Elgin - Elgin

For other places with the same name, see Elgin (disambiguation).

Elgin is the county town of Moray in north-east Scotland, best known for its ruined cathedral which made it a "city". Together with nearby Lossiemouth it's the service town for two nearby RAF bases.

The "Elgin Marbles" have only the most tenuous connection with this place. It was the 7th Earl of Elgin who in the early 19th century removed (or looted or legally purchased or rescued from destruction, take your pick) many friezes and sculptures from the Acropolis in Athens - they're now in the British Museum. But the family residences were in Fife and elsewhere, and none of the Earls of Elgin lived here.

Get in

By car

Elgin is on the A96 Aberdeen to Inverness road, which runs through the middle of the city.

By bus

Elgin Bus Station is on the A96 in the town centre. The town is fairly well served with the hourly 10 service which connects Aberdeen and Inverness via the A96 corridor. There are also buses serving the various communities such as Lossiemouth, Burghead etc. which all depart from the bus station.

By train

57.6428-3.3111 Elgin station is located just south of the town centre. Trains are available to all stations on the Aberdeen to Inverness line, there is no set frequency of trains though, as a rough guide, trains are between 1 and 2 hours apart in each direction.

Get around

By bus

Elgin city bus services depart from the bus station and bus routes will be found around the city.

By taxi

This is probably the most efficient form of transport after hours, as most bus services cease or become less frequent at about 7pm. You won't be expected to pay a great deal for a taxi by UK standards as Elgin is rather small and routes are very direct.

See

• 57.6506-3.30521 Elgin Cathedral. Apr - Sep: Daily, 9.30am to 5.30pm; Oct - Mar: Daily 10am to 4pm. Ruins of a cathedral dating from 1224. £5.50. (updated Nov 2016)
• 57.6491-3.312 Elgin Museum, 1 High Street, IV30 1EQ, ☏ 44 1343 543675. Apr - Oct: Mon - Fri 10am to 5pm, Sat 11am - 4pm. Contains local history, archaeology, fossils and watercolours. donation.  
• 57.676111-3.2913893 Spynie Palace (2 miles north of Elgin). Apr - Sep: Daily 9:30 - 17:30. Bishop's palace from the late 12th century. (updated Nov 2016)
• Gordon Castle is ten miles east of Elgin, in Fochabers. Highland Games are held here in mid-May, with the next event probably Sat 15 May 2021, tbc.

Do

• 57.644444-3.3411111 The Glen Moray Distillery, Bruceland Road (West of town, Soth of the A96), ☏ 44 1343 550900. Tours Mon - Fri 9:30 , 11:00 , 12:30 , 14:00 and 15:30 Sat (May-Sep) 10:30 , 12:00 , 13:30 and 15:00. Whisky distillery just west of town. £5 (Inc, Tour and Tasting).  
• Watch football (ie soccer). Elgin City play in Scottish League Two, the fourth tier of football in Scotland. Their home ground is Borough Briggs, capacity 4500, just north of town centre.

Buy

Plenty of shops on the High Street.

• 57.649518-3.3151741 St Giles Shopping Centre, 121 High St, IV30 1EA, ☏ 44 1343 543066. M-Sa: 8AM-5:30PM, Su: 11AM-4PM. 
• 57.652053-3.3000172 Johnstons of Elgin, Newmill, IV30 4AF, ☏ 44 1343 554000. M-Sa: 9AM-5:30PM, Su: 10AM-5PM. If you are into woollen products, there is a visitor centre together with their shop (and a small museum).  

Eat

• 57.648783-3.3133611 Pattaya Restaurant, 54 High St, ☏ 44 1343 551577. (updated Apr 2017)
• Qismat Tandoori Restaurant, 204 High Street, Elgin, IV30 1BA, UK, ☏ 44 01343 541461. 12PM-2PM, 5PM-11PM, Closed Sunday. South Asian/Indian/Pakistani food (updated Feb 2020)

Drink

Pubs And Clubs Are Mainly Found in The City Centre. The Most Popular Are:

• Johannas NightClub. 
• Downtown USA Nightclub. 
• The Granary Nightclub. 
• The Cooperage. 
• Diceys Bar. 
• The Muckle cross (JD Wetherspoon's). 

Sleep

• Eight Acres Hotel, Morriston Road, IV30 6UL, ☏ 44 1343 543077, ✉[email protected]. The hotel offers restaurant and leisure facilities, and is situated about ten minutes walk to the west of the town. 
• Laichmoray Hotel. 
• Mainsfield Hotel. 
• Sunninghill Hotel. 
• Mansion House Hotel. 
• Premier Inn. 

Go next

• Elgin's a good base for exploring the many distilleries of the Speyside whisky region, and the county of Morayshire.
• It's also midway between the cities of Inverness and Aberdeen, each around an hour's drive away.
• On the Moray Firth coast there are opportunities for dolphin-watching, and you can visit the strange Findhorn Foundation - a 1960s new age community which has morphed into an ecological living centre, complete with self-built houses, circular meditation room, and wind turbines.
• Lossiemouth is a few miles north on the coast.
• Forres is to the west.