The view over Edinburgh across to Arthur's Seat

Oh, Edinburgh! If only every city were as drop-dead gorgeous as you.

All Georgian townhouses, hilly cobbled streets, manicured gardens and dramatic peaks, just when the eye candy couldn't get sweeter, the 1,000-year-old Edinburgh Castle rises up as its fairytale crown.

Sure, it rains half the time and the winters are cold, dark and blustery, but Edinburgh's inherent beauty eclipses the elements and there's always some sort of festivities going down to buoy the spirits.

Edinburgh's medieval Old Town and Georgian New Town are both on the prestigious World Heritage List. The Royal Mile makes up the centrepiece of the Old Town. Built around four adjoining streets (Castlehill, High Street, Lawnmarket and Canongate), it slopes from Edinburgh Castle at the summit down to the baroque Palace of Holyroodhouse (the royal family's Scottish residence). The area is a mesh of steep, cobbled alleyways and medieval archways chocka with pubs and souvenir stores and with tartan kilt-donning bagpipe blowers invariably positioned on every corner. At the end of the Royal Mile, across from Holyroodhouse, is Edinburgh's new modern Scottish Parliament which opened to great fanfare in 2004. It is open to the public for those interested in seeing Scottish politicians in fine finger-pointing form.

For a haunting glimpse into Edinburgh's blood-curdling past, you won't want to miss the fabulous ghost tours of the Royal Mile, which transport participants back to Middle Ages Edinburgh when the city was an overcrowded, disease-ridden hell hole. The costumed guides spin spooky stories of paranormal shenanigans, fiery deaths, gory witch hunts and medieval torture while escorting you through the city's "haunted" underground vaults. Afterwards, a whiskey or two might be in order to settle the nerves.

The green expanse of Holyrood Park lies to the edge of the Royal Mile and is dominated by Arthur's Seat, an extinct volcano. It's an easy walk to the summit where you are rewarded with panoramic views that take in the city sprawl as well as the surrounding countryside, including the hills of Fife and the Pentland Hills.

To experience Edinburgh at is exuberant best, time your visit to coincide with the annual Edinburgh International Festival which runs from August to early September. It is actually a series of different festivals that together make up the largest arts celebration on the planet. For raw energy, you can't go past the three-week-long Fringe Festival which generates the most international hype and attracts cutting edge theatre, comedy and street performance. Another Festival highlight is the Military Tattoo, a nightly display of international military bands staged on the esplanade of Edinburgh Castle and attracting more than 200,000 spectators. In total, around a million visitors flood Edinburgh during the festivities so you'd be wise to book accommodation well in advance.

Edinburgh's second biggest knees-up occurs over New Year's when more than 100,000 revelers brave the cold and damp for the annual Hogmanay street party.