Things To Do In South Queensferry – A Local’s Guide

South Queensferry is a very popular escape from Edinburgh city life and you can be here in just over 15 minutes on the train, or 30-40 minutes on the bus, making it a very easy way to spend a few hours outside the city centre of Edinburgh.

It’s also home to one of Scotland’s UNESCO Heritage Sites; the three bridges dominate our views, but the most famous is the original Forth Bridge, a striking red rail bridge that was the first, and for a long time only, way to cross the water.

We fell in love with this little seaside town a few years ago, so much so that we added it to our ever-growing list of possible places to live. Every time we drove home from somewhere north, we’d make an excuse to stop in Queensferry before rejoining the A90 back into Edinburgh. Fast forward to now, and we’ve lived in “the Ferry” for four years.

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I’m finally writing a full guide on what to do in this Edinburgh “suburb” (we are now technically part of Edinburgh, although very clearly with its own identity), from boat trips on the Forth to the best local restaurants.

This guide has been updated on the 20th January 2025.

Explore the colourful high street and harbour

The first thing I do with any visitors is go for a walk down to the high street along the waterfront. On a weekend, this gets pretty busy with locals and tourists alike, but it’s a great place to come and take in the views of the Forth.

The high street itself is exceptionally pretty, with the Ferry Tap’s striking red and black exterior, the Jubilee clock tower, and a row of colourful houses that I love walking past every time.

Pop into the Ferry Tap for a drink – always really nice in there!

Make sure to take the time to walk down the picturesque Harbour Lane to get to – you’ve guessed it – the harbour, where you can walk all the way to the end for some of the best bridge views.

There’s also a local art gallery tucked down the lane, which is worth popping into.

Back on the main high street, amongst the pops of colour you’ll probably notice a huge black house, Black Castle (though it’s a house, not a castle!). With the fresh, bold paint, you probably wouldn’t believe this is the oldest house in South Queensferry. It also has a grisly connection – apparently the original owner’s brother accused two women (including the brother’s own wife!) of trying to cast a spell to sink the owner’s ship. Both women were burned at the stake, just part of the area’s dark history.

Pop into one of the welcoming cafés or grab an ice cream from one of the sweet shops. South Queensferry is full of small businesses, so it’s great to support them!

Take photos of the iconic rail bridge

Far and away Queensferry’s biggest attraction is the famous railway bridge crossing the Firth Of Forth. Built in 1890, it’s considered one of the greatest engineering feats of its time and is now a UNESCO World Heritage Site. At the time, it was the longest cantilever bridge in the world, but 40 years later it was outdone, and since then has remained the second longest – thanks Canada.

You can see the Forth Bridge from almost anywhere in Queensferry, but I recommend getting up close and personal. Just a short walk from the high street, you’ll be standing under the bridge.

Walk a little further – take the left hand road at the end to keep going along the waterfront – and you’ll find some of my favourite spots to get photos of the bridges, especially at sunset.

Another good place to get unique photos is actually from the train station – you can just see the cantilevers rising up beyond the tracks.

There’s also a path further up the hill from the waterfront which is where the first photo is taken from, and that’s one of my favourite views as well. As you can see, it looks different in various lighting, too!

Maybe I’ll put a full photo post up, as I’ve got tons of them now!

Walk across the Forth Road Bridge

Forget the rail bridge – you can actually walk across the Firth Of Forth!

Since the newest of the three bridges, the Queensferry Crossing, was opened in 2017, the old road bridge – the middle bridge – is only really used for buses and taxis. Alongside the road runs a pedestrian path open to the public for walking or cycling.

I’ve done the walk a few times now, and the views are fantastic. On the other side, it’s a quick hop down into North Queensferry, where you can enjoy more views of the Forth Bridge (arguably better, as much as it pains me to say it, as one of the cantilever towers is on land) and grab a coffee in the lovely Rankin’s Café.

Take a boat trip on the Firth of Forth

Taking a boat trip out on the water is one of the best things to do in the area.

There are two companies who offer these – the Forth Boat Tours from Port Edgar and Maid Of The Forth from the Hawes Pier. We went with Maid Of The Forth for Inchcolm Island (more about that further down), and I also went on a Forth Boat Tours trip with Mum. I treated her to a cream tea tour, and we sailed upstream to Blackness Castle, passing Rosyth and a handful of bemused seals. We then came back under all three bridges before turning back to Port Edgar.

One thing I really enjoyed was that it wasn’t just a trip out on the water – the tour told us all sorts of things about the places we were passing.

Maid Of The Forth also offers evening cruises with live music, which sounds really fun!

