The Royal Mile, Edinburgh, City of Edinburgh, UK

Edinburgh's beating heart is the Royal Mile, a cobbled thoroughfare exactly one mile long that connects two of the city's icons - Edinburgh Castle and Holyrood Abbey. The Royal Mile actually consists of Castle Esplanade, Castlehill, Lawnmarket, High Street, Canongate and Abbey Strand. The Royal Mile also houses much of Edinburgh's administrative buildings at Parliament Square. These include the Court of Session, Scotland's supreme civil court and St Giles Cathedral, the High Kirk of Edinburgh. Edinburgh's most popular tourist haunt, the Royal Mile also features a wide assortment of tourist shops, pubs and restaurants. It truly comes to life during the annual Edinburgh Festival when it's thronged with buskers and entertainers.