Gullane

Gullane is a seaside village in East Lothian, in central Scotland. It's surrounded by golf courses, notably Muirfield, a regular venue for the Open Championship. It's also a commuter town for Edinburgh and in 2020 had a population of 2810.

Get in
Gullane is 20 miles east of Edinburgh on A198, which hugs the coast of the Firth of Forth north of A1. Exit A1 at Haddington and follow A6137 north to Aberlady then join A198 east into town. Bicycles aren't allowed on the new A1, use the scenic route along A198 winding through the coastal villages.

East Coast Buses X5 and 124 run from Edinburgh Fountainbridge along Princes St (close to but not into the bus station) then via Musselburgh along the coast road to Gullane, continuing to North Berwick. They run daily every 30-60 min, taking around 80 min. Night bus N124 runs the same route shortly after midnight Friday and Saturday then at 3AM.

The nearest railway station is at North Berwick 3 miles east. This has hourly trains from Edinburgh which also stop at Drem 2 miles south of Gullane.

Get around
The buses to North Berwick run through Dirleton, which is on an old loop of road 200 yards (190 m) north of the bypass.

See

 * are the sands and dunes of Gullane Beach. By car take Sandy Lane, 2nd left after entering the village from the west, which leads to a large car park. There's a broad curve of golden sands, with rocks at the eastern end and low cliffs to the west. The dunes, which in the 20th century were just blowing sand, are becoming grown over as the council has stabilised them. This may have been overdone, as there's nowadays quite a thicket of blackthorn.
 * was originally built in the 12th century but smashed up on several occasions. The present version is mostly 19th century and is a private family home, no tours.

Do

 * John Muir Way is a long-distance coastal trail. The route is obvious both ways: eastbound follow the shore by Yellowcraigs into North Berwick, and onward to Tantallon Castle, Dunbar, and the cliffs of Berwickshire. Westbound leads you to Luffness and Aberlady, a bird reserve; you can't short-cut across this bay as it's muddy. The trail continues east via Craigielaw and Seton Sands to Musselburgh.
 * Other courses nearby are Luffness, Craigielaw and Kilspindie towards Aberlady, and Archerfield near Dirleton.
 * Other courses nearby are Luffness, Craigielaw and Kilspindie towards Aberlady, and Archerfield near Dirleton.
 * Other courses nearby are Luffness, Craigielaw and Kilspindie towards Aberlady, and Archerfield near Dirleton.

Buy

 * Coop Food is on Main St, open daily 7AM-10PM. Tesco and Aldi are three miles east on the edge of North Berwick.

Eat

 * Greywalls and Bonnie Badger both have outstanding restaurants, see "Sleep". Other village centre choices include The Main Choice, Super Fry and The Old Clubhouse.

Drink

 * The Old Clubhouse on East Links Rd does bar meals and is open daily 11AM-11PM.

Sleep

 * Accommodation prices take a big hike around major golf events.


 * Dirleton a mile or two east has Archerfield, Castle Inn and The Open Arms. Bridget Bardot and other cast stayed in Dirleton while filming the 1967 film Two Weeks in September / À cœur joie.
 * Dirleton a mile or two east has Archerfield, Castle Inn and The Open Arms. Bridget Bardot and other cast stayed in Dirleton while filming the 1967 film Two Weeks in September / À cœur joie.
 * Dirleton a mile or two east has Archerfield, Castle Inn and The Open Arms. Bridget Bardot and other cast stayed in Dirleton while filming the 1967 film Two Weeks in September / À cœur joie.
 * Dirleton a mile or two east has Archerfield, Castle Inn and The Open Arms. Bridget Bardot and other cast stayed in Dirleton while filming the 1967 film Two Weeks in September / À cœur joie.

Connect
As of July 2023, Gullane and its approach roads have 4G from EE and Vodafone, but a poor signal from O2 and Three. 5G has not reached this area.

Go next

 * A little way east is North Berwick, with the "Law" rearing up behind town, and the Bass Rock and other islands out to sea.
 * Further east is the fishing village of Dunbar, then the cliffs of Berwickshire stretch to the English border.
 * Inland is the small market town of Haddington, the Glenkinchie whisky distillery, and the rolling Lammermuir Hills.
 * Scotland's capital city of Edinburgh is barely 20 miles away.