At Home in Dunbar
25th July 2022
With The Guardian picking Dunbar as one of the Top 10 UK Property Hotspots and The Sunday Times previously voting it one of the best places to live in the UK, not to mention that it is also Scotland’s first zero waste town. Dunbar has understandably been growing in popularity in recent years because of its wonderful location and the superb quality of life that it offers.
With the Capital only 20 minutes away by train, Dunbar has long been a favourite of commuters but with more of us now working flexibly, we take a closer look at why Dunbar is such a great place to live. About 30 miles east of Edinburgh, the town is renowned for its high sunshine record – it is known locally as “Sunny Dunny”. With renowned beaches, a busy working harbour and a rugged coastline that is a magnet for surfers and rock poolers, not to mention John Muir Country Park which is named after Dunbar’s most celebrated son and one of the most famous conservationists in the US.
For many, a huge benefit to living in Dunbar is its proximity to Edinburgh, which is just a 20 to 25-minute train journey away, coupled with the fact that average house prices in Dunbar are about £30,000 to £35,000 less than those in the city. Although it is very true that house prices in much of coastal East Lothian have risen considerably during the last two or three years, so bargains are hard to find.
If you are thinking about moving to Dunbar here are some useful stats for you. Semi-detached houses currently average £293,183.30 and the average cost of a flat is £167,955. The population is just 9,270 and the average broadband speed is 44.4mbps. With its own train station and close proximity to the A1, the town has excellent transport links. The closest airport is Edinburgh at 34 miles away and Newcastle-upon-Tyne is just 70 minutes away by train. When it comes to schools in Dunbar, there is one secondary school (Dunbar Grammar School) and five primary schools in and around the town, this includes Bellhaven Hill School which is a private Boarding and Day School.
Equally popular with visitors, Dunbar’s broad high street is packed full of independent local shops providing customers with a great retail experience and award-winning food and drink establishments.
Dunbar is also steeped in history and was one of the most important Scottish Fortresses in the Middle Ages. Its ruined castle, which stands guard over the town’s twinned harbours, once sheltered Mary Queen of Scots when she fled Edinburgh after the murder of Rizzio. The castle is now home to a kittiwake colony.
Dunbar is home to John Muir Country Park which is a nature reserve and can be enjoyed by both a family enjoying the outdoors and the natural history enthusiast. The Park is named after John Muir, the explorer, naturalist and conservationist, who was born in Dunbar. It supports a wide range of habitats, birds and plants and covers some of the most spectacular East Lothian coastline.
Other family fun attractions in Dunbar include East Links Family Park and Foxlake Adventures and an extremely popular Surf School. East Links Family Park is a farm-based activity park suitable for all ages. A train safari runs through paddocks of friendly farm animals and there are lots of activities including go karts, trampolines, soft play ball blast area and a tree-level multi activity fortress. Foxlake Adventures, Scotland’s first wakeboard cable tow is great fun for beginners and experienced wakeboarders. They have also opened a unique ropes challenge taking place over water. Dunbar is also home to a leisure pool, with wave machine, beach area, flume and other exciting water features. It also has a health suite with sauna, solarium and steam room, and a fully equipped gym.
John Muir’s spirit seems to live on in Dunbar. This is Scotland’s first zero-waste town (working to reduce waste to landfill and maximise the benefits of re-use and recycling) and its second Transition town – the Transition Network movement aims to increase community self-sufficiency and reduce emissions. A community development trust, Sustaining Dunbar, was launched in 2008 to steward and support the Transition initiative; it has developed dozens of projects to help people reduce home energy consumption, walk and cycle more, and grow more of their own food. We are sure that the great conservationist and naturalist would approve.
We hope that you have found this brief introduction to Dunbar useful and that it has provided you with some useful background about this lovely and historic coastal town.
Whether you are buying or selling a house or looking for legal advice, your needs are at the heart of everything we do. Please don’t hesitate to get in touch with our team at our Dunbar office.
GARDEN STIRLING BURNET
Solicitors and Estate Agents
39 High Street
Dunbar
EH42 1EW
Tel: 01368 862 376
Categorised in: East Lothian
