City Stories Index · United Kingdom · 2026 edition
Colchester vs Edinburgh
Not opinions, measured walking data. On what we can measure, Edinburgh leads 3–1 (1 within the tie margin). Character is a different question: Colchester is britain's first city; Edinburgh is the old town and the new.
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| What we measure | Colchester | Edinburgh | Leads |
|---|---|---|---|
| Places with a storyspots where a route tells you what happened there | 54 | 55 | tie |
| How often you pass a storymetres from one story to the next; fewer is better | 312 | 254 | Edinburgh |
| Historical figuresreal people you meet in its stories | 11 | 13 | Edinburgh |
| Instagrammabilityscore /100, on the index’s fixed scale | — | 20 | Edinburgh |
| Group outingsof every 100 plays, how many bring a group of 3+ | 24 | 16 | Colchester |
| International visitors% of player reviews written in a foreign language | 2 | 4 | Edinburgh |
Differences under 5% count as ties. Sample sizes and definitions on the methodology page.
What their stories are about
How many places with a story each city has per theme: Colchester in orange, Edinburgh in blue. All bars share one scale, so lengths are comparable everywhere on the chart.
ColchesterEdinburgh
3 places
crime & dark history21 places
8 places
arts & culture16 places
15 places
fortification & siege3 places
10 places
royalty & nobility13 places
1 place
legends & myths13 places
12 places
faith & churches9 places
2 places
guilds & trade8 places
4 places
industry & modern era6 places
Colchester scorecard →
Britain's first city
Edinburgh scorecard →
The old town and the new