17 Things I Wish I Knew Before Visiting Edinburgh

Edinburgh is one of the most beautiful cities in the World. I used to live in the Scottish Capital and I fell so hard for the city that I started a travel agency where I customised trips to Edinburgh and the Scottish Highlands 🙌

In this video, I share some of the things I wish I had known before visiting Edinburgh for the first time – and I’m also throwing in some general facts and travel tips 🤝

I’m spilling all the insider secrets in this video…

From the airport taxi trap that’ll cost you £35 (spoiler: take the bus for £4.50) to why you should NEVER mention your Airbnb to locals… I’m covering it all.
Plus I’ll show you:
✅ The proper way to say “Edinburgh” (you’re probably saying it wrong)
✅ Why August is the WORST time to visit (unless you’re into £300/night hotels)
✅ Where locals actually hang out (hint: it’s not the Royal Mile)
✅ The one tourist thing even locals think is weird
✅ How to see “Highland” views without leaving the city

Oh, and that thing about your great-great-grandmother’s clan? Yeah, we need to talk about that too 🤠

🏨 MY EDINBURGH HOTEL PICKS:
Most stunning hotel: https://destinationwellknown.com/link/balmoral-yt
Best luxury hotel: https://destinationwellknown.com/link/wedinburgh-yt
Awesome hotel with indoor pool: https://destinationwellknown.com/link/apexwaterlooyt-wi
A decent city centre hotel: https://destinationwellknown.com/link/holidayinnedinburghcity-yt
Cheap hotel in Old Town: https://destinationwellknown.com/link/ibisoldtownyt-wi

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 My Edinburgh travel guides:
Where to stay in Edinburgh? 4 Best Areas & Hotel Recommendations: https://destinationwellknown.com/where-to-stay-edinburgh/
Things to do in Edinburgh: https://destinationwellknown.com/things-to-do-edinburgh/
Read all my Edinburgh guides here: https://destinationwellknown.com/united-kingdom/edinburgh/

*_Are you new here?_* 👀

Howdy! I’m Kristoffer Føns, creator of Destination Well Known – a travel channel helping detail-oriented travellers plan their perfect trips.

After a decade of travel blogging in Danish and running a travel agency, I now focus on sharing in-depth travel guides and planning tips on my blog – and on this very Youtube channel 🤠

I’m based in Copenhagen, but there’s nothing I like more than getting on a plane and exploring new destinations – and getting back to those I know well 🤓

