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Venlaw Castle
Attractions in Peebles

Peebles’s places to visit, starting with Venlaw Castle

5 of the 9 places to visit in and around Peebles are castles or historic places. The locality itself has 5 places on our list; 4 others are within 5 km of its edge. Walking distance covers 5 of them, all within 1 km of the middle. If you have a day, head to Edinburgh Castle, 33 km away.

Photo: Venlaw Castle, Motmit (CC BY-SA 3.0)
In Peebles
5
inside the locality
Within 5 km
4
of the town’s edge
Museums & galleries
2
in or near town
Castles & historic places
5
in or near town
Best known

The best known in Peebles

Behind Venlaw Castle on the list are 2 museums, a ruins and an attraction.

CastleVenlaw Castlein townMuseumMuseumPeebles Museum and Galleryin townRuinsRuinsCross Kirkin townMuseumMuseumJohn Buchan Storyin townAttractionAttractionQuhyt Stanein townCastleNeidpath Castle300 m outside town, to the west

Each has a page of its own: what it is, who runs it, the weather month by month and what else is near it.

The map

Where to find them

Look to the southeast for most of the 4 just outside.

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The dashed line is Peebles’ locality; orange marks its middle (where most people live). Numbers match the list below. © OpenStreetMap contributors · NRS locality 2022

By kind

The kinds on offer

5 castles or historic places and 2 museums or galleries top the count.

Museums & galleries 2 museums2 in town
Castles & historic places 4 castles · 1 ruins2 in town · 3 nearby
Gardens & estates 1 garden0 in town · 1 nearby
Other attractions 1 attraction1 in town

Green: inside Peebles. Grey: within 5 km of its edge.

Every place

Place after place

9 places in all: 5 in town and 4 within 5 km of its edge.

The 5 inside Peebles come first, best known first; then the places within 5 km, close and well known first. Churches and listed buildings are on the History page, not here.

152 listed buildings and 3 scheduled monuments are on Peebles’ History page → · Parks, footpaths and green space in Peebles →

Big names nearby

A little further out

Worth the drive, Edinburgh Castle (33 km) is first of the 12.

Castle · Historic Environment ScotlandEdinburgh Castle33 km northBig drawArt galleryNational Gallery33 km north · 661K visitors a year (2021)Historic housePalace of Holyroodhouse34 km northMuseumNational Museum of Scotland33 km northCathedralSt Giles' Cathedral33 km northArt galleryScottish National Portrait Gallery34 km north · 313K visitors a year (2015)Art galleryScottish National Gallery of Modern Art33 km north · 458K visitors a year (2015)Abbey or prioryHolyrood Abbey34 km northAbbey or priory · National Trust for ScotlandMelrose Abbey30 km eastHistoric houseAbbotsford House26 km eastCastleTraquair House Maze9.3 km southeastMuseumHMY Britannia37 km north

Places well known beyond Peebles (Wikipedia articles in several languages, published visitor counts, or a National Trust for Scotland or Historic Environment Scotland property), close and famous first. Distances are straight lines from the middle of the town.

Good to know in Peebles

What are the main attractions in Peebles?

The best known inside Peebles’ locality are Venlaw Castle, Peebles Museum and Gallery, Cross Kirk and John Buchan Story. In all, 5 places to visit are mapped inside the town, and 4 more within 5 km.

Does Peebles have a museum?

2 museums and galleries are in or within 5 km of Peebles: Peebles Museum and Gallery and John Buchan Story.

Is there a National Trust for Scotland or Historic Environment Scotland property near Peebles?

None within 5 km. The nearest well-known one on our list is Edinburgh Castle (Historic Environment Scotland), 33 km north.

What are the best-known days out near Peebles?

Within 40 km: Edinburgh Castle (33 km), National Gallery (33 km), Palace of Holyroodhouse (34 km), National Museum of Scotland (33 km).

Where are Peebles’ historic buildings listed?

Peebles has 152 listed buildings, 3 of them Category A. They are on its History page, from Historic Environment Scotland’s list, not repeated here.

How is this list made?

From OpenStreetMap (museums, galleries, zoos, theme parks and attractions, castles, forts and abbeys, and historic houses and gardens that are open to visitors) and Wikidata (what each place is, who runs it, its website and visitor counts). A place counts for Peebles when it is inside the NRS 2022 locality boundary, and as nearby within 5 km of its edge. Opening times and prices are not shown: check the official site.

Places: OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors, Open Database Licence) and Wikidata (CC0), placed in the NRS 2022 locality (Open Government Licence v3.0). Visitor counts are the latest Wikidata gives, with their year.

Photos: each place’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).

Photo credits (17)

Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Contains HM Land Registry data © Crown copyright and database right 2026. Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2026 (ONS boundaries). Northern Ireland: Source: NISRA; contains Land & Property Services data and Ordnance Survey of Northern Ireland information, © Crown copyright, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Scotland: contains National Records of Scotland data, Registers of Scotland data and SEPA data, © Crown copyright / © SEPA 2025, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.