Scotland is something I never thought would be on my bucket list until I asked my boyfriend where he wanted to go when he came to Europe and he mentioned Scotland. I spent about a week there and it was a very “chill” week touristy wise for me. Scotland is so large and diverse that you can really cater it to what you enjoy and love.
These are some of my recommendations to do while there for a week:
Flight Prices:
The best option is to get a great cheap flight deal to London or Paris and get flights to Edingburgh or Glascow from around $100-150 total round trip. I would say budget $700-800 total for the flight if you can find a good deal!
Getting to and From the Airport: There is a great deal from the airport that only costs 7 pounds roundtrip. It is located right outside the arrivals gate, a big blue bus, that you can pay when you walk up. They have many stops along the way and 3 main stops in the heart of the city. Depending where you are staying you will have to walk a little bit. It is called the Airlink, and if you want to look up the timetables and buy your tickets ahead of time you can!
Beautiful view from of downtown from the Castle Rock hostel in EdinburghHostel/Hotel Recommendations:
We stayed at the Castle Rock Hostel at the top of downtown. Even though it was a Hostel, we got a private room and it was still very affordable for 45 pounds a night. It is right in the heart of the city, the only tough part was the walk up the giant hill at the beginning. I love that it is right next to the Castle, and it feels like a castle inside with its amazing decor. Also is a super easy walk to everything else you want to do in the city. Total Cost for 5 nights: 225 pounds.
Edinburgh:
This beautiful city has so much history to it and beautiful architecture that you could walk around for hours. I would say spend max 2 days here 3 if you love it so much! These are my top things to do:
Beautiful downtown view from Arthur’s SeatThis beautiful inactive volcano gives you the best view of Edinburgh but you will have to work for it. Anyone who said this is an “easy” hike is a liar! I love to go hiking and this hike up definitely challenged me as someone who hikes about once a month. But if you hydrate well and take your time then you will be okay. I would save give yourself between 1-2 hours to complete this hike. If you don’t think you can make it all the way to the top, the views from the halfway point are beautiful as well! Cost: Free
This museum is for FREE so why would you not go! It reminds me of the the Smithsonian museums in DC. It doesn’t just have one certain thing that it focuses on like art, but it has a mixture of art, artifacts, and Scottish history. It has it all and is located right in the heart of the city. If you aren’t a museum person like me, you will only spend an hour at most in here! Cost: Free
This is just a road in downtown Edinburgh that is very famous for it’s shopping and restaurants. It’s not technically a mile long but you are either going to walk it all the way uphill or all the way downhill so you just have to decide which one you want to do first. It is bustling with people and always street performers which I love watching. Cost: Free
The beautiful Holyrood Palace in downtown EdinburghAt the bottom of the Royal Mile is this beautiful palace. This is the home of the Queen of England when she is in Scotland for official visits. It is very historically preserved and is so important to Scottish history. We spent about 1-2 hours inside of it. Make sure you check out the Abbey and the Gardens! Cost : 14 pounds {which I think is totally worth it}
The biggest tourist attraction of Edinburgh because it sits atop of the city and your eyes draw too it immediately. I’ll be honest, the day we went was pouring down rain and we waited like 30 minutes in line for a ticket so obviously it didn’t make the visit go as we had planned. But, it has a beautiful view of the city and takes you on a huge historical journey of Scotland. They have free guided tours throughout the day which is so nice and the signage gives you so much information. Cost: 19 pounds. It is quite expensive, you can save a pound if you order online but if you love hearing about European history I think it is worth it.
My amazingly nerdy tour guide through the Harry Potter TourIf you are a die hard Harry Potter fan like I am then Edinburgh is the perfect place to get that fix. This tour is put on by Potter fanatics and is lead by locals and digs you deep into how to books came alive through JK Rowling’s time spent in Edinburgh writing them. The best part is it is completely free and wands may be involved. If you really love your tour I do recommend giving them a 5-10 pound tip. Check on the website for the times because they change per month.
Restaurants:
In Edinburgh we ate breakfast at our hotel/hostel every morning to save money but we did find a few affordable restaurants in the heart of the city I’d love to suggest!
This great pub right in the heart of downtown is perfect for a quick lunch stop with delicious British delicacies. They have an upstairs area where when the weather is nice they have some beautiful windows they open and you can sit near and see the Golden Mile. I also found a delicious strawberry, lime cider cider for those who love!
Being in England doesn’t mean that you have to eat fish and chips for every meal, but also try great restaurants from other cuisines as well. This delicious Italian restaurant is very large, but our service made it feel very intimate. The pasta was delicious and we had a lovely Italian spritz of course.
Another twist to our dinning selection in Edinburgh is when we went to this great Thai restaurant in the heart of downtown. Of course I got the pad king because I am basic, but they have great dishes that have a variety of ingredients and spiciness.
A quick eat for any meal of the day at a great price, this stop is perfect for those busy days downtown especially after visiting the castle. I snagged some fish and chips and they even have Scottish breakfast for those who crave it.
The Highlands:
The northern part of Scotland is so beautiful and it is a must visit while you are there. Depending on how much your budget it and how adventurous you want to be there are multiple ways you can plan your trip.
One way you can see parts of northern Scotland is through day trips. This is the cheaper way to do Scotland. There are so many different companies and trips you can do but you can choose the ones that you like and are interested in. But, don’t book two tours with the same company because you might get the same tour guide and hear the same stories two days in a row.
Beautiful view on the Waterfalls and Whiskey tour!We did two tours by them, the Lochness one and the Whisky and Waterfalls. Going to the Lochness lake was beautiful when we finally got there, but you spend about 10 hours of your total day trip in a van. They give you lots of history during the journey but it is very long. On the other hand, the Whiskey and Waterfalls one was so beautiful with equally as much information. These are just the two tours that we did but they offer lots of other ones as well. Cost $65-80
Another great tour company out of Edinburgh but for a little bit more of an affordable price. Their Lochness tour includes the Kelpies which I love. I love that they had some different tours compared to other companies but about $10-20 cheaper. Cost $40-50
Haggis 2+ Day Tours: This is honestly the best way to see the northern part of Scotland and the Highlands is through these multi-day tours. If you are only in Scotland for a week I recommend the 3 day Sky High Tour. All the transportation is included along with a personal tour guide. Utilize the pay as you go dorm because it is much cheaper! Cost: $300
They have tons of other tours so it just depends how much you want to see based on your budget and time frame in the country! But this company is amazing!
Glasgow:
On our trip we didn’t have Glasgow on our itinerary but it is so close that you could totally hop over for just a day trip to see another part of Scotland. The train is less than 15 pounds and it would be a great addition to your trip. Our tour guide was from Glasgow and he said it had a very different feel compared to Edinburgh so if you have extra time I high suggest it!
