**The attraction**

The Rosslyn Chapel is a small church in a small village close to Edinburgh. I had never heard of the chapel until it was featured in the Hollywood film 'The Da Vinci Code' based on the best selling book by Dan Brown.

Personally, we visited the chapel as though we were visiting a film set rather than as a place of worship. Although the place feels very peaceful, it is hard to ignore the droves of tourists moving through the church so bear that in mind if you are looking for peace and serenity (although I did find it in some parts!)

We visited in 2007 when a lot of restoration work was taking place with a canopy overheard which sort of spoiled the appeal a little bit for us. However, the canopy was taken off in August 2010 so I imagine it will look as you expect it to.

It is worth noting that if you are going to visit, only the inside of the chapel looks as it did in the film, the outside and setting of the church looks quite different to the film.


**Getting to the attraction**

We found the village of Roslin to be very easy to find, it is 7 miles South of Ediburgh and easy to find once you leave the M8 motorway by car. The village website states it would cost £15-£20 each way for a taxi from Roslin to Edinburgh. I guess there are bus links, but there wasn't a train station in the village. Bear in mind the village is small and is not exactly built to accomodate lots of traffic and people. I am certain that they have adapted to this, and at the attraction there is a good sized car park, but just bear in mind that the village is small.


**What do I get?**

The website states that the current opening hours are:

1st April - 30 Sept (Mon - Sat 09:30 - 18:00 ; Sun 12:00 - 16.45)
1 October - 31 March (Mon - Sat 09:30 - 17:00 ; Sun 12:00 - 16.45)

Last admission 30 minutes before closing. It is worth remembering that it is a working church so may be closed unexpectedly for a funeral, wedding, baptism etc. and also at times such as Christmas and Easter it is likely to have services on there. You can check the website for planned closures but there may be unscheduled closures too so bear that in mind before making a special trip.

The price of entrance is not clear on the website, but from memory it was less than £10 for adults. It does seem a little bit expensive, given that we didn't get an audio guide (you do now as of September 2011). We did however join in the guided tours given by people who worked there which were really informative. The guides were great and I felt we got a lot of information on the chapel.

The site has facilities such as refreshments, a gift shop and toilets and the lovely village of Roslin is a two minute walk away.


**My opinion of the chapel**

I was very excited to see the chapel, mainly because it was part of the film set of the Da Vinci Code. For anyone who knows the film, the chapel features in the final sequence of events, making it even more exciting. The crypt (as featured in the film) is slightly different to the film, so bear in mind you will not see it quite in the same way that it is featured on the big screen.

However, I found the excitment for the "film set" aspect grew when I realised what a lovely setting this chapel was. As I said earlier, despite all of the tourists, it just seemed so peaceful to visit there. The old stonework meant that it was quite cool inside the chapel (as per most stone churches), there is no plaster or rendering, all the original carvings can be seen.

When we went, we were able to access the scaffolding and get super views of the top of the church and all the ornate carvings (the "green men") and the surrounding area. The area around the chapel is a treat all by itself, luscious green glens. I wish we had had more time to explore.

**Would I go again?**

I would visit the chapel again, but it isn't somewhere to go on an annual basis. We haven't been for almost five years so would be nice to see how it has changed. I would love to visit the surrounding area, it was so beautiful. The village now has its own website: http://www.roslinvillage.com/tourist-roslin.php so I would like to visit again to explore this lovely place with more time.

I would heartily reccomend a visit if you are in the local area.
More information can be found here: http://www.rosslynchapel.org.uk/


Also posted on tripadvisor by dollydaydream84 and majorly updated for your viewing pleasure :)