Edinburgh is the fourth most beautiful city in the world

Edinburgh has been voted the fourth most beautiful city in the world.

According to voters in the Rough Guide poll, Edinburgh is the most beautiful city in the United Kingdom, as well as being one of the most beautiful in Europe, beating off some of its oldest and most prestigious cities.

Rome, Florence, and Paris pipped us to the post (in that order), but we beat  London (5th), which was the only other UK city on the list.

Other surprising victories were taken over the 800 year-old Czech city of Prague (6th) and the romantic water-city Venice (7th).

As the Rough Guide puts it, there is more to Edinburgh than just the Fringe festival:

“Head east of the city and make the short walk up Arthur’s Seat, an 823ft-high dormant volcano, to take in views of Scotland’s capital and you won’t need to question why it’s been voted the fourth most beautiful city in the world.”

The results of this poll are sure to reignite the ongoing argument over Edinburgh’s UNESCO heritage status – which has raged for some time now over the threat to the historic cityscape by numerous planning approvals for large-scale work.