Living in Merchiston, Edinburgh
Room to rent from private landlords Living in Merchiston, Edinburgh - no agency fees - Edinburgh
Victorian villas and Napier University: the genteel, cultured Edinburgh, near the centre.
Merchiston is a well-off residential neighbourhood south-west of the centre, between Bruntsfield and Morningside: streets of grand villas and Victorian houses, trees, and a genteel, quiet atmosphere. A campus of Edinburgh Napier University is based here, around the tower where John Napier, the inventor of logarithms, lived. It's the genteel, cultured Edinburgh, convenient to the centre and to the lively neighbourhoods nearby.
Who lives here
Well-off families, professionals, academics and students from the nearby university live here, in the grand Victorian houses and the flats carved out of them. It's a stable, comfortable population, drawn by the quality of the houses, the quiet and the closeness to the lively neighbourhoods of Bruntsfield and Morningside.
What it's like during the day
By day Merchiston has the quiet rhythm of a fine residential neighbourhood: tree-lined streets of Victorian villas, the coming and going of the university and families, the shops and cafés of nearby Bruntsfield and Morningside. It's well-kept, quiet and genteel, a short distance from the centre.
What it's like in the evening
In the evening it's quiet and residential, with the pubs, cafés and restaurants of nearby Bruntsfield and Morningside within walking distance. It's not a nightlife area: for that, people head towards the centre. It's a neighbourhood for a quiet evening and a local dinner.
Getting around
The area relies on Lothian Buses, with frequent lines towards the centre, and on the bike. There's no tram here, but the centre is a short distance away, reachable by bus, on foot or by bike. The south-western position keeps everything within easy reach.
Eating and shopping
The internal offering is that of a residential neighbourhood, but nearby Bruntsfield and Morningside have independent shops, cafés and restaurants in abundance. For shopping there are supermarkets nearby. It's an area where you enjoy the quiet and use the nearby neighbourhoods for daily life.
When NOT to pick it
If you want nightlife and a young, lively neighbourhood, Merchiston is too quiet and genteel: it's residential, elegant and with prestigious-area prices. It makes sense for those after space, quality and a fine area close to the centre and the lively neighbourhoods; less so for those who want nightlife on their doorstep.