understanding of the content we recommend following a preset order.