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Edinburgh travel on your mind? Check out my unique travel tips on my journey to Edinburgh, Scotland. This article goes over my favorite details of Edinburgh in 2 days.
Day 1 – Edinburgh Travel to Edinburgh Castle
Coming from London, England we chose to take the most time efficient route and fly from London City Airport to EDI. After a short flight we arrived in Edinburgh. We started our visit to Edinburgh on foot, beginning with a walking tour of the Royal Mile and its wealth of historic buildings, quaint shops, narrow lanes and hidden courtyards.
Our first day, we wanted to make sure to see the hauntingly beautiful, Edinburgh Castle! I recommend buying tickets in advance to avoid long wait. When going to see the Crown Jewels be sure to enter on the left side near the bathrooms, much shorter queue when I visited. Here is a link to their official website with hours and other essential details.
If time allows on your first day, learn about the history of this land at the impressive National Museum of Scotland. Here is a link to their website.
Hotel
Looking for a Edinburgh hotel? Here is a quick link to Hotels.com and their recommended hotels by rating for Edinburgh travel. I highly recommend staying close to attractions, which would be near Edinburgh Castle (Royal Mile), and also Princes Street in Old or New Town. Since we had family living in the UK, we chose to stay at a short-term rental on on this particular stay.
Looking for a luxury five star experience at an Edinburgh hotel? The Balmoral Hotel in New Town is definitely is leading the pack with its stunning views, warm hospitality, and ideal location to explore the city. Even if you don’t stay here, check out the The Balmoral’s “SCOTCH” whisky bar and pay homage to the national drink of Scotland. Their scotch whiskey selection expands to over 500 options and provides a tailored whiskey, high-end experience.
For a more local bar feel for whisky tasting, you may want to check out The Black Cat.
Spend evening in the Old Town strolling and seeing the local restaurants and pubs. The dark beauty of this city is unique and charming. There are a variety of Edinburgh tours that can be a lot of fun especially at night that include underground and ghost tours. Here is the City of Edinburgh Tours website that covers the many tours available.
Day 2 – Edinburgh Travel
The Royal Yacht Britanna (go early morning to avoid the crowds) is located about 3 miles from City Center. Tickets can be purchased in advance. On my visit, I didn’t have a wait in line. The Royal Yacht Britanna is parked at Ocean’s Terminal, which also happens to be a large shopping plaza.
This was on my list from seeing the TV Show, The Crown. It took us a couple hours and we enjoyed visiting the multiple rooms and seeing the beautiful yacht.
Arthur’s Seat
If you didn’t see National Museum of Scotland yet, I recommend seeing it this afternoon. It is free to see, and I would recommend at least three hours unless you plan to come and go.
Arthur’s Seat – A lookout area and a good hike near city center. Arthur’s Seat is an ancient volcano which is the peak location of the hills in Edinburgh. You will get some outstanding views of the castle and the city.
Evening spend some time in New Town and the see Georgian architecture.
Highlands & Isle of Skye Trip
My next trip is to the spectacular Scottish Highlands and Isle of Skye. You can read on this next journey here. Overall, I hope you enjoyed my itinerary on Edinburgh travel.
