Malmaison x My Edinburgh Trip


I've been itching to write this post down for the past two weeks but through one reason or another I haven't quite had the chance but here we finally are! Hooray! So a few weeks back (let's try not to dwell on that) me and Joe went on a little adventure up to Edinburgh, where we stayed on the lovely Leith shore at the beautiful Malmaison Hotel. I can't tell you how excited I was for this trip, I've ashamedly never been to Scotland before... How terrible is that?! And Edinburgh has always been so high on my list of "place I must must MUST visit" and to finally be able to tick it off made me super giddy!

So what was my verdict? I've got to be really honest, I absolutely fell head over heels in love with both Edinburgh and the Malmaison we stayed in! It's not only made my top 5 favourite cities list (I like making lists by way of having some sort of order in my otherwise chaotic life, don't judge) but also my top favourite trips this year and I spent the entire train ride home trying to convince Joe why we should look to relocate. My only gripe of the whole weekend was that we didn't plan to stay longer. So without further ado let's discuss the finer details of my very short but very, very sweet weekend...

Where Did We Stay?

So as mentioned above we stayed in the lovely Malmaison hotel just on the shore of Leith. I would whole heartedly recommend this area! It's quiet and picturesque with the hotel itself in a beautiful tower building right on the water front, you can easily escape the hustle and bustle of the city when ever you like. I personally loved Leith because it had a real relaxed vibe with it's own independent cafes, bars and restaurants to visit- not too dissimilar from those you find in the Northern Quarter or Hackney. What's more the area is a 10 minute taxi journey from the centre of Edinburgh, you're literally a hop, skip and a jump from all the tourist attractions. Win/win situation.


Whilst we stayed in the Malmaison we had the pleasure of visiting their brasserie/restaurant Chez Mal and sampling their new Autumn menu. If like me you're a sucker for seafood this menu is right up your stream (see what I did there). I had the yummiest Scallop starter- served with a pear puree and black pudding! I followed this with the pork grill selection off their Autumn menu- so tasty and flavoursome without being too rich. If you've already booked in with another hotel whilst staying in Edinburgh I would still recommend you pay the brasserie a visit. The menu and the service couldn't be faulted and made our trip just that little bit extra special. Thank you team Malmaison Edinburgh!

What Did We Do?

Our stay was far too short so we really didn't have time to do and see half the things I really would have wanted to BUT than I guess that's more of a reason than any to go back... We did however manage to fit in two little "activities" which I couldn't have loved more! Firstly after wondering the beautiful streets of the city centre and making my best efforts to climb up the Royal Mile to the castle we paid a little visit to cafe Maison De Moggy situated in West Port to the left of the castle. To be more specific- this wasn't just any cafe, oh no, in true Sophia style I had to visit the cities famous cat cafe. Maison De Moggy's was so so so sweet and a must have if like me you're kitty crazy. Entry is £8 per person with drinks and cake priced separately- I've got to say the grumpy old woman inside of me can't help but feel like this is a little on the pricey side and if you have a cat waiting for you at home (pretty sure Evie could sense I'd been unfaithful to her when I returned home) it does feel a teeny weeny bit like a waste of your pennies. On the more positive side- visiting a dozen pretty kitties isn't exactly a terrible way to spend my afternoon- dog lovers may find this debatable.
Now as we visited Edinburgh in the run up to Halloween it seemed only right to go on one of the cities famous ghost tours! Now I'm a real scaredy cat so when Joe insisted we book a 10pm slot which takes you round the underground vaults I was apprehensive to say the least (i.e. I was pooing my pants). But I've got to say, scaredy cats of the world this tour is incredible and well worth booking. We booked with Mercat (meaning "Market" not the cute little critters) Tours who have domain of the underground streets so if this is the part of the city you're really interested in visiting than these are the guys to help you. The tour wasn't scary at all, albeit a little creepy but more then anything it was super fascinating to hear all the stories and facts of old Edinburgh. We really couldn't have asked for a better tour guide and it's perfect for Halloween lovers everywhere (but time of the year really does make no odds- it's pitch black and you're underground)!
I kind of feel like I wish I could write every tiny little detail I saw from this amazing city and the hotel we stayed in but there was too much to note down! It was a spur of the moment decision to visit and one which really paid off. I will be visiting both Edinburgh and Malmaison again no doubt but as these blog post doesn't do both half the justice they deserve I would definitely urge you to pay them a visit yourself. 

For full information on Malmaison Edinburgh, along with A La Carte Menu's and price lists please seethe link below:

Happy trip planning,
Sophia x


1 comment: