Palace of Holyroodhouse

A visit to the Palace of Holyroodhouse includes the remains of 12th-century Holyrood Abbey, the Palace gardens, the State Apartments of the Palace itself, and stories of its most famous residents from the past and present. A reflection of the changing tastes of successive monarchs, the State Apartments are famous for their beautiful plasterwork ceilings and unrivalled collection of French and Flemish tapestries. As you walk through the Palace, you will notice how the rooms become progressively grander as you approach the King's Bedchamber - the grandest room of all, where historically, only the most important guests would have been granted an audience. Perhaps one of the most famous monarchs to live at the Palace of Holyroodhouse, Mary, Queen of Scots' chambers where she lived between 1561-1567 are not to be missed. When you climb the steps up to the north-west tower you enter a world of intrigue, tragedy and murder.

Make sure to also visit the Throne Room which was used for receptions and other State occasions. The centrepiece of the room is the pair of thrones, commissioned by King George V in 1911. His ancestor, George IV visited Scotland in 1822, the first reigning British monarch to do so in almost 200 years.

The King's Gallery, Edinburgh

The King's Gallery in Edinburgh is located at the entrance to the Palace of Holyroodhouse and was built in the shell of a former church and school dating from the 1840s. The project to create an art gallery that would complement the original 19th-century architecture began in 1999, and The King's Gallery was opened by Queen Elizabeth II in November 2002 as part of the Golden Jubilee celebrations. Today the Gallery hosts a programme of changing exhibitions from the Royal Collection.

Royal Portraits: A Century of Photography (28 February - 7 September 2025)

Milestone photographic portraits of the Royal Family will be featured in this exhibition at The King’s Gallery in Edinburgh.

Following a successful run in London, the exhibition will chart the evolution of royal portrait photography from the 1920s to the present day, bringing together more than 90 photographic prints, proofs and documents from the Royal Collection and the Royal Archives. Visitors will see photographs taken to mark milestone birthdays of members of the Royal Family and glamourous vintage prints from the first half of the 20th century, many of which will be shown in Scotland for the first time, taken by some of the most respected photographers of the era. Discover works from the most celebrated royal photographers, from Cecil Beaton and Norman Parkinson to Annie Leibovitz and Rankin. Explore some of the close relationships between royal sitters and photographers, seen most clearly through the lens of Antony Armstrong-Jones (later Lord Snowdon), who married Princess Margaret in 1960.