About
Victoria Terrace has become a road well-traveled in the Instagram era, as its rainbow array of shopfronts make for a great backdrop, but don't let that deter you. It's still well worth the visit and is packed with history and curiosities.
This colorful Gothic passageway connects two very different parts of Edinburgh's Old Town and is a lovely and conscientiously preserved example of the city's unique multi-storied architecture. Built between 1829 and 1834, the street was part of a project to better connect the city.
Edinburgh is full of hidden staircases and narrow "wynds" (the local word for the city's matrix of small, winding alleyways), and it's not unusual to find oneself on a bridge or overpass looking down at a vibrant scene below, with no idea how to get there. Newer parts of the city have been constructed atop older parts of the city, integrating narrow passages and stairways in a manner that today brings to mind prints by the enigmatic artist M.C. Escher.
Victoria Terrace is one of Edinburgh's key connecting paths and links the "Grassmarket" – now a strip of historic pubs, but once a site for public executions – to the George IV Bridge, an artery into the "Lawnmarket," which is the thoroughfare leading directly to Edinburgh Castle.
Fun facts about Victoria Terrace: It's an UNESCO World Heritage Site and has been said to have been the inspiration for Diagon Alley in J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter series.
Know Before You Go
Victoria Terrace is just steps from the Grassmarket area, which was named for its original use as a livestock market, when it would have had grassy patches for the animals. There are also various landmarks denoting its darker past as the place for public executions and a line of "spooky" pubs with historic connections to this era.
Community Contributors
Published
June 27, 2025
