Details
Cultural Attraction: Chapel and Castle Ruins
Region: Central Lowlands
Location: Chapel Loan, Roslin, Midlothian EH25 9PU, Scotland, United Kingdom
Hours:
- Monday – Saturday 9AM – 5PM (excluding holidays)
- Sunday 12PM – 5PM (excluding holidays)
- Timed entry in 90-minute slots – 5 per day, 3 on Sunday.
Pet friendly: No (service animals only)
Handicapped accessible: No
Restrooms: Yes
DEN Rating: 9/10
Website: https://www.rosslynchapel.com/visit/
Standard Admission:
- Adults – $10.00
- Reduced (Senior) – $9.00
- Children 17 & under – FREE
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Rosslyn Chapel was founded in 1446 and stands proudly today as one of the most beautiful historic chapels in Scotland. Exquisite stonework graces both the exterior and interior of the chapel building. The beauty of this chapel led to it being used as the setting and filming location for the finale of The DaVinci Code. This well-deserved exposure has led Rosslyn Chapel to be one of the best-known and most-visited religious sites in Scotland.
If you take your time and do everything Rosslyn Chapel offers you will spend 1.5-2 hours here. Photography is not allowed inside the chapel.
An ornate entryway and door into Rosslyn Chapel.
The Door To Salvation
The door into Scotland’s incredibly ornate Rosslyn Chapel is surrounded by rich stonework. The gargoyles on either side of the entryway actually work, spitting out rainwater. Built in the late 1400s, this was the door to salvation for the Catholic courtly lords of the area and their tenant farmers. The chapel fell into disrepair after … Read more
What You Will See
Rosslyn Chapel stands in an open gravel and lawn yard with a few benches scattered about, a couple nice shady trees, and a few grave markers. Originally the chapel was supposed to be much larger but plans were changed after the construction of the section which stands today. The front facade, which seems far too large for the chapel, is a Victorian-era addition. The chapel interior, while modest in size, is just exquisitely beautiful, with gorgeous shafts of light coming through and lavish stonework everywhere including about 100 Green Men carved into the points and cornices. The Lady Chapel, a smaller space within the main chapel, is especially ornate. One pillar in particular is gorgeously carved with a graceful twisting form, its masterful execution so well done that it actually led to murder…to find out more you’ll need to visit here and attend the short lecture in the chapel to learn the dark history behind this impressive work of masonry.
Follow the stairs down into the Sacristy, a second, darker space with a fireplace, some grave stones, and a beautiful stained-glass window that was added in 1954 when the chapel underwent a big restoration project. This room served as the workshop while the chapel was under construction, and was likely intented to be a burial chamber.
Tours
There are no tours or audio tours available. The informational lecture is superb and gives a ton of good information – it usually starts 30 minutes after each enty time slot begins. I asked a question to one of the staff and he was quite friendly and gave me a ton on information, so just ask! Beyond that the website has a ton of good information including a 360-degree virtual tour.
Entry Considerations
Advance tickets are available and recommended – show up anytime within 90 minutes of the start of your time slot.
Facilities And Mobility Considerations
A nice, modern visitors center includes well-kept restrooms, a gift shop, some historical information, and a little cafe. Everything is wheelchair accessible except the Sacristy, which is down a flight of historic stone steps.
One of a pair of lion-inspired gargoyles framing the entryway into Rosslyn Chapel. Hundreds of other details are carved into the stonework in the chapel interior.
The Lion of Rosslyn Chapel
This is one of a pair of gargoyles that frame one of the doorways into Rosslyn Chapel in Scotland near Edinburgh. The chapel was constructed in the second half of the 15th century and features some of the most intricately carved stonework you will ever see. This particular gargoyle takes the form of a lion, … Read more
Rosslyn Castle and Roslin Glen
A trail leads down from the parking area past a newer cemetery into Roslin Glen, where a web of trails lead through woodlands along the River North Esk. About ten minutes down you’ll find Rosslyn Chapel, the historic home of the St Clair family who built Roslynn Chapel. The castle is undergoing a major renovation to rebuild the ruined Great Hall and Tower which were originally built in the early 1300’s. The later section, built in 1622, is a residence and so it is not open for public tours, but a room can be rented there. The castle bridge is currently under construction so access to the castle grounds is not possible via the trail network. A trail does pass beneath the bridge but for now there’s not much of a view of the castle.
The woodlands area in the glen is very pretty, with rustic trails, some picnic tables, and a footbridge over the river. Travel downstream to find the ruins of a gunpowder mill and a carpet factory – the factory operated for 100 years, which is honestly quite a feat. Give yourself at least an hour in the glen, two hours if you walk down to the mills.
The ornate exterior of Rosslyn Chapel took years to complete.
Rosslyn Chapel
Built in the second half of the 15th century as a family chapel and later restored during Victorian times, Rosslyn Chapel is one of the most ornate churches in Scotland, although it was never completed as it was originally designed. Features on the exterior include this series of six buttressed columns topped with stone spires, … Read more
