The U.K., on the whole, is not a budget destination. But with one of my best friends in the world living in London, how could I resist the opportunity to visit her? I spent a week with her in London and we went to Edinburgh for 2 days for a quick weekend getaway.
Edinburgh’s center is very walkable and compact. This makes 2 days in Edinburgh a good amount of time to get a feel for the city’s vibe – or if you’re rushed, you can even do quite a lot with just 24 hours in Edinburgh. Of course, though, if you wanted, you could spend a ton more time exploring every nook and cranny of this extremely lovable city.
While some of the things to do in Edinburgh are expensive (like the pricy-but-worth-it Edinburgh Castle, which cost me nearly $27 for a ticket plus audio guide), there are still many amazing cheap and even free things to do in Edinburgh.
This 2 day Edinburgh itinerary works as part of a larger Scotland itinerary or as a standalone weekend trip. It balances out some of the pricier Edinburgh attractions with plenty of wonderful free things so that you can tackle Edinburgh on a budget.
Allison Green is a former teacher who has been travel blogging since 2016. She has a Masters in Teaching and a B.A. in English and Creative Writing. Her blog posts merge her background as an educator with her experience traveling to 70+ countries to encourage ethical, meaningful travel. She has been a speaker at the World Travel Writers Conference and her writing, photography, and podcasting work has appeared in National Geographic, CNN Arabic, CBC Canada, and Forbes, amongst others. Now a full-time traveler, she has lived in Prague, Sofia, New York City, and the San Francisco Bay Area.