Winter at South Queensferry
Winter is South Queensferry’s best-kept secret. The summer crowds that pile off the Inchcolm boats have gone, the cobbled High Street belongs to locals again, and the low winter sun does something to the three bridges over the Firth of Forth that no July afternoon can match. Driving over from Linlithgow along the A904 we stopped at the Bridges View Point just outside the village of Newton, and the moon was already up before sunset. That is the winter deal in this part of Scotland: the light is short, but it is extraordinary.
This guide covers what to do in South Queensferry between November and March – the walks, the pubs with fires, the photography spots, the Loony Dook, how to get here from Edinburgh without a car, and what is genuinely closed for the season so you do not waste a short winter day.
Why South Queensferry works in winter
South Queensferry sits about nine miles west of Edinburgh city centre on the south shore of the Firth of Forth. It is a proper old ferry town – people crossed the water here for roughly 900 years before the bridges arrived – and the historic core is compact enough to see on foot in an afternoon, which matters when the sun sets around 3.45pm in December.
The town’s headline sight is free and permanently open: three enormous bridges from three different centuries, lined up in a row. The Forth Bridge, the cantilever rail bridge finished in 1890, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and still carries trains to Fife every few minutes. The Forth Road Bridge of 1964 now carries buses, taxis, cyclists and walkers rather than general traffic. The Queensferry Crossing, opened in 2017, takes the motorway traffic on cables that disappear into low cloud on a grey day. You can stand on one spot on the promenade and photograph all three.
The winter light – and how to use it
Short days sound like a drawback. For photography they are a gift, because the sun never climbs high and the golden hour effectively lasts most of the afternoon. In December the sun rises around 8.40am and sets around 3.45pm, so a day trip from Edinburgh that starts at 11am still catches the best light of the day.
- Hawes Pier – directly under the Forth Bridge. The classic shot, with the rail bridge’s red steel filling the frame. Best in the morning when the light comes from the east over the water.
- The promenade and Shore Road – walk east from the pier for the view that lines up all three bridges at once.
- Port Edgar Marina – west of town, masts and rigging in the foreground with the Queensferry Crossing behind. Good at sunset.
- Bridges View Point near Newton – a short drive off the A904, and the elevated angle that shows the scale of all three structures together.
- Blue hour – do not pack up at sunset. The bridges are lit, and the twenty minutes after the sun goes down are usually the best of the day.
The Loony Dook on New Year’s Day
South Queensferry’s most famous winter event is the Loony Dook, when hundreds of people in fancy dress walk into the freezing Firth of Forth on 1 January. It started in the 1980s as a local hangover cure and grew into one of the best-known Hogmanay traditions in Scotland. The format has changed over the years – at times it has run as a ticketed part of Edinburgh’s Hogmanay, at other times as a smaller community event – so check the current year’s arrangements before you travel, and expect road closures and very limited parking in the town on New Year’s Day.
Even if you have no intention of getting into the water, it is worth coming to watch. The town is packed, the costumes are ridiculous, and the pubs open early.
Winter walks from the town
Two walks are worth the cold. Neither needs hill gear, but both need boots – the paths get muddy from November onwards.
Under the bridges to Port Edgar (2 miles return, flat). Start at Hawes Pier, walk west along the shore past the lifeboat station, and continue to Port Edgar Marina. There is food and drink at the marina, and the return leg gives you the Queensferry Crossing head-on.
The Forth Road Bridge crossing (about 3 miles return). The walkway on the Forth Road Bridge is open to pedestrians and cyclists, and walking out over the middle of the firth is a genuinely memorable thing to do. It is exposed – if it is blowing a gale, and in a Scottish January it often is, the walkway may be closed. Wrap up more than you think you need to. The reward is the view straight down the length of the rail bridge from mid-channel.
The Dalmeny Estate shore path. The right of way along the Dalmeny foreshore heads east towards Cramond and gives quiet woodland and beach walking with the bridges receding behind you. In winter it is often empty. Dalmeny House itself is closed to visitors outside its short summer season.
Pubs, coffee and long lunches
Winter in Queensferry is really an eating and drinking town. The High Street and the shore have a concentration of good places within a few hundred yards of each other.
- The Hawes Inn – the historic inn beside the pier, name-checked in Robert Louis Stevenson’s Kidnapped. Fires, low ceilings, and the rail bridge out of the window.
- The Ferry Tap – the old-fashioned local on the High Street, and the one to pick if you want a pint rather than a menu.
- Orocco Pier – the smartest option on the shore, with rooms upstairs if you want to stay the night and windows facing the water.
- The Boat House – seafood, right on the front.
- Down the Hatch at Port Edgar – casual food at the marina, at the far end of the shore walk.
Book at weekends even in winter. Queensferry is close enough to Edinburgh that Sunday lunch fills up regardless of the season. If you want to make a night of it, our guide to Edinburgh hotels covers the city end of the trip.
What is closed in winter
Be realistic about the season. The boat trips to Inchcolm Island run mainly from spring to autumn, with sailings sparse or suspended in the depths of winter, so treat Inchcolm Abbey as a summer plan. Dalmeny House opens for a limited summer season only. Hopetoun House, a couple of miles west, closes its main house tours for winter but often runs a Christmas programme – worth checking directly, because those events are one of the better reasons to be in this corner of West Lothian in December.
