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The Best Day Trips from Edinburgh

Edinburgh is an unusually good base: Stirling is forty minutes, Glasgow under an hour, and the coast half an hour. It is also the city people leave on twelve-hour coach trips to somewhere they get thirty minutes to look at. Ranked here by what you get back for the hours you spend travelling.

See day tours from EdinburghGuided trips and skip the line tickets
By Oliver10 min readPublished
Table of contents
Stirling Bridge with the Wallace Monument on the crag behind it
Photo: Janfrie1988 · Public domain

In Brief

What is the best day trip from Edinburgh?

Stirling, at 41 minutes each way with about 77 trains a day, for a castle that decided Scottish history and a battlefield beside it. North Berwick is the half-day nobody plans, 35 minutes to a beach and a seabird colony. The Isle of Skye is the one everybody asks about, and the honest answer is that it does not work as a day trip.

Key takeaways

  • Stirling: 41 min fastest, roughly 77 trains a day, castle and battlefield in one
  • Skye is 380 km each way. A day trip means 12 hours in a vehicle.
  • Everything here runs on trains or coaches. You do not need a car for any of it.
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The 10 best day trips, ranked

Ordered by how well they repay a full day - factoring travel time, what you can actually see, and how easy they are without a car.

  1. Stirling, a day trip from Edinburgh

    60 km northwest · ~41-49 min by train

    Stirling

    The best payoff per hour

    Stirling Castle sits on its own volcanic crag and controlled the lowest crossing of the Forth, which is why the two battles that decided Scottish independence, Stirling Bridge and Bannockburn, were both fought within sight of it. It is the best single day of Scottish history available from Edinburgh, and the castle interiors are more completely restored than Edinburgh's own.

    Getting there
    ScotRail from Edinburgh Waverley, with the fastest service at 41 minutes, an average of about 49, and roughly 77 trains a day, so you turn up rather than plan. The castle is a fifteen-minute walk uphill from Stirling station, and the Wallace Monument needs a local bus or a taxi.
    Find Stirling toursGuided day trips and skip-the-line tickets
  2. North Berwick, a day trip from Edinburgh

    40 km east, on the coast · ~35 min by train

    North Berwick

    A beach and a gannet colony, in half a day

    A proper Victorian seaside town half an hour from the capital: two sandy beaches, a harbour, and the Scottish Seabird Centre with live cameras trained on the Bass Rock offshore, which holds one of the world's largest northern gannet colonies. Climb North Berwick Law behind the town for the whole Forth spread out below. The cheapest good half day on this list.

    Getting there
    A direct ScotRail service from Edinburgh Waverley along the East Lothian coast, taking a little over half an hour, with the station a few minutes' walk from the harbour and the beach.
  3. Glasgow, a day trip from Edinburgh

    75 km west · ~50 min by train

    Glasgow

    The city Edinburgh is not

    Scotland's other city, and its opposite: Victorian and industrial where Edinburgh is Georgian and administrative, with much better shopping, a livelier music scene and the Kelvingrove Art Gallery, which is free and one of the best civic museums in Britain. The Mackintosh buildings are the architectural reason to come.

    Getting there
    Trains run from Edinburgh Waverley to Glasgow Queen Street every fifteen minutes for most of the day, taking around fifty minutes. It is the busiest intercity corridor in Scotland and you never need to book ahead.
    Find Glasgow toursGuided day trips and skip-the-line tickets
  4. Linlithgow, a day trip from Edinburgh

    30 km west · ~20 min by train

    Linlithgow

    A ruined palace, twenty minutes out

    The roofless shell of Linlithgow Palace, birthplace of Mary Queen of Scots, standing above its own loch. Because it is a ruin rather than a furnished castle you can wander it freely, and the loch walk around it takes an hour. Twenty minutes from Edinburgh makes this the easiest half day in Scotland.

    Getting there
    One of the shortest journeys on this list: frequent trains from Waverley on the Glasgow line, about twenty minutes, and the palace is a five-minute walk from the station.
  5. The Kelpies and the Falkirk Wheel, a day trip from Edinburgh

    40 km west · ~30 min by train to Falkirk

    The Kelpies and the Falkirk Wheel

    Engineering and sculpture, with children

    Two pieces of engineering that could not be less alike: the Kelpies are thirty-metre steel horse heads by Andy Scott standing over the canal, and the Falkirk Wheel is a rotating boat lift that replaces eleven locks by turning two gondolas of water through a half circle. Both are genuinely startling in person and the Kelpies cost nothing to walk up to.

