[1] It has a very distinctive building form, typical of many Scottish fishing villages, with a "forestair" leading to accommodation at first floor level.

Victoria Primary School, created in 1844, is a historic, listed building in Newhaven Main Street and was the oldest council primary school still in use within the City of Edinburgh council area until pupils and staff moved to a new building across in Western Harbour in 2021.

It is also the home of Next Generation Sports Centre (now named David Lloyd Newhaven Harbour), where the tennis player Sir Andy Murray regularly played as a youngster.

King James IV wanted to build a Scottish navy, but the existing port of Leith proved unsuitable for large warships.

Surviving walls of the Chapel of St. Mary and St. James, believed to have been built for the dockyard workers and mariners, can still be seen in Lamb's Court and Westmost Close off Main Street.

Up to the end of the 20th century, pilots of ships on the Firth of Forth traditionally came from a close-knit group of Newhaven families.

The whalemaster's house (13) at the centre of what is now Park Road had clear views down to the harbour over the lower buildings to the north.

Newhaven was redeveloped by Edinburgh's town planners in the 1950s and 1960s under the control of both the city architect (for the demolition elements) and Ian Lindsay and Partners (for the reconstruction).

Other redevelopment in the area, at New Lane, Great Michael Rise and on Laverockbank Crescent, was the work of the eminent Scottish modern architect Sir Basil Spence.

A 16th century stone armorial panel on the south side of Main Street, known locally as the "Newhaven Stone", appears to have come from the long vanished Trinity Mains Farm, a farm estate linked to Trinity House in Leith whose crest appears on the tablet.

The Newhaven Heritage Museum placed in a small room in the northern section[13] did not survive,[14] but the fishmarket function itself has now been revitalised, including a publicly accessible fishmonger.

The Edinburgh Trams light rail extension opened to passengers in June 2023 providing connection to the city centre and the airport.

The line terminates at Newhaven tram stop which is located to the north side of Lindsay Road.