Discover Haddington: churches, garden and Riverside Walk

If you’re looking for a hotel in Haddington, it’s worth first deciding what brings you there. Haddington offers several distinct points of interest: two churches with historical connections, a Riverside Walk with named start and end points, a walled garden on the edge of town, and a monthly farmers’ market. You can plan your stay around whether you want to focus on church and local history, a walk, garden spaces or a particular market day.

Churches with different historical connections

St Mary’s was founded as a collegiate church in 1380 and is one of the three significant pre-Reformation churches in the Lothians. St Martin’s Kirk is one of the few surviving Scottish parish churches dating from the 12th century. These offer two different points of reference for planning your cultural activities: St Mary’s combines a precise founding date with regional significance, while St Martin’s stands out for its great age and the rarity of surviving parish churches.

Mill site and creative activities

The present-day buildings of Poldrate Mill stand on the southern edge of Haddington, by the River Tyne. They were built on the site of the medieval Kirk Mill. Its historical significance therefore lies both in its location by the River Tyne and in the site’s former use as Kirk Mill. If you want to include local history in your trip, Poldrate Mill complements the churches with a connection to a medieval mill site.

Poldrate Arts & Crafts Centre in Haddington offers art and craft classes for adults, as well as self-help groups. This means there are activities to consider alongside the area’s historical connections. The classes are for adults; if art and crafts are your main interest, you can make this a specific focus of your plans.

Amisfield Walled Garden

Amisfield Walled Garden lies on the edge of Haddington and includes herbaceous borders, fruit and vegetable beds, a wildflower meadow, an orchard and woodland planting. The different features offer a range of horticultural perspectives: herbaceous and productive beds provide a different focus from the meadow, orchard and trees. If gardens are among your travel interests, you can decide whether a visit suits your focus by considering these areas.

Riverside Walk and market day

The Haddington Riverside Walk starts and ends on Haddington High Street and follows well-surfaced paths and pavements. The shared start and end point and the path conditions provide practical reference points for planning your day. This makes it easy to plan the walk as a standalone activity; unlike the churches or the garden, the focus here is a route.

The Haddington Farmers’ Market takes place on the last Saturday of every month. If the market is a factor in your stay, time your travel dates to coincide with market day and check the exact date before you travel. Unlike a visit focused on history or gardens, planning here depends directly on the calendar.

Discover more destinations: Prestonpans, Aberlady, East Linton, North Berwick, Musselburgh, Tranent, Cockenzie And Port Seton, Gifford

See the wider travel guide: East Lothian.