What is open all winter: the bridges, the shore, the High Street, the pubs, and the view. That is most of the point.
Getting to South Queensferry in winter
By train. Dalmeny is the station for South Queensferry, roughly 15 minutes from Edinburgh Waverley or Haymarket on ScotRail services towards Fife. It is a steep ten-minute walk downhill into the town – and back uphill afterwards. In winter this is the stress-free option, because you avoid the parking problem entirely.
By bus. Lothian Buses run frequently from Edinburgh city centre to South Queensferry, taking around 45 minutes. Slower than the train, but it drops you closer to the shore.
By car. Leave the M90 or A90 at the Queensferry junctions and follow signs for the town. There is parking at Hawes Pier and along Newhalls Road, but it is limited and fills at weekends and on any clear-sky afternoon. On 1 January, do not even try.
If you are flying in, the town is only about 15 minutes from Edinburgh Airport, which makes it a good first or last stop on a trip rather than a detour.
Combining it with other winter days out
South Queensferry is a half-day rather than a full day, and it pairs neatly with the rest of the Forth Valley and West Lothian.
- Blackness Castle – the “ship that never sailed”, ten minutes west on the shore, and dramatic in winter weather. An Outlander location, too.
- Linlithgow Palace – the birthplace of Mary Queen of Scots, roofless and atmospheric under a grey sky.
- The Kelpies and the Falkirk Wheel – both a half-hour west, and both better than you expect on a dark afternoon.
- Edinburgh – the obvious base, with the whole city’s winter programme on the doorstep.
For a wider plan, our Stirling and Forth Valley travel guide covers the country between the two firths, best time to visit Scotland sets out what each month actually delivers, and Outlander locations in Scotland picks up the filming trail that runs through Blackness and Linlithgow.
A short history of the crossing
The town owes its name to Saint Margaret, the 11th-century queen of Malcolm III, who is said to have used this narrow point of the firth to cross between Edinburgh and the religious houses of Fife, and who established a free ferry for pilgrims travelling to St Andrews. The passage stayed in use for centuries afterwards, which is why the settlements on either shore are still called South Queensferry and North Queensferry.
The ferry only stopped in 1964, when the Forth Road Bridge opened and the boats became redundant overnight. Within living memory, then, this was a working ferry terminal with queues of cars on Newhalls Road. Look for the old slipways and the pier while you are on the shore – they are the reason the town is laid out the way it is, strung along the water rather than around a square.
The rail bridge came earlier and changed everything. Completed in 1890 after seven years of work, it used more than 50,000 tonnes of steel and was, at the time, the longest cantilever bridge span in the world. The phrase “painting the Forth Bridge” entered the language as a byword for a never-ending job, though the modern coating system means it no longer needs the continuous repainting of legend. It was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2015, and it is the reason most visitors come. Standing under it on a cold, clear January morning, with a train rumbling overhead, is the single best thing this town offers.
Where to stay
Most people visit on a day trip, but staying overnight buys you the two best hours of the winter day – sunrise and blue hour – without a commute. Orocco Pier on the shore is the obvious in-town choice, with rooms looking straight out at the bridges. There are guest houses and B&Bs on and around the High Street, and several chain hotels clustered near the Queensferry junctions and around Edinburgh Airport, which are cheap in winter and only a few minutes away by car.
If you would rather base yourself in the city and come out for the afternoon, our roundup of places to stay in Edinburgh covers the neighbourhoods worth booking in, and the accommodation directory lists hotels, guest houses, hostels and campsites across Scotland.
What to wear
The Firth of Forth funnels wind. A still day in Edinburgh can be a bitter one at Hawes Pier, and the temperature on the Forth Road Bridge walkway will feel several degrees lower again. Bring a proper windproof layer, a hat, gloves you can still work a camera in, and waterproof footwear for the shore path. Winter temperatures here typically sit around 2–7°C, so it is rarely severe – it is the wind and the wet that catch people out.
Frequently asked questions
Is South Queensferry worth visiting in winter? Yes – for the bridges, the light and the pubs. The boat trips and stately homes are seasonal, but the town’s main attraction is free, outdoors and open all year.
Can you walk across the Forth Road Bridge in winter? Normally yes. The pedestrian and cycle walkway stays open year-round, but it can close at short notice in high winds, which are common between November and February.
When is the Loony Dook? 1 January every year, in the Firth of Forth at South Queensferry. Arrangements, and whether it is ticketed, vary from year to year, so check before travelling.
How long do you need in South Queensferry? Three to four hours covers the shore, the High Street, a walk under the bridges and lunch. Add two hours if you walk the Forth Road Bridge as well.
Can you get there without a car? Easily. Dalmeny station is about 15 minutes by train from Edinburgh Waverley, and Lothian Buses run from the city centre. See Scotland without a car for more car-free day trips.
Is it a good day trip from Edinburgh? One of the best short ones. Half a day, minimal travel time, and a completely different landscape from the city. It fits neatly around anything on our best things to do in Edinburgh list.
