Holiday rentals and lettings in Edinburgh

Table of Contents

• At a glance: What should you know about renting a holiday letting in Edinburgh?
• Holiday lettings in Edinburgh: find your perfect retreat
• Exploring Edinburgh: our top recommendations
• Activities: What are the top things to do and see in Edinburgh?

• City-centre flats and cottages: Most Edinburgh holiday lettings are Georgian or tenement flats and small self-catering cottages, usually with Wi-Fi, a kitchen and a washing machine.
• Choose your neighbourhood: The Old Town puts you beside the Royal Mile, while Leith, Stockbridge and Marchmont trade a short walk for quieter streets and lower prices.
• Highly rated by guests: Our best-reviewed Edinburgh properties score 9.9+ and are praised for castle and sea views, easy parking and spotless kitchens.
• August and Hogmanay book out: The Fringe in August and Hogmanay at New Year fill the city, so book those dates many months ahead.
• Landmarks within walking distance: Edinburgh Castle, Holyrood Palace, Arthur's Seat and Calton Hill all sit within a compact, very walkable centre.

Edinburgh's self-catering choice is shaped by its architecture: high-ceilinged Georgian flats in the New Town, stone tenement apartments in Marchmont and Bruntsfield, converted warehouses down in Leith, and a handful of small holiday cottages and garden flats on the fringes of the city. Guest houses and B&B-style stays suit shorter city breaks. Most places sleep two to six and sit within walking distance of the centre. Whichever style you choose, a few practical features make a city stay easier.

• Wi-Fi fast enough for planning routes and streaming in the evening
• A full kitchen for breakfasts before an early castle visit
• Off-street parking or a permit, which is scarce in the centre
• A washing machine for longer festival stays
• A garden, patio or roof terrace for rare warm evenings, common in log cabins and rural boltholes

If your dates are flexible, last-minute stays often unlock the best-value flats.

What are the best areas to stay in Edinburgh?

For a first visit, the Old Town is hard to beat: you step out onto the Royal Mile with the Castle at one end and Holyrood at the other. The table below details regions for specific interests:

What do our guests say?

Guests staying in Edinburgh consistently rate location first: being able to walk home from the Royal Mile at midnight matters more than square metres. Reviews single out warm, well-heated flats in winter, generous kitchens, clear check-in instructions and hosts who share their own tips for cafes, walks and quieter viewpoints. Properties with views of the Castle, Calton Hill or the Firth of Forth attract the highest scores of all, several sitting at 9.9+.

Here are our top-rated holiday lettings from the past year:

1. The Causewayside Apartment @ Newington - 9.9+: Guests praise this Newington flat for its easy walk to the Old Town, reliable Wi-Fi and parking on the doorstep.
2. Quay Cottage - 9.9+: A four-person cottage with a sea view, a proper kitchen and a dishwasher, ideal for slower coastal days near Edinburgh.
3. Guestready - 2Br in Leith w Ocean Views & Parking - 9.9+: Two bedrooms in Leith with ocean views, a garden and parking, minutes from the Shore's restaurants.

Scotland's capital sits on Scotland's east coast, built across seven hills between the Firth of Forth and the Pentland Hills.

✈️What is the best way to get to Edinburgh?

For most UK visitors the train is the easiest option, arriving right in the city centre. Here are the most common ways to get to the city:

• Train: LNER services run up the East Coast Main Line from London King's Cross to Edinburgh Waverley in roughly four and a half hours, with Avanti West Coast running the west coast route via Carlisle. The Caledonian Sleeper leaves London Euston in the evening and arrives next morning. Waverley sits in a valley between the Old and New Towns, so most central holiday lettings are a short walk or a single bus ride away.
• Plane: Edinburgh Airport lies about eight miles west of the centre and handles domestic and European flights year round. The Edinburgh Trams run from the terminal through Murrayfield and Haymarket to St Andrew Square in around 35 minutes, with the Airlink 100 bus covering a similar route. Taxis take 25 to 40 minutes depending on traffic on the A8.
• Car: From England the A1 hugs the coast through Northumberland and Berwick, while the M6 and A702 or the M74 and M8 bring you in from the west via Glasgow. Note that the city centre has low-emission and permit-parking restrictions, so book a property with parking or use a park and ride at Ingliston or Straiton.

🥗Where to eat in Edinburgh?

According to Google Maps data and reviews, Under The Table is the best rated restaurant in Edinburgh. Below is a table showing the top 5 highly-rated restaurants hand-picked by our travel experts.

