A medieval Old Town, a Georgian New Town, a volcano in the middle and festivals all year. Honest advice, hand-picked tours and everything you need to plan your days in Scotland’s capital.
Edinburgh is a capital you can cross on foot in half an hour, and it packs more into that half hour than most cities manage in a day: a fortress on a volcanic crag, a mile of medieval high street, an entire Georgian city laid out by rule and compass, and a wild hill rising from the back of a royal palace.
The Old and New Towns together are a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Every August the city hosts the largest arts festival in the world; every New Year it throws one of the biggest street parties. In between there are free national museums, whisky bars, a port full of good restaurants, and the Highlands a day trip away.
Castle tours with entry, Old Town walks, the city’s underground streets, whisky tastings and the classic Highlands day trip — all verified, well-reviewed and bookable online.
Guided tour + ticket from €41 The city’s best-selling castle tour, with more than 14,000 reviews. Your ticket is included, and a guide walks you through 900 years of sieges, kings and prisoners before leaving you free to explore. Castle tickets regularly sell out in summer, so this is also a reliable way to secure a slot.
Entry ticket from €26 The King’s official residence in Scotland, at the opposite end of the Royal Mile from the castle. The ticket covers the State Apartments, the rooms where Mary, Queen of Scots lived, the roofless 12th-century abbey and the gardens. The palace closes during royal visits — check dates when you book.
Entry ticket from €29 The late Queen’s floating palace for over forty years, now moored in Leith and consistently one of the best-reviewed attractions in Scotland. The audio tour covers the state rooms, the royal apartments and the crew’s quarters. The tram from Princes Street stops outside.
Walking tour from €21 Much of Harry Potter was written in Edinburgh, and this hugely popular tour visits the places said to have inspired it: the curve of Victoria Street, the gravestones of Greyfriars Kirkyard and the cafés where early chapters took shape. Light-hearted, family-friendly and very well reviewed.
Guided tour from €34 An hour beneath the City Chambers in the preserved streets and houses of the 1600s, led by a guide in character. It is social history — plague, trade and daily life — rather than a fright show, and suitable for most children over five.
Evening ghost tour from €31 Edinburgh’s classic evening out: a cloaked guide leads you through the closes of the Old Town, into a graveyard and down into the vaults, with stories of body-snatchers, witch trials and things unexplained. More than 7,000 reviews.
Tour + tasting from €29 A modern, theatrical take on the whisky tour at the west end of Princes Street. A short quiz maps your flavour preferences, and the three drinks you are served along the way — cocktails or neat — are tailored to it. Non-alcoholic options are available.
Full-day coach tour from €68 The classic Highlands loop in a single long day: Callander, Glencoe, Fort William, Loch Ness and back through Perthshire. It is a lot of time on a coach, but it is the only practical way to see Loch Ness and Glencoe from Edinburgh without a car, and the scenery does the rest.
Real-time prices and availability from GetYourGuide. Most bookings can be cancelled free of charge up to 24 hours before.
From the castle to the coast: in-depth guides to the places that make the city.
Old Town The fortress on the rock
Scotland’s most visited paid attraction crowns an extinct volcano at the top of the Royal Mile. Inside the walls are the Honours of Scotland — Britain’s oldest crown jewels — the 12th-century St Margaret’s Chapel, the giant cannon Mons Meg, the Great Hall and the One o’Clock Gun. Tickets are timed and sell out in summer, so book ahead.
Old Town The spine of the Old Town
A single sloping street, a little over a mile long, joins the castle to the Palace of Holyroodhouse. Along it are St Giles’ Cathedral with its crown spire, tall tenements, small free museums, whisky shops and dozens of closes — the narrow alleys that drop away on either side and hold much of the Old Town’s character.
Old Town The King’s house at the foot of the Mile
The monarch’s official residence in Scotland closes the lower end of the Royal Mile. Visit the State Apartments, the chambers of Mary, Queen of Scots and the roofless nave of Holyrood Abbey, founded in 1128. Across the road stands the boldly modern Scottish Parliament, opened in 2004 and free to enter.
Old Town Curving colour below the castle
Victoria Street sweeps downhill in a curve of brightly painted shopfronts, with a terrace of restaurants above, into the Grassmarket — a broad old market square lined with pubs, directly beneath the castle rock. It is the Old Town at its most photogenic, and its most sociable in the evening.
New Town & city centre The five-minute viewpoint
A short flight of steps from the east end of Princes Street leads to a hilltop scattered with monuments, among them an unfinished Greek temple. The view — castle, Old Town skyline, Arthur’s Seat, the Firth of Forth — is the classic postcard of Edinburgh, and it costs nothing.
Hills, villages & the waterfront A mountain in the middle of the city
The remains of an ancient volcano rise 251 metres above the sea at the foot of the Royal Mile. The climb takes most people 30 to 60 minutes and rewards them with a 360-degree view over the city, the Forth and the hills. Holyrood Park around it has cliffs, lochs and a ruined chapel — and it is all free.
Old Town for atmosphere, New Town for elegance, the West End for connections, Leith for food. A few of our favourite hotels.
A lively five-star in the restored India Buildings on Victoria Street, in the heart of the Old Town between the castle and the Grassmarket.
A large four-star right on the Royal Mile, built to match the old tenements around it. About as central as the Old Town gets, with Waverley station a short walk downhill.
Edinburgh’s landmark grand hotel, with its clock tower above Waverley station at the east end of Princes Street. A splurge — and the afternoon tea is an institution.
How many days, itineraries, neighbourhoods, money, food, whisky and what to pack.
Our ranked pick of castle tours, walks, ghost tours, tastings and day trips.
Loch Ness and Glencoe, Stirling, St Andrews, Rosslyn Chapel, the Forth bridges and Glasgow.
Airport tram and bus, trains to Waverley, Lothian buses and getting about on foot.
Weather month by month, the Fringe and Tattoo, Hogmanay and the Christmas market.
Old Town, New Town, West End or Leith? The areas compared, with hotels in each.
Edinburgh Castle, Mary King’s Close and the best Highland day trips run on timed slots that fill up in summer and in August’s festival weeks. Compare and reserve in a couple of taps.
Two full days cover the castle, the Royal Mile, Holyrood, a hill and a museum. Three let you add Dean Village, the Botanics and Leith at a sensible pace; a fourth is for a day trip to the Highlands. See our itineraries.
Yes. Tickets are for timed entry and often sell out days ahead in summer and throughout August. Book online, or take a guided tour that includes entry.
May, June and September have long days, milder weather and fewer crowds. August is festival month — thrilling, crowded and expensive. December brings the Christmas market and Hogmanay. More in when to visit.
By tram (about 35 minutes to Princes Street) or the Airlink express bus (about 30 minutes to Waverley Bridge). Both run frequently. Details in getting here.
Very. Most sights are within a mile or so of each other. It is hilly and cobbled, though, so bring comfortable shoes; buses and trams cover the longer hops to Leith, the Botanics and the zoo.
Yes. Full-day coach tours reach Glencoe and Loch Ness; shorter ones go to Stirling and Loch Lomond. See day trips from Edinburgh.
Yes. A visitor levy of 5% of the accommodation cost, applied to the first five nights of a stay, was introduced for stays from 24 July 2026. Check whether the price you are quoted includes it. See where to stay.
A great deal: the National Museum of Scotland, the National and Portrait Galleries, St Giles’ Cathedral, the Scottish Parliament, the Royal Botanic Garden, Calton Hill, Arthur’s Seat, Greyfriars Kirkyard and Dean Village.