Dunbar Area

Dunbar Town House

Dirleton Castle

Gullane No.1 Golf Course

Area Main Page

North of the Lammermuir Hills the A1 bypasses Dunbar on its way to Edinburgh. Dunbar is well worth the slight diversion needed to reach it. The town is built around its harbour, which lies in the shadow of ruinous Dunbar Castle. You can browse books about Lothians in our Bookshop (this may take a moment to load).

Dunbar is internationally famous as the birthplace of John Muir, who founded National Parks in the USA. John Muir's Birthplace in Dunbar High Street is an excellent (and free) small museum devoted to him. Two miles south of Dunbar, on the inland side of the A1, is the Doon Hill Dark Age Settlement. Not far away from it is the village of Spott, complete with the attractive Spott Parish Church.

Getting to North Berwick, twelve miles north west of Dunbar, requires a more significant diversion from the A1 near the pretty village of East Linton, but again a worthwhile one. En route you will pass Tyninghame, St Mary's Church in Whitekirk and the imposing clifftop Tantallon Castle. Much less well known than Tantallon is the nearby beach and harbour at Seacliff.

A little inland is East Fortune Airfield. Here you find Scotland's National Museum of Flight. Each July this hosts the East Fortune Airshow. Close by is Athelstaneford, birthplace of the Saltire, Scotland's flag, celebrated b the Flag Heritage Centre in the grounds of Athelstaneford Parish Kirk.

On minor roads near East Linton, are Preston Mill & Phantassie Doocot and Hailes Castle. Towering over this part of East Lothian is Traprain Law. A little to the south east of Traprain Law is Whittingehame Church.

North Berwick itself combines attractive beach and harbour with an interesting town, all overlooked by the towering North Berwick Law, a 187m or 613ft lump of volcanic rock visible for many miles. Offshore is what looks like its sea-bound twin, Bass Rock, home to an important seabird sanctuary that can be viewed from the Scottish Seabird Centre close to North Berwick's harbour. Also nearby are the remains of St Andrew's Old Kirk, much of which was swept into the sea in 1656.

West from North Berwick is the attractive village of Dirleton with Gullane, home of Gullane and Muirfield Golf Clubs, and Aberlady beyond it. Sandwiched between the two is Aberlady Bay Nature Reserve. In Dirleton you find the attractive remains of Dirleton Castle set in its own large gardens. Heading south you find the Myreton Motor Museum, one of the oldest in the country, and Chesters Hill Fort.

Inland and close to the A1 is Haddington, the county town of East Lothian. This is a remarkably attractive town built around twin market areas and boasing Scotland's largest parish church, St Mary's. On the eastern edge of Haddington is the ruin of St Martin's Kirk.

South west of Haddington and close to the villages of Pencaitland and Ormiston, is Glenkinchie Distillery, Edinburgh's "local" distillery. Further inland there are a number of attractive small village along the edge of the Lammermuir Hills. These include Gifford and Garvald.