The Pleasance

A conglomeration of Edinburgh University-owned buildings, The Pleasance acts of one of the four hosts for the Students' Union in the city during 9 months of the year. It has a friendly atmosphere and most importantly it's easy going and cheap. During the Edinburgh Festival over the month of August things get hectic – the buildings are completely taken over and become a hive for tourists, locals, touring acts and generally the cream of up 'n' coming creative talent on the international market today. Several rooms are host to plays and live performances, seeing anything from comedy to theatre, to live music and so forth.

And now the iconic courtyard beer garden has become somewhat of a compulsory feature, with its tents and benches crammed in - not forgetting a good few hundred tipsy people happily scrambling around the buzzing throng of artists, performers, musicians, comedians and the like. The Pleasance really serves as a ledge to the epicentre of Edinburgh's summer festivities.