Edinburgh - perfect weekend break

Edinburgh provides a great weekend city break.

I traveled to Edinburgh December 2018 for a winter city break to enjoy the Christmas markets. This was our first time to Edinburgh and we thoroughly enjoyed our time here and the Christmas spirit.

Highlights were visiting Edinburgh Castle, Royal Yacht Britannia, Christmas at the botanics (light show at the botanical gardens), climbing Arthur's seat with lovely views over the city and watching Love Actually with live orchestra at Usher Hall.

Arthur's Seat

The streets were full of Christmas lights, carol singers and Christmas markets and we were lucky to have sunny fresh skies albeit cold. Nothing a whisky, although in my case mulled wine (as I don’t like whisky) can’t solve!

Things to do in Edinburgh:

• Edinburgh Castle - visit early morning to avoid crowds
• Holyrood House
• Walk the royal mile which links the castle and Holyrood house - start at the castle to walk downhill
• Royal yacht Britannia 
• Try Haggis and whisky 
• Climb Arthurs seat - a peak with great views
• Princes Street and parallel George street with high end and boutique shops are fantastic for a spot of shopping.

When to go: 

• Visit Edinburgh all year round, Spring and Autumn are arguably the best.
• June- August is festival season. In August many people travel for the world famous annual comedy, arts and film festival - Edinburgh Fringe festival.
• Spring and Autumn are a lovely time to visit, it will be cooler but a good time to avoid the crowds. 
• I loved our visit early December, to enjoy the Christmas festivities, markets and lights. Winter months can be bitterly cold. January and February are the coldest months. 

Where to stay: 

• Old town has a medieval feel with narrow cobbled streets and the Royal Mile at the centre, a great area for sightseeing.  
• New town with Georgian architecture offers broad streets with plenty of restaurants, bars and shopping.

The city is compact enough to be walk-able. The Royal Yacht Britannia is located at Port Leith, a 20 minute drive from Edinburgh City. We caught one of the bus services which run from the city to the Ocean Terminal shopping centre where you will find the visitor centre. 

How to get there: 

There is a direct flight from Bristol to Edinburgh with EasyJet with a short 1 hour 15 minutes flight time, however you could drive or travel by rail which will take approximately 7 hours from Bristol.