A new study has revealed the must-visit spots in the world according to Instagram, with Edinburgh's Dean Village ranking among the top three Insta-landmarks that travellers and locals need to experience in the UK.
The research, conducted by hotel chain Premier Inn, analysed Instagram hashtag data of 1,066 locations around the world, to reveal which are the most Instagram-famous spots that should be on everyone's travel bucket list.
Rivalling traditional sights like the London Eye and Big Ben for social media attention, colourful courtyard Neal's Yard in London claimed the top spot as the UK's most Insta-worthy landmark, with 183,907 posts.
Sheffield's trendy Kelham Island neighbourhood ranked second, with 93,691 hashtags, with the picturesque Dean Village in Edinburgh, located along the Water of Leith, completing the top three with 82,643 hashtags.
READ MORE:
National Geographic lists Scottish islands in its Best of the World 2025 travel list
The pub's vegan haggis fritters gave me an intense love of all things Scottish
The only other Scottish location to feature in the UK's top 15 list is Ashton Lane in Glasgow, which came in 10th position with 31,971 hashtags.
On the global stage, The Dubai Mall, the world’s largest mall, reigns supreme with 7,237,343 hashtags, making it the world's new landmark according to Instagram users.
Dubai's dominance continues with Dubai Marina (6,057,997 hashtags) and Dubai City Walk (2,557,044 hashtags) in second and third place respectively.
A spokesperson from Premier Inn commented: “Social media has revolutionised the way we discover new places and share travel experiences. Our research into Instagram's most popular landmarks not only reveals exciting destinations for our guests to explore but also highlights how travel preferences are evolving in the digital age.
“We're thrilled to see so many UK locations feature prominently in our findings; a testament to the beauty and diverse experiences our country has to offer. And whether you're capturing the charming canals of Birmingham or snapping the futuristic skyline of Dubai, these Instagram hotspots are often just a stone's throw away from a Premier Inn hotel, offering a good night’s rest to prep for your next adventures and the exciting memories ahead.”
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules here