Edinburgh - short break - any advice appreciated

sooty&sweep

Hi
We're considering going to Edinburgh for a couple of nights during the October half term.
My children are 17 + 12.
I've started looking at hotels but no idea where abouts in Edinburgh to stay.
I was planning to catch the train but that will cost over £200 so now I'm wondering about driving but realise we'll then need to deal with car parks.

Any advice on where to stay ?

Where would you recommend to visit with two teenagers ?

Any advice appreciated.

Cheers

Jen xxx

Wizard_of_Id

You could fly in depending on where you are in the country and get the tram straight into the centre, this would give you the choice of any number of hotels and no parking to think about.

There is no end to the historical sights in Edinburgh, all easily accessible on foot from Princes Street and I'm sure the zoo is on the tram route as well if they want to see the pandas (need to book ticket)

Check the Edinburgh thread on the Scotland board.

Owain_Moneysaver

Family Railcard?

Parking in Edinburgh can be very expensive in the centre (£20+ per 24 hours). You might be better staying outside the centre somewhere that has own parking and using the very good Lothian Buses network (Adult Day Ticket £4).

sheramber

What do your kids like?

Edinburgh has a variety of museums. Edinburgh Dungeon, Ghost Walks. Edinburgh Castle, The Zoo, Botanic Gardens, Theatres, Cinemas.Camera Obscura https://www.camera-obscura.co.uk/
Arthurs Seat, Holyrood Palace.

check out https://edinburgh.org/

zagubov

A little older but this web portal has some links that may still be useful: http://www.thebigproject.co.uk/edinburgh/index.htm

gettingtheresometime

We stayed in the PI down by Britannia - there's a bus stop right outside & I' throughly recommend the bus service

Grumpelstiltskin

Try one of these.

http://edinburghfreetour.com/
They are free.

Edinburgh is expensive, to get cheap train fares you need to have booked months in advance.

dondo

As others have said- try staying outside the city centre at a hotel/B&B with parking and use the excellent public transport

foxtrotoscar_2

Rosslyn Chapel outside Edinburgh is well worth a visit.

MovingForwards

Loads to see and do up here. Loads of castles/ruins, museums etc depends on what you want to do as we can throw up suggestions.

I would say each person has a rain mac stashed, just in case (umbrellas do not cope with wind).

Buses are regular and reliable.

MothballsWallet

We went to Edinburgh back in August for 3 nights and our flights from Birmingham to Edinburgh with flybe were £100 return each.

We used the tram to get from and to the airport, which was £17 for 2 open returns.

We stayed at the Destiny Student Shrubhill (take the tram to York Place, the terminus, and it's a 10 minute walk) for £60 per night for a hostel room, which was one of the cheapest prices I could find for the time.

It's also close to Leith - we walked to the Genting Casino by the water in about 20 minutes.