Visit Inchcolm Island

My favourite trip is the boat tour out to Inchcolm Island. In fact, I put off writing this post until we had at least done that, because I couldn’t write a guide to Queensferry without including it!

The highlight of the trip is Inchcolm Abbey, a Historic Scotland site. If you’re not a member, it’s an additional £7.50 to land on the island and explore the abbey. However, it’s well worth it! Note that the abbey and island are only open from April to October, so this tour isn’t available in the winter.

The island itself is tiny and you’re given plenty of time to explore it before the boat takes you back to the mainland.

P.S. look out for Inchgnome island – a tiny islet next to Inchcolm covered in gnomes!

Walk the Forth Bridges trail

The new Queensferry walking trail takes in the heritage of South Queensferry with information boards to mark each stop. There are eight stops in South Queensferry altogether, plus two on the old road bridge and four more in North Queensferry on the other side of the water.

For the South Queensferry side, start in Port Edgar and end at Hawes Pier and walk along the waterfront between the two – although there’s one up at the train station too, so you could start or end there.

These boards provide heaps of interesting information about the local area, including the unique tradition of the Burryman, history of the bridges and lots more.

Walk around the Dalmeny Estate

One of our favourite walks in the area is around the Dalmeny Estate. The walk starts from the pier by the bridge, all the way along to Hound Point. There’s a legend that the estate owner’s dog died at the point, and sometimes you can hear a howl… spooky!

Rounding the corner to leave ghostly canines behind, you’ll find Barnbougle Castle clinging to the coastline, and eventually you get to the main house of the estate. From here, you can either walk back up to the main road, or carry on another mile or two until you get to Cramond, where you can catch the bus back to Queensferry, or into the city centre.

If you do walk up to the road, watch out for highland coos! This is a great place to spot them.

Read more about my favourite walks in Edinburgh: Edinburgh’s 10 Best Walks & Where To Find Them

Visit Hopetoun House & Estate

The Hopetoun estate is massive (6,500 acres!!), with popular walks for locals as well as regular public events. I have to be honest, we haven’t been in to Hopetoun House although it’s very impressive from the outside. It’s open April – September, Thursday – Monday, and it costs £13.50 for entry to the house and grounds, and £6.50 for just the grounds – but much of the estate is free to walk around.

Midhope Castle is also on the estate, which you might know better as Lallybroch from Outlander. This is a bit away from South Queensferry though, as it’s at the other end of the estate. Midhope is no longer free to visit, which is a shame as I don’t think you can actually go in. It’s good to see from the outside, and worth it for Outlander fans, but if you’re a fan of castles in general, there are lots that are far more worth the money.

It’s currently £6.97 for tickets on their website but you can also now buy a joint ticket for Midhope and Hopetoun which works out better value as it’s £18.50.

I didn’t realise, but Hopetoun House itself was used for various scenes in Outlander too – click here for more information on the rooms and areas used.

Hopetoun holds quite a few events throughout the year too, including the annual Carriage Driving Trials (it’s the main reason my Mum had heard of it!) as well as outdoor cinema nights, fireworks nights and more.

Spot the Burryman

If you happen to be in South Queensferry in August, you might just spot a strange sight – a man covered in burrs!

As part of the annual Ferry Fair, the Burryman walks through the entire town for a day, stopping in every pub for a dram. If that sounds like thirsty work, don’t forget the fact his suit must be so hot and heavy!

Nobody really knows the meaning behind the Burryman, although it’s believed to ward off evil spirits from the town, and many people also think it’s likely to be a pagan tradition symbolising rebirth.

This centuries-old tradition is fun to catch, and there are usually lots of other festivities going on too.

Jump in the sea for the Loony Dook

Speaking of festivities… Edinburgh holds Scotland’s biggest Hogmanay celebrations (New Year’s Eve for the uninitiated). Well do you know what comes after Hogmanay? On New Year’s Day, everyone flocks to South Queensferry to throw themselves in the sea in ridiculous costumes!

This is a huge tradition, although it became a bit commercialised for a few years much to the irritation of the locals, as it was taken over by the official Edinburgh Hogmanay. Now it’s been dropped from the official programme, which means it’s back in the hands of the locals since 2023, and it’s definitely something you won’t want to miss if you’re in Edinburgh over the festive period.

Plus it’s all for charity!

Buy some Boé gin

Gin’s getting everywhere, and Queensferry is no exception. What I really like about Boé is their exceptional flavours that manage to be unique – from Scottish bramble to peach & hibiscus.

Unfortunately the funky Boé shop has now closed, which is a shame as it was a great store and we often bought gifts in there.

(We popped into a random pub in London last year and their “gin of the month” was one of Boé’s unique flavours! So with stiff competition, Boé is making a name for itself well outside of Scotland.)

Best places in South Queensferry for lunch

The Railbridge Bistro

The Railbridge Bistro has become our go-to lunch spot with visitors. Located right by the rail bridge, the outdoor booths offer unrivalled views. If the weather’s not so great, the warm, welcoming interior is inviting, and there’s even a little train that runs along a model bridge above the bar. Expect good sandwiches and light meals. You can even finish it off with some Orkney ice cream – so I feel right at home!
Website & menu: Railbridge Bistro

Down The Hatch

For something a little more heart-attack-inducing, check out the Canadian institution Down The Hatch for some generous portions of poutine, dirty fries and burgers. Down at Port Edgar, this place gets extremely busy – we often haven’t managed to sit in as it’s always full! Their outdoor area is great and also dog-friendly.
Website & menu: Down The Hatch

Pick up a snack at a great local bakery

If the weather’s nice, grabbing a sausage roll or a sandwich from Manna House and sitting by the sea is never a bad idea. Or if you fancy something a little sweeter, get to The Little Bakery. Both are excellent!

Or pick up a delectable pastry from the newest kid on the block, Dune. We haven’t actually had the fortune of going in there yet, but with 31k followers on Instagram already, they’re looking to be a huge hit here.

Best places in South Queensferry for dinner

It’s hard to go wrong for dinner in Queensferry, to be honest, so here’s a run down of where to eat.

Hawes Inn

For good, hearty pub grub in a lovely setting, my choice is the Hawes Inn. We’ve had loads of great meals there over the years, and there’s a good beer garden too right under the rail bridge. There’s lots of history in the Hawes, and the pub was even featured in Robert Louis Stevenson’s book Kidnapped, as well as one of Sir Walter Scott’s novels The Antiquary.
Website & menu: Hawes Inn

Scotts

Scotts is a fantastic, slightly upmarket, bustling venue down at Port Edgar, offering interesting options; there’s a lot of Asian fusion on the menu as well as some classics like fish & chips and pork belly. Everything I’ve eaten there has been DELICIOUS. This would be my go-to with a group of friends.
Website & menu: Scotts

Orocco Pier

Arguably the best view from a table in Queensferry – the glass front overlooking the water ensures a clear view of the bridges and it’s pretty unbeatable. Happily, the food is excellent as well and it’s the perfect mix of fancy and casual for both lunch and dinner.
Website & menu: Orocco Pier

Thirty Knots

A newcomer along the waterfront, Thirty Knots is owned by the same guys as Scotts. It’s a little more pub-style and a little less trendy than Scotts, and we’ve really enjoyed every meal we’ve had there. There’s a great terrace for drinks on a nice day, although we’ve only eaten in the restaurant. Always had fantastic service, too!
Website & menu: Thirty Knots

The Boat House

Like seafood? Come to the Boat House! I have to admit this is the only place I haven’t been, but it’s been recommended to me a few times, and they have a terrace out the back overlooking the bridges, which always looks fantastic on a summer’s day when we walk past.
Website & menu: The Boat House

They’ve also recently been taken over by local heavyweights Rogue Bros, and it still gets great reviews. As an aside, if you want takeaway pizza, Rogue Bros is the place for it.

Getting to South Queensferry

South Queensferry is very easy to get to from the centre of Edinburgh – you can get here by bus or train.

By train

Take the train from Waverley or Haymarket, usually towards Fife or Dundee. The train station is called Dalmeny, NOT Queensferry! The train is a great option as it takes less than 20 minutes, but you would need to walk down to the high street from the station.

By bus

You can also get the bus right to the centre of town. Jump on the 43 which starts at Waterloo Place at one end of Princes Street, and also stops at Waverley station, a second stop just past the Mound, and on Queensferry Street in the West End. Get off the bus at The Loan or Queensferry Police Station. Queensferry is now (FINALLY) included on the regular tap-tap-cap day tickets for Edinburgh buses, which means you can just tap on for £2 each way and any Edinburgh buses you take will be capped at £5. During the day, they run every 20 minutes, but late at night they’re up to an hour.

There are a number of buses you can catch, as the Stagecoaches to Fife almost all stop here, but the 43 is cheaper. Last time I took a Stagecoach, it was £4 each way but they are a lot faster as they make far less stops – that said, it’s also a further walk down to the high street as you need to get off at the Forth Road Bridge. If you do grab a Stagecoach, make sure to get off it before it crosses the bridge or it’ll be an even longer walk!

South Queensferry makes for the perfect day out from Edinburgh, so hopefully you can make the most of it with my guide.

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