    Getting there
    Trains from Waverley to Falkirk Grahamston take around half an hour. The two sights are at opposite ends of the town and a few kilometres apart, so pair them with a taxi or a local bus rather than assuming you can walk between them.
    Find The Kelpies and the Falkirk Wheel toursGuided day trips and skip-the-line tickets
  6. St Andrews, a day trip from Edinburgh

    80 km northeast · ~1 hr 20 min by train and bus

    St Andrews

    Golf, ruins and a very good beach

    The home of golf and Scotland's oldest university, on a cliff-edged stretch of the Fife coast. The Old Course is walkable on the public right of way even if you will never play it, the cathedral ruin is enormous, and the West Sands is the beach from the opening of Chariots of Fire.

    Getting there
    There is no station in St Andrews. Take the train from Waverley to Leuchars, about an hour, then the connecting bus for the last fifteen minutes into town. Factor the change into your day: this is not a turn-up-and-go trip in the way Stirling is.
    Find St Andrews toursGuided day trips and skip-the-line tickets
  7. Rosslyn Chapel, a day trip from Edinburgh

    11 km south, at Roslin · ~50 min by Lothian bus

    Rosslyn Chapel

    An hour of the most detailed stone carving in Scotland

    A small 15th-century chapel carved to an obsessive density: every surface inside is worked, including the Apprentice Pillar and a ceiling of carved stars. It became famous through The Da Vinci Code, which is beside the point; the reason to go is that it is one of the most heavily carved interiors in Britain and it is half an hour from the city.

    Getting there
    The Lothian Buses service to Roslin runs from the city centre and takes under an hour, dropping you a few minutes from the chapel. No train, and no need for one at this distance.
    Find Rosslyn Chapel toursGuided day trips and skip-the-line tickets
  8. Loch Lomond and the Trossachs, a day trip from Edinburgh

    110 km west · ~1 hr 45 min by train via Glasgow

    Loch Lomond and the Trossachs

    Highland scenery without the distance

    The first place north of the Central Belt that looks like the Highlands, and the closest big loch to both cities. Balloch at the southern end has boat trips and a country park, and the national park behind it holds the Trossachs, which is the scenery Walter Scott made famous. A real Highland day without the Highland driving.

    Getting there
    Train to Glasgow Queen Street, then the Balloch service to the southern end of the loch, roughly an hour and three quarters in total. Organised coach tours from Edinburgh do the same run direct and add the Trossachs villages, which public transport does not reach.
    Find Loch Lomond and the Trossachs toursGuided day trips and skip-the-line tickets
  9. Alnwick and the Northumberland coast, a day trip from Edinburgh

    130 km southeast, in England · ~1 hr by train to Alnmouth

    Alnwick and the Northumberland coast

    A castle children actually want to visit

    Alnwick Castle is the second largest inhabited castle in England and stood in for Hogwarts in the first two Harry Potter films, with broomstick lessons in the outer bailey. The Alnwick Garden next door includes a walled Poison Garden. The coast beyond has Bamburgh and Lindisfarne, though those need a car.

    Getting there
    LNER services on the East Coast Main Line reach Alnmouth in about an hour, then a short bus or taxi into Alnwick. Note that this crosses into England, so Scottish rail passes and ScotRail ticketing do not apply.
    Find Alnwick and the Northumberland coast toursGuided day trips and skip-the-line tickets
  10. Loch Ness and Inverness, a day trip from Edinburgh

    250 km north · ~3 hr 30 min each way by train

    Loch Ness and Inverness

    A long day, better from a Highland base

    The loch itself is a long dark trench of water and the ruin of Urquhart Castle above it is the postcard. The honest position is that Loch Ness is a poor use of a day from Edinburgh and a good use of one from a Highland base. If you have only one long day to spend, Stirling and Glencoe both repay it better. If the monster is the point for someone in your party, take the tour and expect the day to be mostly coach.

    Getting there
    The Highland Main Line from Waverley to Inverness takes around three and a half hours each way, which is seven hours of travelling before you have seen anything. Coach tours from Edinburgh run it as a very long day, typically twelve hours door to door, usually combining Loch Ness with Glencoe.
    Find Loch Ness and Inverness toursGuided day trips and skip-the-line tickets

How to get to the Isle of Skye from Edinburgh, and why not to do it in a day

This is the most asked question about leaving Edinburgh and it deserves a straight answer rather than an encouraging one. Skye is genuinely extraordinary. It is also much further away than the map suggests, and the day-trip version of it is one of the worst uses of a holiday day in Britain.

