Twinned with Nablus, Dundee is Scotland’s most unexpected cultural city escape

The small Scottish city offers a short break with substance, story and solidarity stitched into its fabric

A cycle along the waterfront, visit to the V&A or a meal in the West End are among the highlights of a trip to Dundee. Photo: Visit Scotland

In the heart of Dundee’s City Square, the Palestinian flag flies high above Caird Hall, the city’s grand civic building. The red, green, white and black colours ripple in the North Sea wind, clear to see for anyone arriving in this small Scottish city.

Alongside the flags of other twinned cities, it’s been part of the skyline for more than four decades, since Dundee formally twinned with Nablus in an act of solidarity in 1980. Since then, the Dundee-Nablus Twinning Association has helped turn symbolic support into real collaboration, replanting olive trees, restoring medical centres and funding trauma support for children in Nablus. A donated fire engine from Dundee still serves the Palestinian city today.

Palestinian flag flying at Caird Hall, Dundee. Photo: Nick Steff

For Mary McGregor, convener of DNTA, the twinning is “testimony to international solidarity and a small contribution to the struggle for Palestinian self-determination”. This story of connection is also at the heart of a new exhibition drawing travellers to Dundee today.

Thread Memory at the V&A Dundee

Just steps from City Square lies the transformed waterfront and the V&A Dundee, Scotland’s first design museum, where the Thread Memory: Embroidery from Palestine exhibition is running until spring 2026. Celebrating the 45th anniversary of the twinning, the exhibition explores the artistry, heritage and resistance embedded in Palestinian embroidery.

A photo of a woman sewing a Palestinian thobe in Ramallah in the 1970s by Emile Ashrawi. Photo: Palestinian Museum Digital Archive

“Debuting at Hayy Jameel, Jeddah, and travelling to V&A Dundee, Thread Memory draws from the Palestinian Museum’s vast archive documenting Palestinian life and history,” Leonie Bell, director of V&A Dundee, tells The National. “It explores the traditions and material culture of Palestinian dress and the range of regional styles that tell important stories about the women who made, adapted and wore these dresses, jewellery, headdresses and accessories.”

Inside the free-to-enter exhibition, visitors can view dresses once worn for weddings and celebrations, and each tied to a specific region of Palestine. Some were rescued from bombed museums, others stitched in exile as acts of remembrance. Contemporary artists have reimagined these motifs in video, photography and mixed media, tracing the evolving language of tatreez while preserving its roots.

Leena Nammari with her artwork Absence Does Not Mean Forgetting. Photo: Grant Anderson

One of the most striking pieces is Absence Does Not Mean Forgetting by Palestinian artist Leena Nammari. The piece consists of clay tablets, each representing a destroyed Palestinian village or town. Nammari incorporates the cypress tree, an enduring motif in Palestinian embroidery, as a symbol of resilience, with her work declaring that while villages may have vanished, their memories endure. Nammari, who now lives in Scotland, brings this layered perspective of distance and belonging into her art.

Dundee City Councillor Nadia El-Nakla visits the Thread Memory exhibition. Photo: Grant Anderson

The exhibition also highlights connections between Palestine and Dundee. On display is the dress worn by Dundee City Councillor Nadia El-Nakla at the Scottish Parliament in 2023, during the swearing-in ceremony of her husband, Humza Yousaf, as First Minister of Scotland. Embodying her Palestinian heritage, El-Nakla’s choice of dress was a gesture of solidarity and pride in her homeland. For Dundee resident and DNTA secretary Nick Steff, the exhibition couldn’t be more timely. “The relationship between Dundee and Nablus is more important than ever,” he says, pointing to continued attacks on Palestinian communities. In Dundee, this an exhibition that feels personal, not just a visiting show, but a reflection of the city’s cultural identity.

The exterior of the V&A Dundee, Scotland's first design museum. Photo: Visit Scotland

Towering over the River Tay, the V&A Dundee has come to symbolise the city’s wider transformation from industrial hub to design capital. Opened in 2018, it is both a cultural landmark and a civic statement, embodying the same spirit of resilience and reinvention that underpins the city’s international ties.

“The museum has gained a strong reputation nationally and internationally and has become an integral part of the city,” says Bell. “It has also created an iconic public plaza, connecting the city to the river as part of Dundee’s waterfront regeneration.”

More to see in Dundee

Discovery Point is home to RRS Discovery, the ship that carried Robert Falcon Scott and Ernest Shackleton to Antarctica in 1901. Photo: Visit Scotland

Dundee’s cultural offering extends well beyond this flagship institution. Just along the waterfront is the RRS Discovery, the ship that carried Robert Falcon Scott and Ernest Shackleton to Antarctica at the beginning of the last century. From September, visitors will even be able to climb the ship’s rigging and zip-line to land. “Combining the past with modern-day thrills,” says Caroline Warburton of VisitScotland, “Captain Scott’s ship will offer visitors the chance to follow in the footsteps of the 1901 crew.”

Nearby, the Gothic-style McManus Art Gallery and Museum offers Scottish artworks, archaeological finds and natural history in a dramatic 19th-century setting. Dundee Contemporary Arts is the place to go for cutting-edge exhibitions, indie films and live shows, while the recently opened Livehouse Dundee adds to the city’s growing arts scene with internationally acclaimed artists now finding a place to play in this northern town.

Dundee’s status as the UK’s first Unesco City of Design is celebrated throughout, with fans of homegrown The Beano able to follow a comic book trail through the city, spotting statues of Desperate Dan and Minnie the Minx. The Open Close Dundee project has transformed some of Dundee’s forgotten alleyways and closes into a living outdoor gallery of ever-changing murals and street art.

The view from Dundee Law. Photo: Visit Scotland

For a taste of the outdoors, the Dundee Law is an extinct volcano that’s the perfect place to drink in sweeping views of the Tay estuary and hills beyond. At the Mills Observatory, visitors can explore the night sky and the regenerated Slessor Gardens, once part of the industrial docks, is now a peaceful green space lined with planting beds and public art.

Dundee also makes an excellent base for cycling. Hire a bike at the Cycle Hub and ride out to Broughty Ferry, a colourful former fishing village turned stylish suburb. Here you’ll find a 15th-century castle, a stretch of sandy beach, and cafes with sea views. The Dighty Burn Trail offers a quieter route along the water, ideal for birdwatchers and nature lovers.

Where to eat and stay in Dundee

Broughty Ferry Castle seen from Broughty Ferry beach. Photo: Visit Scotland

The food scene in and around Dundee is as eclectic as its culture. The Howff Secret Supper Club offers tasting menus in an intimate setting, and for something casual, enjoy coffee at The Flame Tree Cafe, known for its breakfast bagels, or visit Pacamara in the city's West End for breakfast and brunch. While in neighbouring town Broughty Ferry, Collinsons serves refined Scottish cuisine with seasonal produce.

Accommodation in the city is varied and characterful. Malmaison Dundee brings boutique luxury to a former Victorian hotel, while Hotel Indigo Dundee is set in a converted textile mill, blending modern comfort with nods to the city’s industrial past. For those seeking a rural escape, the Hideaway Experience just outside the city offers adult-only luxury lodges, complete with hot tubs and big skies.

Often overshadowed by its more famous neighbours, Dundee is now walking its own path as a cultural destination. It is home to wild coastlines, a world-class design museum and a thriving creative scene, where artistic energy is matched by the city’s confidence to go against the grain, and stand up for what it believes in.

For travellers looking for something a little off the beaten path, this compact Scottish city offers a short break with substance, story and solidarity stitched into its fabric.