Things To Do

The St Andrews Ladies’ Putting Club, aptly known as ‘The Himalayas’, is a challenging 18-hole putting green next to the St Andrews Old Course. Good fun and with a rich history, this course is capable of giving the strongest golfers a run for their money.

The St Andrews Botanical Gardens are a 15-minute walk away in the Canongate and are home to over 8,000 different species of plants across an 18-acre space. The gardens also run special events throughout the year which are worth a visit.

The St Andrews University campuses are a 10-minute walk away, directly on the other side of Market Street with various buildings dotted around the town centre. The St Andrews University student union can also be found at the bottom of market street.

The Eden Mill whisky and gin distillery tour gives you a chance to see where some of Scotland’s finest spirits are brewed and a chance to sample them too.

The Kingsbarns Distillery offers various tours of different lengths to give you the perfect introduction to scotch whisky through a tour of the distillery itself, followed by an opportunity to sample their award-winning single malt, ‘Dram to Dream’.

The St Andrews Brewing Company brewery tour is a great chance to see behind the scenes of one of the finest breweries in Fife. An hour-long tour with the opportunity to sample multiple beers on the way round, with a brewery tap room available at the end for all tour guests till 10pm that evening.

The St Andrews Aquarium is one of the best aquariums that Scotland has to offer, hosting a range of reptiles, amphibians and aquatic life. The Aquarium is just a short 15 minute walk away

Blown Away is a mobile outdoor experience company specialising in beach based activities and is fast becoming one of Scotland’s most established exciting activity providers. With a string of awards including a Visit Scotland 5 star as well as being AALA registered, Blown Away’s awesome adventures are normally based at West Sands beach, St Andrews.

Close to the old harbour and the Pier, the East Sands are the smaller of the two beaches in St. Andrews. It is part of the Fife Coastal path and accessible from the town centre.

St. Andrews West Sands is famous for being the shooting location of the Chariots of Fire (1981) beach running scene. It extends for almost 2 miles parallel to the Old Course, it has car parking spaces and is just a 15 minute walk from the town centre.

The Fife Coastal Path can be accessed from East Sands at the south end of the beach and runs all the way down to North Queensferry, over a hundred miles of beautiful sea views. Alternatively, if that sounds a bit extreme, the walk from St Andrews to Kingsbarns is lovely and it only takes 3-4 hours to complete the 8.5 mile route.

The V&A Museum in Dundee is Scotland’s first and only design museum, hosting a wide variety of artefacts and exhibits, from historical clothing and film costumes to one of a kind pieces from famous Scottish artists such as Eduardo Paolozzi.

The Bell Pettigrew Museum is a 5-minute walk towards Market Street and is host to a wide range of zoological exhibits, including various skeletons and taxidermy specimens, along with a cast Diplodocus leg.

The ruins of one of the largest cathedrals in Scotland lie at the end of the two main streets of St. Andrews. In the south of the cathedral visitors can access the St. Andrews Cathedral Museum, that showcases an outstanding collection of carved stonework from the Pictish era.

The British Golf Museum is just down the road on Bruce Embankment and is home to some of the greatest pieces of golfing significance, from ancient golf clubs to a pair of Seve Ballesteros’ shoes.

The St Andrews Museum is a small museum held in an old Victorian mansion that documents the rich history of St. Andrews, from its medieval past of the 12th century, to the flourishing golf and university town that it is known for today.

Just 5 minutes to the north of the city centre stand the ruins of St. Andrews Castle, the residence of bishops, a prison where many important figures of Scottish history were held and an important centre of the Scottish Reformation.

Visit a 17^th century house and garden close to the Cathedral and Castle. The Heritage Museum and Garden will give you insight into the social history of St. Andrews in the 1800 to present day.