David I founded this abbey in the shadow of Salisbury Crags in 1128. It was probably named after a fragment of the True Cross (rood is an old Scots word for cross), said to have been brought to Scotland by David's mother, St Margaret. Most of the ruins date from the 12th and 13th centuries, although a doorway in the far-southeastern corner has survived from the original Norman church. Admission is included in the cost of a Palace of Holyroodhouse ticket.


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

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1. Palace of Holyroodhouse

0.04 MILES

This palace is the royal family's official residence in Scotland but is more famous as the 16th-century home of the ill-fated Mary, Queen of Scots. The…

2. Queen’s Gallery

0.1 MILES

This stunning modern gallery, which occupies the shell of a former church and school, is a showcase for exhibitions of art from the Royal Collections. The…

3. Scottish Parliament Building

0.13 MILES

The Scottish Parliament Building, on the site of a former brewery and designed by Catalan architect Enric Miralles (1955–2000), was opened by the Queen in…

4. Our Dynamic Earth

0.2 MILES

Housed in a modernistic white marquee, Our Dynamic Earth is an interactive, multimedia journey of discovery through Earth's history from the Big Bang to…

5. Burns Monument

0.27 MILES

The neoclassical Burns Monument (1830), a Greek-style memorial to Scotland's national poet Robert Burns, stands on the southern flank of Calton Hill. It…

6. Scottish Poetry Library

0.28 MILES

A fantastic literary resource housed in award-winning modern architecture off Canongate, the poetry library hosts regular exhibitions and is a source of…

7. Dunbar’s Close Garden

0.31 MILES

Tucked away at the end of an Old Town close, this walled garden has been laid out in the style of the 17th century, with gravel paths, neatly trimmed…

8. Canongate Kirkyard

0.33 MILES

The attractive curved gable of the Canongate Kirk, built in 1688, overlooks a kirkyard that contains the graves of several famous people, including…