⭐Our guests' recommendation: Our guest traveller Charlotte recommends the Locanda de Gusti in Edinburgh: a Neapolitan kitchen west of the centre where the seafood is bought that morning and the welcome is genuinely warm.

☀️When is the best time to visit?

Edinburgh rewards a visit all year, but two periods change everything: August, when the Fringe and the International Festival take over the city, and Hogmanay at New Year. Both fill accommodation months in advance and push prices to their yearly peak. For milder weather with far more choice, aim for late spring or September.

Spring (March to May)

• Best for: Walkers, garden lovers and anyone wanting the Royal Mile without the crowds.
• Weather: Cool and changeable, roughly 8-14°C, with bright, breezy days and long light evenings by May.
• Atmosphere: Calm and local, with blossom on the Meadows and easy tickets for the Castle and Holyrood.

Summer (June to August)

• Best for: Festival-goers, night owls and first-time visitors.
• Weather: Mildest of the year at around 15-20°C, with daylight lasting until nearly 10pm in June.
• Atmosphere: Electric in August as the Fringe, the International Festival and the Tattoo run at once; book very early.

Autumn and winter (September to February)

• Best for: Value hunters, museum days and festive Christmas breaks.
• Weather: Cool and often wet, 2-14°C, with early sunsets and the occasional dusting of snow on Arthur's Seat.
• Atmosphere: Quiet and atmospheric until the Christmas markets and Hogmanay street party bring the city back to life.

⭐Our Hosts' recommendation: Our Edinburgh local expert, Emma of Guestready - 2Br in Leith w Ocean Views & Parking recommends coming to visit the Shore in Leith on a weekday evening, when the old dockside pubs and seafood restaurants belong to residents rather than day trippers. Walk the Water of Leith path in from Stockbridge, finish beside the water and take the tram back into town. You can read more about local tips on Emma's page.

1. Climb Arthur's Seat
2. Explore Edinburgh Castle
3. Walk the Royal Mile to Holyrood
4. Wander Dean Village and Stockbridge
5. Eat and drink around Leith

1. Climb Arthur's Seat

   The extinct volcano in Holyrood Park rises 251 metres straight out of the city, and the walk up takes under an hour from the Palace gates. The gentler route starts at Dunsapie Loch; the dramatic one traces the Salisbury Crags along the Radical Road. From the summit you can pick out the Castle, the Firth of Forth, the Forth bridges and, on a clear day, the hills of Fife. Wear proper shoes, take a windproof layer and go early for the quietest light.

2. Explore Edinburgh Castle

   Perched on its volcanic rock above Princes Street, the Castle is the city's defining sight. Inside you will find the Honours of Scotland and the Stone of Destiny, the tiny twelfth-century St Margaret's Chapel, the Great Hall and the National War Museum. The One O'Clock Gun still fires every day except Sunday, a habit dating back to shipping in the Forth. Book a timed ticket in advance, especially in August, and allow at least half a day.

3. Walk the Royal Mile to Holyrood

   The Royal Mile runs downhill from the Castle to the Palace of Holyroodhouse, the King's official residence in Scotland, with the modern Scottish Parliament opposite. Along the way, duck into the narrow closes: Mary King's Close preserves streets sealed beneath the City Chambers, while St Giles' Cathedral and the Writers' Museum are both free to enter. Stop for shortbread or a wee dram, and finish in the gardens beneath Salisbury Crags. Similar historic streets await across Scotland's towns and villages.

4. Wander Dean Village and Stockbridge

   Ten minutes from Princes Street, the Water of Leith drops into a wooded gorge and the city disappears. Dean Village, once a milling community, keeps its red-tiled roofs and mill stones; the path continues past St Bernard's Well to Stockbridge, with its Sunday market, secondhand bookshops and independent cafes. Add the Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art, a short detour uphill, for sculpture in parkland. It is the easiest way to see a quieter, residential Edinburgh.

5. Eat and drink around Leith

   Edinburgh's old port has become its best eating district. The Shore lines a cobbled stretch of the Water of Leith with seafood restaurants, wine bars and dockside pubs, while the Royal Yacht Britannia sits moored at Ocean Terminal nearby. Leith Walk brings independent bakeries, Nepalese and Italian kitchens and a strong coffee scene. The tram runs straight back to St Andrew Square, so it is an easy evening even without a car. Compare it with the waterfront bars of Glasgow.