Edinburgh Festival Fringe named the UK’s top experience by Lonely Planet

The Edinburgh Festival Fringe has today (Tuesday 13 August) been named the UK’s top experience by leading travel media company, Lonely Planet, in a new ranked list of the 500 most memorable, beautiful, surprising and compelling experiences to be had across Great Britain, Northern Ireland and the Channel Islands.

The UK’s four constituent countries and countless small islands comprise a powerhouse of history, culture and intrigue. Now for the first time, Lonely Planet’s community of travel experts have chosen the best sights and experiences and ranked them in order of their brilliance in Lonely Planet’s Ultimate United Kingdom Travelist.

Edinburgh’s Festival Fringe staked its claim to the top spot because “the Fringe floods the city with art and nowhere beats it for spectacle or scale… There is theatre, comedy, dance, circus, cabaret, opera, music and spoken word, and whatever the time of day, an acrobat, trapeze artist, contortionist or tried-and-tested bagpiping busker will be pleased to entertain you… Simply step through the looking glass and prepare to be dazzled by the greatest show of arts and culture on Earth.”

Shona McCarthy, Chief Executive of the Edinburgh Festival Fringe Society, said: “We are enormously proud to be named the UK’s top experience in Lonely Planet’s Ultimate United Kingdom Travelist, a true testament to the creativity, energy and imagination that Fringe artists and audiences bring to Edinburgh each year. What makes the Fringe so special is that everyone with a story to tell is welcome, and with a record 63 countries represented on stage this year and nearly 1,000 shows from Scotland, this year’s festival is playing host to a truly unique combination of homegrown and international talent. The Fringe is a real celebration of Edinburgh and the people that make it.”

The Edinburgh Festival Fringe is followed by London’s British Museum – “the envy of the world” – at number 2 and “timeless…and unrepeatable” Giant’s Causeway in Northern Ireland at number 3. It is joined by two other Scottish entries in the top 20: Glencoe in 17th place and Arthur’s Seat in Edinburgh in 19th. In total, 67 Scottish entries made the list, including Skara Brae at 22, Edinburgh’s Royal Mile at 24, the North Coast 500 at 37, the Fairy Pools at 41 and spending a night on ice in Cairngorms National Park at 43.

Lonely Planet’s VP of Experience, Tom Hall, said: “Lonely Planet’s Ultimate United Kingdom Travelist brings together the UK’s most compelling sights and experiences, ranging from world-class museums and giant cathedrals to rollicking festivals, inky lochs and tiny pubs. We’re thrilled to name the world’s largest arts festival, the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, the UK’s top experience – it’s one of the most exciting and diverse destinations on the planet.”

Malcolm Roughead, Chief Executive of VisitScotland, said of Scotland’s entries in the list: “Scotland is home to many amazing experiences so it’s no surprise they feature prominently in Lonely Planet’s Ultimate United Kingdom Travelist. They are year-round activities that traverse the length and breadth of the country and we hope the guide will prove a catalyst for visitors to get out and explore the regions and create unique and thrilling experiences of their own.

“Tourism is vital to the Scottish economy, reaching every corner of the country, creating jobs and bringing economic and social change. Accolades like this highlight Scotland as a world-class destination however it is imperative that we don’t become complacent. We need to continue to create must-see experiences, events and attractions that continue to inspire travellers and keep up with the ever-changing demands of visitors.”

To create Lonely Planet’s Ultimate United Kingdom Travelist, the Lonely Planet team compiled every highlight from the Lonely Planet guidebooks to Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Every sight, attraction and experience that had caught their writers’ attention over the years were included. Everyone in Lonely Planet’s London office, plus 20 leading figures in the country’s travel sector, were then asked to reveal their favourite spots and experiences before the voting began. Everybody in Lonely Planet’s UK community was asked to vote for their top 20 experiences. With hundreds of votes cast, Lonely Planet ended up with a score for each of the 500 experiences in the book.  

