Planning a trip to Scotland and wondering what’s new? This page tracks the openings, events and experiences worth knowing about — new hotels and restaurants, distillery launches, festival programmes and exhibitions across Scotland. Updated regularly. If you’re planning a visit in the next year, this is the page to bookmark.
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Latest Scotland news
Food and restaurant news
Whirlybird opens on Victoria Street – Edinburgh’s Old Town has a brilliant new all-day modern tavern
One of the most exciting Edinburgh openings of 2026 landed on 18 May: Whirlybird, a 100-cover all-day modern tavern in a 250-year-old building at 36–38 Victoria Street in the Old Town. The name comes from the Scots word for a spinning sycamore seed. The menu celebrates Scottish ingredients – whipped crowdie with heritage radish, whole grilled fish with brown butter and capers, Shetland mussels with fries – across four interconnected rooms with the building’s original spiral staircase, stone arches and wooden doorways intact. Open from 9am until late, seven days a week.
Book at whirlybirdedinburgh.co.uk.
KIN by Gary Maclean opens at The Roseate Edinburgh – Scotland’s National Chef launches his first restaurant
Gary Maclean – Scotland’s first National Chef and winner of MasterChef: The Professionals – opened KIN at The Roseate Edinburgh on 8 June. The restaurant is built around Scottish produce and the idea of connection: between guests, producers and the team. Maclean says KIN is “about bringing people together around thoughtful, honest cooking,” drawing on the wealth of Scottish larder ingredients he has championed throughout his career. The Roseate Edinburgh is a luxury boutique hotel near Princes Street.
Find out more at theroseate.co.uk/edinburgh.
Lennox is coming to Edinburgh in July – Nico Simeone brings his personal fire-led concept to Queensferry Street
Announced just this week, Lennox Edinburgh will open in July at 40 Queensferry Street (the former Six by Nico West End site), completing a three-city rollout that began in Manchester in March and continued with Glasgow in May. The concept drops Six by Nico’s theatrical tasting menus entirely in favour of something more personal: an open kitchen centred on a bespoke barbecue grill and dry-ageing cabinets for meat and fish, raw materials and low lighting, and menus built around nostalgia, technique and bold flavour. Six by Nico’s Edinburgh flagship on Hanover Street will continue as normal. Priority booking is now open.
Register for early access at lennoxrestaurant.co.uk.
The Ivy and Ivy Asia are coming to Glasgow’s St Vincent Place
Work has begun on what property experts are calling potentially the highest profile restaurant opening in Glasgow’s history. The Ivy Collection has received planning permission and listed building consent to transform the former Clydesdale Bank on St Vincent Place – a Category A listed 1870s building by John Burnet Senior – into a major hospitality destination housing both The Ivy and Ivy Asia with a combined 466 covers plus outdoor seating. The project represents a multi-million pound investment and is expected to open later in 2026.
Follow updates at theivycollection.com.
Celentano’s confirms 24 June opening at Arthouse Glasgow – the Michelin Bib Gourmand restaurant finally has a date
Anna and Dean Parker’s Celentano’s opens at Arthouse Glasgow on 24 June, more than a year after the closure of its original Cathedral House home. The new 60-cover space on Bath Street almost doubles the previous capacity, with interiors by A-nrd Studio and Dean’s signature cooking – charcoal-fired, fermentation-forward, vegetable agnolotti and malted barley affogato among the returning dishes. The hotel itself, from new British group Oberland, opens at the same time.
Book at celentanosglasgow.com.
Tay Square Bar & Kitchen opens in Dundee – a neighbourhood bar and kitchen
The former Innis & Gunn venue on South Tay Street in Dundee reopened in late April as Tay Square Bar & Kitchen, brought back to life by Ross Lunan and Mark McGurty, formerly of The Bayview in Menzieshill. The menu spans pub classics, burgers, curries, brunch and boozy brunch options, with a kids menu and senior dining offer. It’s a welcome return for a site that had been closed since 2023.
Find out more at taysquarebarandkitchen.co.uk.
New hotels and accommodation in Scotland
The Kithmore opens in St Andrews – a luxury boutique hotel with Bennie’s restaurant, just steps from the Old Course
The Kithmore opened its doors yesterday (16 June) following a £7.5m transformation of the former Ardgowan Hotel on Playfair Terrace, North Street. Three Georgian townhouses dating from 1847, originally designed by St Andrews architect George Rae, now house 44 rooms from £415 per night alongside Bennie’s — an all-day bar and restaurant named after the Bennie family who were long associated with the property, with head chef Joe Reddie (Scottish Young Chef of the Year 2019) at the helm. Bennie’s has its own street-level entrance and a 30-cover landscaped terrace. Just steps from The Royal and Ancient Golf Club and the Old Course.
Lyla Edinburgh is now a hotel – the Michelin-starred restaurant on Royal Terrace has taken over the former 21212 rooms
Edinburgh’s Michelin-starred Lyla – named Time Out’s best restaurant in Edinburgh – has expanded from a restaurant with four rooms into a full boutique hotel, taking over the remaining rooms in the Georgian townhouse that once housed 21212. The new rooms have been designed by Glasgow interior architects Scarinish Studio, taking inspiration from Lyla’s Scottish coastal ethos, with fabrics from the Isle of Bute, cushions by Røros Tweed and throws by Hilary Grant. Minibars are stocked with Lyla’s own batched cocktails, Champagne and caviar. Chef Stuart Ralston is now pursuing a second Michelin star.
Cromlix reopens after its biggest ever transformation – Andy Murray’s Perthshire hotel is better than ever
Andy Murray’s Cromlix near Dunblane reopened in May 2026 following its most substantial transformation since the Murrays took ownership in 2013. The Victorian country house hotel sits in 34 acres of Perthshire woodland and has been a beloved Scotland hotel destination for years — with this renovation adding fresh bedrooms, public spaces and outdoor improvements. It remains one of Scotland’s most romantic country house hotels.
Arthouse Glasgow – Scotland’s newest boutique hotel opens 24 June on Bath Street
The Arthouse Glasgow, the first hotel from British group Oberland, opens on 24 June alongside Celentano’s restaurant (see above). The 76-bedroom hotel in a 19th-century Bath Street townhouse was designed by A-nrd Studio, with rooms from £99 to £229 across four categories.
Book at arthousehotelglasgow.com.
Exhibitions and cultural news
The RSA’s 200th Annual Exhibition is now open on The Mound in Edinburgh – free entry until 14 June
The Royal Scottish Academy’s landmark 200th Annual Exhibition opened on 9 May at The Mound, bringing together work from more than 300 artists and architects across the bicentenary year. Convened by Annie Cattrell RSA and Fergus Purdie RSA around themes of time, geology and layered history, this is the centrepiece of the RSA’s year-long bicentenary programme. Free entry.
Book a visit at royalscottishacademy.org.
Barbie: The Exhibition opens at Kelvingrove on 13 June – tickets on sale now
The Scottish debut of the Design Museum’s major Barbie exhibition opens this coming Saturday at Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum, running until 18 October 2026. More than 250 objects span 65+ years of design history – from a rare hand-painted Number 1 Barbie from 1959 to original costumes from the 2023 Barbie film. Tickets £8–£16.
Book at glasgowlife.org.uk/barbie.
Upcoming events and festivals across Scotland
Scotland hosts a wide range of events and festivals throughout the year, from major cultural celebrations to smaller local and seasonal events.
> Discover all of the events in Scotland in my complete guide to whats on.
How often is this page updated?
New openings, events and projects are added as they are confirmed, making it a reliable source for what’s new in Scotland.
Kate – Love from Scotland x
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