  • The distance is the whole argument. Edinburgh to Portree, Skye's main town, is roughly 380 km or 236 miles by road, and the realistic drive is five to six and a half hours each way depending on the route and the season.
  • That makes the round trip eleven to thirteen hours of driving. Coach operators who sell it as a single day are typically on the road from early morning until late evening, and the time actually spent on the island can be under an hour.
  • There is no useful train. The rail route runs Edinburgh to Inverness and then across to Kyle of Lochalsh, or via Glasgow to Mallaig for the ferry, and either way it is most of a day in each direction with tight connections.
  • The sensible minimum is two nights, and three is better. That turns the drive itself into the trip, with Glencoe, Loch Lomond and Eilean Donan Castle on the way rather than blurring past the window.
  • If you have one day and want Highland scenery, take a Glencoe or Loch Lomond tour instead. Glencoe is roughly half the distance, is arguably more dramatic per mile than anything on Skye's road network, and leaves you time to walk.
  • If you are set on Skye and cannot spare the nights, fly or take the train to Inverness first and start from there, which halves the drive.
  • One practical warning for anyone driving it themselves in summer: Skye's roads are largely single track with passing places, parking at the famous stops is very limited, and the island's visitor numbers have outgrown its infrastructure. Arriving late in the day after five hours of driving is the worst way to meet that.

Day trips from Edinburgh: FAQ

The questions travelers ask most when planning day trips from here.

Stirling first, at 41 minutes by train with roughly 77 services a day, for a castle on a crag and the two battlefields that settled Scottish independence. North Berwick is the best half day, 35 minutes to a beach and the Scottish Seabird Centre. Glasgow is 50 minutes and is the most different place you can reach quickly. Linlithgow is 20 minutes to a ruined palace on a loch. All four run on scheduled trains from Waverley and need no planning beyond turning up.

By road, and it is a long one: Portree is roughly 380 km or 236 miles from Edinburgh and the drive is five to six and a half hours each way. There is no direct train; rail routes go via Inverness to Kyle of Lochalsh or via Glasgow to Mallaig and the ferry, and both consume most of a day. Coach day tours exist and we would steer you away from them, because eleven to thirteen hours of driving for under an hour on the island is a poor trade. Give Skye two nights minimum, or start from Inverness instead.

You can, and it is a very long day. The train to Inverness takes about three and a half hours each way, and organised coach tours typically run twelve hours door to door, usually pairing Loch Ness with Glencoe to justify the distance. The scenery on the way is genuinely good, which is what makes the tours bearable. But if you have a single long day available, Stirling gives you far more for a fraction of the travelling, and Glencoe alone is the better Highland choice.

No, and that is one of the real advantages of basing yourself here. Stirling, Glasgow, Linlithgow, North Berwick, Falkirk and Alnmouth are all direct trains from Waverley; St Andrews is a train plus a short connecting bus from Leuchars; Rosslyn Chapel is a Lothian bus. A car only becomes useful for the Trossachs villages, the Northumberland coast beyond Alnwick, and the Highlands, and for those a guided coach usually beats hiring one for a single day.

The Kelpies and the Falkirk Wheel, about half an hour by train to Falkirk. The Kelpies are thirty-metre steel horse heads you can walk right up to for nothing, and the Falkirk Wheel is a rotating boat lift that visibly turns a canal boat through a half circle, which is a difficult thing to be bored by. Alnwick Castle is the other strong choice, with broomstick training in the courtyard where the first two Harry Potter films were shot. North Berwick works for a beach day.

Linlithgow, at about twenty minutes by train from Waverley, with the palace a five-minute walk from the station. It is a roofless ruin you can wander freely, Mary Queen of Scots was born in it, and the loch it stands over has an hour's walk round it. North Berwick at 35 minutes and Rosslyn Chapel at under an hour by bus are the other genuine half days. All three leave you back in the city with an evening intact.

Every trip on this page starts in Edinburgh

Each of these is a day out and back, so the thing that decides the whole trip is where you sleep between them and how far that is from the station. These go into the detail:

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Photos via Wikimedia Commons, used under their respective licences.