ENDS

Full list of Scottish entries by rank

1:         The greatest shows on earth at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe

17:        Step into your own movie in Glencoe

19:        Catch your breath on Arthur's Seat

22:        Solve the mysteries of Skara Brae

24:        Discover Harry Potter on Edinburgh's Royal Mile

37:        Buckle up for a storied, picturesque North Coast 500 adventure

41:        Believe in the impossible on a hike to the Fairy Pools

43:        Spend a night on ice in Cairngorms National Park

53:        Cast adrift on Loch Lomond

58:        Island-hop Scotland's western seaboard

66:        Stand on top of Britain on Ben Nevis

88:        Marvel at Mackintosh's designs for Glasgow

109:      Play with fire at Up Helly Aa on Shetland

129:      Bask on Luskentyre's bewitching beach

132:      Raise a world-beating dram in Speyside

142:      Conquer the Cuillins on the Isle of Skye

153:      Cruise by canal boat to the Kelpies

165:      Indulge in a Burns Night haggis feast at Ghillie Dhu

177:      Test your limits on Cape Wrath

190:      Find yesterday and today on South Harris

193:      Soul-search on a journey to Sandwood Bay

197:      Get spooked in Glasgow's Necropolis

199:      Be dazzled by design at the V&A Dundee

216:      Step back in time at Dickensian-style New Lanark

217:      Channel your inner Braveheart at Stirling Castle

218:      See the changing colours of Old Aberdeen

226:      Hike 3,000-million years of history on Stac Pollaidh

228:      Search for monsters at Loch Ness

229:      Lord it up on a road trip through Royal Deeside

251:      Enjoy precious isolation on the Knoydart peninsula

253:      Reach for the sky in Skye on the top of Sgurr na Stri

270:      Walk the gilded decks of the Royal Yacht Britannia

274:      Dance a Highland fling at the Braemar Gathering

277:      Journey into myth at Fingal's Cave on Staffa

294:      Mountain-bike the hard way on the 7stanes network

305:      Become a world champion stone-skimmer on Easdale

312:      Wreck-dive WWI destroyers at Scapa Flow

319:      All aboard the Hogwarts Express - aka the Jacobite Railway over Glenfinnan Viaduct

334:      Walk with the 'living dead' at Greyfriars Kirkyard

335:      Fly-fish a salmon on the River Tay

336:      Stargaze at the Standing Stones of Callanish

338:      Sink a hole-in-one at Scotland's ancient St Andrews

344:      Take the long road to Iona for divine inspiration, wildlife wonders and more

345:      Master a Munro with a scramble up Sgurr nan Gillean on Skye

346:      Get the big picture at Glasgow's Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum

356:      Dance until dawn in Edinburgh at the world's biggest Hogmanay party

359:       Explore Scotland in miniature on the island of Mull

374:       Feel the spirit of Scotland's founding fathers at Scone

376:       Learn how Glasgow conquered the world at the People's Palace

377:       Seek out angels and demons at Rosslyn

402:       See a circle of life at Philiphaugh Salmon Viewing Centre

413:       Look for masterpieces at Jupiter Artland

423:      Backpack to the edge of Britain at Kearvaig bothy - but beware gunfire

451:      Ceilidh like a pro at the Feis Ile festival of music and malt

453:      Take the pilgrims’ route to the wonders of the Borders Abbeys

455:      Find a bard's genius at the Robert Burns Birthplace Museum

459:      Follow in the footsteps of royalty at Traquair House

460:      Find a piece of ancient Greece at Little Sparta

464:      Hunt ghosts among the secret follies of Culzean Castle

467:      Set the seafood standard with an Arbroath smokie in a harbour shed

468:      Hobnob with royalty in Glamis Castle's rose-tinted turrets

470:      Watch a woodland come alive at Perthshire's Enchanted Forest

473:       Explore the best of Scottish nature at Inverewe Garden

479:       Lose your heart to the beautiful Arran

488:       Face a private army at redoubtable Blair Castle, Perthshire

490:       Rest and Be Thankful between sea and sky at Ardgartan

491:       See Clachan's 'Bridge over the Atlantic'

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