Hi,
I was wondering if anyone had detailed information on Stockbridge or Dean Village? We were thinking about taking an afternoon away from Edinburgh's city centre and visiting one of these places (or both)?

I've read there are shops, but I don't know much else. Is one better than the other? Any specific restaurants that are worth mentioning? Or is this all not really worth our time at all?

We walked to Dean Village while in Edinburgh. It is a nice contrast to the city - in that it is very much like a small town.
There is a river which you cross over, then in the village there are little shops and a park, etc. I remember there being a fantastic cheese shop, ,a butcher and some sidewalk grocers with fruits and veg. A good idea would be to stop into all these places and put a picnic lunch together!

Thanks, how far of a walk was it?

I forgot to mention that I found some websites, but they didn't really provide all that much info.

Depends on where you are starting from.
From the New Town section of Edinburgh it is downhill from Princes street by maybe a 15 min walk (maybe 1/4 -1/2 mile). Im not good with distances, but its not terribly far. If its nice weather, it is a pleasant walk.

We borrowed the Frommers guide to Edinburgh from our b&b and it had a great walking tour which led through New Town and into Dean Village. The village is cute.

Thanks, I will look for that book at the library and photocopy the walking tour.

So the other little non-food shops were cute? My Mom loves that sort of thing.

The architecture is typical of small towns in the UK, and it is quite pretty, with little buildings, and rooftops with little chimneys. The peoplewatching was also good - in that you really get the "small-town" feeling. When we went it was pretty bustling, and villagers were talking on the sidewalk, riding by on bicycles, shopping and such.

The shops were not botiquey. They were regular every-day shops (like consignment shop, cheese shop, little bookstore, gift shop, pharmacy, etc.) but in cute buildings. You wouldnt go there for heavy-duty shopping--but rather to say "awwww" isnt this cute -- (if that makes sense).

That makes total sense to me.

I wonder if someone could compare it to shops in St. Andrews. If it's similiar then maybe we would pass on Dean's Village if we didn't have the time.

Dean Village is interesting for its setting on the water of leith, with 16th century water mills - but now mostly residential. Stockbridge has a Georgian feel and is full of interesting little shops. Try St Stephen Street - excellent quality antique/art shops, esp Stockbridge Art & Antiques (no51), also a good vintage clothes shop at 53.

Dean Village is a short walk from ED. it is lovely , there is also a very good art gallery right next to it.

Stockbridge is quite gentrified compared to when I lived in St. Stephen St. many years gone.

[Anecdote on how times have changed - My spouse and I were looking for a flat suitable for modest post-grad budgets, and somewhat foolishly we asked Jenners - the famously stuffy Princes St. department store - for help through their housing and estates office (one of their services.)

The stiff-as-a-board estates lady sent us off to view various Georgian and Victorian flats that were way beyond our budget, and when we returned and asked for something - er - cheaper, she rifled through some pages, pushed her half-rim specs up her nose and lifted a page from her book like it had cooties, saying, &quot;Well here's a flat in St. Stephen Street, <i>if you don't mind where you live.&quot; </i>]

Didn't mind a bit. Could not have had a more wonderful location, street parking lotto aside.

The Dean Village and Stockerie are some of the best walking areas Edin. has to offer. In addition to St Stephen St, continue walking the Water of Leith downstream from Stockbridge, down past the Colonies, and just poke around the area in general. If you have the energy, you can walk from Stockbridge to the Botanical Gardens reasonably easily, too.

Have a pint for me at the St. Vincent while you're there. No longer 14p for a pint of heavy, though.

Meant to add, there was a second hand shop just up the hill from the Bailie pub at the corner of SSSt and Royal Circus that was briefly the location of Madame Doubtfire's operation, she the inspiration for Mrs. Doubtfire, or so legend has it. I remember her as a very old woman, who didn't look a thing like Robin Williams.

It depends on how far you wish to walk as you can walk along the Water of Leith from Roseburn passed the Dean Gallery , through the Dean Village and onto Stockbridge and Leith. This is about 5 - 6 miles. You can stop off to have a look round Stockbridge where you can eat at the likes of the Snug in St Stephen Street or continue to include the regenerated Leith where there are a number of good restaurants, cafes etc.

Have a look at http://www.stuckonscotland.co.uk/edi...n-village.html as that also offers links to other Dean Village etc websites
the website www.undiscoveredscotland.co.uk may also be of interest as it includes Stockbridge, Leith and includes restaurants etc

I used to go to the Stockbridge library when I was very young. We lived in the Orchards and I would either walk or take the bus.

If you walk all the way through Stockbridge along Raeburn Place towards Comely Bank, you'll come to Fettes College on your right, up Fettes Avenue. On the way, you'll go past a house in which Thomas Carlisle lived.

If you go up East Fettes Avenue, which has St. Stephen's Church on the corner,you'll find one of the entrances to Inverleith Park. It's quite a decent sized park and has a pond and would be a nice picnic place. In the summer, you can sit on the slope above the pond and watch the cricket match at the Edinburgh Academy ground over the wall. You can walk through the park to the Botanic Gardens.

I remember the first time that I saw this place,(Dean Village),I thought that it seemed to be like something from a Grimm's fairy tale....It was so unlike the hustle and bustle of Edinburgh,and very picturesqe...