Jedburgh, Melrose and Roslin
If you’re based in Edinburgh, you could spend a day driving south of Edinburgh and visiting the historical towns of Jedburgh, Melrose and Roslin.
Robert the Bruce and Mary Queen of Scots feature in this area, in stories significant enough to rival their counterparts.
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If you are travelling around the United Kingdom, the best way is by car. Not only do you get to see more but you will find more hidden gems that the average traveller doesn’t see.
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Drive South of Edinburgh
Jedburgh
Jedburgh is an hour and a quarter south of Edinburgh. This is the town that I drove down to first to start my journey exploring these three towns.
You can easily find the attractions in Jedburgh by walking from one to the other. You can park at the large car park on Canongate near the VisitScotland iCentre. In this town, you will find a lot of Scottish history, and the walls don’t have to talk to learn about it.
Mary, Queen of Scot’s House
Just a short walk from the car park is Mary, Queen of Scot’s House, a residence where she only spent a month of her life.
You are free to wander around this three-storey house, which has yet another spiral staircase from the period. This one is a left-handed spiral. The Kerr’s who owned the house were left-handed, and it was the best way to defend yourself if needed.
Paintings, documents and jewellery bring her story to life, which also includes one of the surviving death masks on display.
Hours
| April – October 2024 | Monday – Saturday 10.00 – 16.00 Sunday 10.00 – 15.00 |
| November 2024 | Monday – Sunday 10.00 – 15.00 |
The last admission is 30 minutes before closing.
You can check their website here for any changes or more information.
Prices
Admission is free, although donations are welcomed. Check their website here for tickets and prices.
Jedburgh Castle Jail and Museum
Walking to the Jedburgh Castle Jail and Museum is the longest walk you’ll take in this town, and it’s uphill to the Jail and Museum. You could also park here in their large car park.
Inside you’ll find cells with prisoners’ stories of how they lived during their incarceration and plenty of interactive activities, especially for the kids.
In the museum, you’ll find an audio-visual guide as well as artefacts telling tales of those who occupied these lands over the centuries. For the kids, there is a chance to dress up and feel what it was like for kids a couple of hundred years ago, incarcerated.
Jedburgh Jail and Museum is an excellent attraction for the whole family as the kids will be entertained as well as you.
Hours
April – October 2022
- Daily 10:00-16:00
The last admission is 30 minutes before closing.
Check their website here for more times or if there are any closures.
Prices
Your donations are welcome, although admission is free. You can book through their website here.
Jedburgh Abbey
Part of Historic Scotland, Jedburgh Abbey can be used with your Explorer Pass or Historic Scotland Pass if you have one. It is well worth getting a pass if you are visiting Scotland, as even visiting a few of their sites helps save you money. You can read more about the UK passes in my blog here.
Inside the visitor centre, you’ll find displays of artefacts and stone carvings dating back 1300 years that have been excavated from the grounds.
The Abbey belonged to the Augustinian monks who lived a secluded life but still helped the community in the 1100s.
Its demise was down to the disputes between Scotland and England. Being on the Borders, the Abbey was always in the firing line and of course, there was the Protestant Reformation of 1560, which signalled the end.
Even in its ruined state, you can get an idea of how big this Abbey was. As you walk through its archways and around the grounds, it really is a marvel of its time.
Hours
20 Mar to 30 Sept:
Daily, 9.30 am to 5.00 pm
Last entry 4.30 pm
1 Oct to 28 Mar:
Daily, 10 am to 4 pm
Last entry 3.15 pm
Prices
- Member/Explorer Pass holder: Free
- Adult: £3.80
- Child aged 7-15: £2.30
- Child under 7: Free
- Concession: £3.00
There is masonry work being done at the moment and prices are reflective of that. Check their website here for more/up-to-date pricing or to book.
Melrose
I next stopped at Melrose which was just over an hour south of Edinburgh.
