Edinburgh, Scotland: A Bookworm’s Haven

For the people who experience both wanderlust and bibliophilism, there are several cities and countless sights to visit that will quench both passions simultaneously. Although, the best city to visit in the world for book lovers happens to be Edinburg, Scotland, the first ever UNESCO city of Literature.

Edinburgh, Scotland is the birthplace of plentiful publishers, print houses, and numerous established authors such as Robert Burns, James Hogg, Ian Rankin, and JK Rowling just to name a few. There is a mass amount of literary related places in Edinburgh to check out, but here are a handful of them.

If you are looking to spot a local celebrity author, the Oxford Bar is known to have a few regulars that qualify, such as Ian Rankin. If you are a person who enjoys being frightened while you shop for books, Armchair Books is considered one of the most frightening bookshops to ever exist, while also carrying a great selection.

The Elephant House is a café that was JK Rowling's regular spot for writing the Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone. Also, for Harry Potter fans, there is Victoria Street, which was the inspiration for Diagon Alley. Conveniently located on Victoria Street is the Writers' Museum, which features the evolution of printed books as well as a magnificent bookshop.

To top of the literary greatness of Edinburgh, in 2011 ten elaborate sculptures based off of books written by famous Scottish authors were hidden at different cultural locations around the city. Needless to say, Edinburgh has a mysterious book sculpture fairy.

If you have already been to Edinburgh, and want to expand your literary horizons, there are five other UNESCO literary cities you should consider traveling to. These are: Iowa City, Iowa; Norwich, England; Melbourne, Australia; Dublin, Ireland; and Reykjavik, Iceland. Within these cities contains museums, bookshops, literary history, writing centers, and libraries that will make your bibliophilic dreams come true.