📌 Town in Moray
★★
Elgin is a large town that tourists most often “experience” by driving through on the Aberdeen to Inverness road. First impressions are unlikely to be favourable, thanks to traffic-choked junctions and a series of scruffy retail parks and light industry stretching for some distance to the east. But this “beautiful place” (as one translation of the name suggests) is worth delving further into: it’s not the capital of Moray for nothing. An attractive town centre lies hidden away just to the south of the A96 with a pedestrianised High Street dominated by the Greek-style St Giles’ Church, while on the north side, the grand though fragmented ruin of Elgin Cathedral is bordered by an attractive park and the River Lossie – tamed by new flood defences. Our go-to restaurant over the years has been Scribbles (an excellent independent pizzeria), but we also really enjoyed a recent trip to the US-style 156 Bar & Grill – big appetites required! There’s a varied list of other tourist attractions ranging from museums to a distillery, and a monument offering good views over the town centre; you could easily spend a full day here.
🌍 Location
📌 Moray
🧭 O.S. Grid Reference: NJ 216628
🛰️ GPS coordinates: 57.648546,-3.315869
🚶 Elgin is a large town but the centre is conveniently compact, with the cathedral and museums close by. Glen Moray Distillery is just within walking distance, while many other nearby sites are reachable by bus.
🚆🚌 The town is a regional transport hub, and on the railway line between Aberdeen and Inverness. Buses call here from many northeast towns including Aberdeen, Inverness, Buckie and parts of Speyside.
🚗 Central car parks charge a fee, with free street parking a longer walk from the centre.
Explore nearby
<1 mi away
>> Duke of Gordon Monument (Elgin) ★
>> Elgin Cathedral ★★★★
>> Elgin Museum ★★★
>> Glen Moray Distillery ★★★
>> Moray Motor Museum ★★★
<3 mi away
>> Spynie Palace ★★★ (2 mi ↑)