Subscribe to the channel and join the travel gang 🤝

i lived there i ran a travel agency there and I’m about to save you from making the same tourist mistakes that 90% of visitors make so in this video I’m going to share some insider tips and general facts about Edinburg ah no it’s not Edinburg it’s not Eden Burr it’s not Edin Borro it’s Edinburgh edinburgh yes edinburgh is a 10 out of 10 city lookswise so I totally get it when tourists stop right in the middle of the street to take a photo but do remember that Edinburgh even the old town is actually a functioning city with plenty of locals who are just trying to get to work or do their daily shopping so Edinburgh is as pretty as a movie set but it’s also a place where people live so just remember that when you come there on that note if you want to stay on good terms with the locals in Edinburgh then I wouldn’t you know sit in the pub and brag about that amazing uh Airbnb you’ve just rented over in the old town because Edinburgh is a pretty small city and loads of locals have been priced out of their own apartments especially in the central parts of town so people here aren’t that fond of Airbnb so maybe just get a hotel there are so many cool hotels in Edinburgh and I’ve linked some of my favorites in the description below [Music] there’s a direct tram from the airport to the city center but the Airlink 100 which is a bus is usually my go-to when I need to get into town as it only takes about 30 minutes i usually hate buses but the tram in Edinburgh from the airport and into town it just seems like there are so many unnecessary stops that it just takes forever and it’s more expensive than the bus so there’s no need to take that if you just want to get straight into the city center go by the bus and the taxis guys don’t get me started on the taxis they are well expensive i think it’s like £35 to get from the airport to the city center and Edinburgh is a small city so unless you’ve got like mobility issues or you just want to get straight to your hotel I would just go by the bus i get it the Royal Mile Victoria Street the whole Oldtown area is drop deadad gorgeous and if it’s your first time in Edinburgh you will be spending quite a lot of your time in there but you’re missing out big time if you spend all your time in Edinburgh in the old town so I’d recommend at least going over to Stockbridge but areas like Leaf Bruntfield and Morningside are filled with cool shops cafes restaurants and pubs and these are actually filled with locals and not other tourists this really surprised me when I moved to Edinburgh everybody seems so much more friendly may maybe it’s just a thing you know the further north you go in Britain the nicer the people are and up in Edinburgh you greet your driver your bus driver when you go into the bus and you always say cheers and thank you and bye when you leave the bus and you probably you probably queue up if it’s a popular bus stop that’s just the way things work here and I love that by the way bosses are either contactless or exact money only and uh they do prefer coins i’d highly recommend going to the Highlands if you got more than maybe three or four days in Edinburgh but if you can’t make it up to the proper highlands I’ve got you covered there’s a public bus down to Balano and that’s not a place in Italy although it sounds like it it’s the end station southwest of Edinburgh so jump on the bus down there and then you can walk all the way across a place called or an area called the Pentland Hills and that’s a bit like being up in the Highlands but you’ve also got an amazing view over Edinburgh and on the other side like on the east side of the Pentland Hills there’s a little pop and you can wait there until the next public bus comes and picks you up and going back to Edinburgh city center i went there with my maid on like a May day where the weather was just perfect and it’s honestly one of the best days I ever had in Edinburgh guys you don’t actually have to rub that poor dog’s nose when you come to Edinburgh i know the tour guides will probably tell you that you rub his nose for luck but I’m pretty sure that this whole rub the dog’s nose was started by some weird tour guide grave Fryer’s Bobby was actually a real dog with a genuinely touching story as he guarded his owner’s grave for I think 14 years after the owner died so there’s no point in rubbing the poor dog’s nose just enjoy the statue maybe have a pint in the grave fryer’s pop and head into the cemetery edinburgh is a pretty tiny city compared to other major European cities so unless you’ve got mobility issues there’s absolutely no need to sit on those very expensive buses granted it did take me a few weeks living in Edinburgh before I dare to try haggis and it’s still not my favorite ever dish but it is pretty good it basically tastes like a really nice spicy savory stuffing so you need to get it with nee and tattis and that’s not a Scottish swear word it’s turnips and potatoes and of course a nice crisp pint or maybe a can of iron brew like I said before if you have the time the Scottish Highlands are insane just insane there are loads of tour companies that goes up there every day i’ve tried a lot of them and I’ve also worked with a lot of them when I ran my travel agency and I’ve got to say that Rappies which is also I think they’re the biggest in town they’re just the best uh I’m not affiliated with them i’m not sponsored or anything but I’ve just worked with so many different ones and rappies are just the best i really hate to break it to you but telling every Scottish person that your great great grandmother was a Macdonald they don’t really care but there are some people in Edinburgh who will definitely listen to your stories and those are the the salesmen on the Royal Mile and they will definitely sell you a scarf or a kilt with your family tartans on it dean Village is gorgeous and definitely go there but it’s also pretty tiny just as Edinburgh in itself and I’m sure a lot of tourists have seen that they need to go to the Dean Village and then they get there and they’re like “Is that it?” So go to Dean Village but use it as a starting point and then walk north uh via the water of Le it’s about 30 minutes of riverside beauty and you’ll end up in one of my favorite areas which is Stockbridge where you can get some food at the Scran and Scali and maybe head over and grab a pint at the Bailey Bar which is a proper local spot and probably one of the best pubs in Edinburgh you can get to Glasgow in like 50 minutes or you can get the train up to Fort William in the Highlands up to Invenesse and you can even go down to Newcastle and Durm down in uh England if you fancy that when I ran my travel agency I had this mom I had this mom I had a mother who wanted to take her daughter uh to the Highlands and they didn’t want to drive so I put this whole trip uh together for them where they took the train to Fort William and over to Glen Finnen and then the bus to the aisle of sky so if you don’t want to drive um and you don’t want to go on a big uh group tour you can actually visit um the Highlands or the whole of Scotland just by public transport august in Edinburgh is ridiculous the population literally doubles the prices increase so much and the hotels are insanely expensive and booked out like months in advance and that is of course because of the French festival which is one of the largest if not the largest um comedy festivals in the world so if you’re coming for that great have fun i’m sure you will have fun because it’s a comedy festival but if you just want to experience Edinburgh then August is not the ideal month to visit funny little story when I lived in Edinburgh my mother came over to visit in uh January and on her first day there I think it was 16° and sunny in January and like we were just like what the f is going on here 2 days later 2° and rain so that that says a lot about Scottish weather dress dress for all seasons every day and bring layers layers is key it is mad just how proper nice and stunning Edinburgh actually is in the rain in the snow in the blistering sun that you won’t probably see Edinburgh is gorgeous you’re in for a treat if you’re going to Edinburgh thanks for watching subscribe to the channel for more travel content and uh let me know what you think about Edinburgh if you’ve been there in the comments thanks