Edinburgh is compact enough to walk end to end in a day, but picking the right base still shapes your trip. The city's neighbourhoods each have a distinct personality, and the difference between staying on the Royal Mile and out in Leith is bigger than the map suggests. Here's how the main areas stack up.
First-timers should head for the Old Town and the Royal Mile, the medieval spine that slopes down from the castle atop an extinct volcano. It's busy — sometimes too busy — but you're steps from the castle, the atmospheric narrow 'closes', plague-history attraction Mary King's Close, and pubs like The World's End, named for the old city wall boundary. The 1595-built Witchery by the castle gates is a splurgy but memorable stay.
New Town, despite the name, is over two centuries old, all Georgian terraces and broad avenues across Princes Street Gardens from the castle. It suits shoppers and luxury-seekers: bigger hotels like The Balmoral and the Caledonian, easy tram and rail access, the free Scottish National Gallery and Portrait Gallery, and the Johnnie Walker whisky experience. Calton Hill's sunset viewpoint is nearby.
For food, go to Leith. Once a rough dockside district immortalised in Trainspotting, it's now the city's culinary engine, home to Michelin-starred Heron and The Kitchin, independent breweries, and the Port of Leith — the world's first vertical whisky distillery. It's a half-hour walk or a tram ride from the centre, and hotels are still limited, though the 16-room 3 John's Place and Fingal, a luxury ship-hotel in the harbour, are solid picks.
Couples should look at Stockbridge, a villagey pocket of coffee shops, boutiques and the photogenic Circus Lane. Its Sunday market runs 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., and the Royal Botanic Garden is close by. Accommodation is mostly small boutique spots — the 10-room Raeburn, or Nira Caledonia — so book early, especially in August when the festivals fill every room.
Grassmarket, a former medieval market square (and, grimly, a public execution site), is the pub-lover's base. Victoria Street — often, though wrongly, credited as the inspiration for Diagon Alley — curves through it, and the White Hart Inn has been pouring since 1516. The Apex and Grassmarket hotels put you right in the action.
Finally, West End and Haymarket are the convenience picks: leafy, quieter, and beside Haymarket Station, which makes day trips to Glasgow, Stirling or the west coast painless and the airport transfer easy. Hotels range from the Leonardo and voco to the boutique Hoxton and Roseate, plus chain options if you collect loyalty points.
Whichever you choose, book well ahead for August — Edinburgh's festival season is the city's busiest and priciest window.