Melrose Abbey
Another Historic Scotland site, Melrose Abbey, is another example of how big and grand the Abbeys were in their time.
Once again, its history is marred by the constant battles between the Scots and the English.
In the carved stoneworks up high on the walls, keep a lookout for the famous bagpipe-playing Melrose pig.
Melrose Abbey was also a favourite place for Robert the Bruce. He declared that he would like his heart to be buried at the Abbey. In 1996 during excavations, the urn containing his heart was found. He is now buried somewhere within the Abbey without a marker.
Hours
29 Mar Apr to 30 Sept:
Daily, 9.30 am to 5 pm (last entry 4.30 pm)
1 Oct to 28 Mar:
Daily, 10 am to 4 pm (last entry 3.30 pm)
Prices
See their website here for more prices.
Roslin
Roslin is the closest town at only a 20-minute or so drive south of Edinburgh but has just as much to show you as the others.
Rosslyn Chapel
Known as being a star in The Da Vinci Code, Rosslyn Chapel attracts around 200,000 visitors a year with a car park large enough to accommodate everyone.
Interactive information boards are in the visitor’s centre, as well as information talks inside the Chapel regularly during the day. It is in these talks that you hear about the secrets that Rosslyn holds in its carvings and how the Chapel came about, and there are many stories to be heard.
I cannot begin to describe what it is like inside. You will not believe the intricate work on the stone. You have to see it to believe it.
I can understand why you can’t photos as there are people everywhere looking up and around, and it wouldn’t be pretty if you added cameras to the mix.
Outside on the grounds, you can learn what it was like to live during the late Middle Ages into the Renaissance.
Hours
There are five 90-minute timeslots from Monday to Saturday and 3 90-minute timeslots on Sunday.
Check their website here for times you can book.
Prices
- Adults £10.50
- Concessions £9
- Under 18s with family FREE
Tickets need to be booked online. You can find the link here.
Roslin Glen Country Park and Rosslyn Castle
Just a short walk from the Chapel is the Roslin Glen Country Park and Rosslyn Castle.
The ruins of Rosslyn Castle also include the “new” house, which is private but is used for rental accommodation. You can walk across the bridge and see what is left of the old castle before heading down the path to the Roslin Glen Country Park for a walk in nature.
You could also drive down to Roslin Country Park to explore the many walkways that it contains on a day trip south of Edinburgh.
After seeing the Chapel, I loved spending the afternoon wandering beside the river and amongst the trees in this nature oasis. You can also enjoy a picnic before exploring the grounds and find the spot that was used in season one of Outlander at the Old Gunpowder Mill.
Conclusion
If you only have the time to visit one of these towns South of Edinburgh, I would recommend Roslin and Rosslyn Chapel.
If you want to check out UK passes, read my blog Explore the UK with Passes. These passes are invaluable in saving you money while you see the attractions south of Edinburgh as well as the rest of the country.
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Links
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I’ve been to Edinburgh a few times but never gone outside the city. These attractions are beautiful & with such a fascinating history. As our travel restrictions continue I am thinking of exploring our own shores more. This are looks like a great one to add to my list!
They are all great to visit, Sue, but you definitely can’t miss Rosslyn Chapel. It is so beautiful and amazing.
I love this post! SO many of my absolute favorite things – Abbeys! I was at Rosslyn way back in High School but I SO hope to get back to Edinburgh to see more of these beautiful ruins! Thank you!
Thanks, Cate, I hope that you can get back to Edinburgh soon and check out the Abbeys and revisit Rosslyn.
Beautiful shots. It looks like you had some gorgeous sunny days. We visited Scotland a few years ago, but Edinburgh was as far south as we got. I’d love to go back and do more exploring. I love the history and architecture. Thanks for sharing these places.
Thanks, Nancy. I hope that you get back and explore the Borders of Scotland as you would love it. There is so much history, and the architecture of Rosslyn Chapel is incredible.