Edinburgh in 7 Days on a Budget (With Daily Costs)
Seven Days: The Full Free Edinburgh, Plus the Castle and Leith
Seven days is the full version of this budget plan: the free trio, the Castle, a full Leith day, a free coastal day at Portobello and Cramond, and a final free-gallery morning before departure. Days 1 to 6 are unchanged from our 6-day plan ; Day 7 is new. Shorter on time? The 2-day and 5-day versions cover the same spine, just shorter.
Book these before you go:
- Edinburgh Castle skip-the-line ticket , 30-minute online slot, GBP 23.50 (walk-up GBP 26)
- Old Town or New Town accommodation , locked in before the new Visitor Levy start date (details at edinburgh.org )
- Royal Yacht Britannia ticket , GBP 21, if the Leith day includes it
- Real Mary King’s Close , guided groups only, GBP 25
| Day | Focus | Approx. spend (no room) |
|---|---|---|
| Day 1 | Royal Mile, closes, Calton Hill (all free) | GBP 20-30 |
| Day 2 | Edinburgh Castle + National Museum of Scotland | GBP 35-45 |
| Day 3 | Arthur’s Seat + New Town + Princes Street Gardens (all free) | GBP 20-30 |
| Day 4 | Leith, Water of Leith, optional Britannia | GBP 15-40 |
| Day 5 | Mary King’s Close or Grassmarket shopping | GBP 15-40 |
| Day 6 | Portobello Beach + Cramond (all free bar lunch) | GBP 15-25 |
| Day 7 | Free galleries, final shopping, airport transfer | GBP 15-25 |
Day 1: The Free Old Town
Morning: start at the Castle esplanade for the view (not the ticket yet) then walk the Royal Mile downhill, ducking into free closes like Advocate’s Close along the way. Stop at St Giles’ Cathedral (free entry, donation welcome) for the stained glass and the Thistle Chapel.
Midday: a takeaway haggis roll from a Royal Mile stall runs GBP 6-8, or hit a pub lunch deal (GBP 10-15, noon to 3pm) instead of paying dinner prices at lunchtime.
Afternoon: climb Calton Hill, 10 to 15 minutes from the east end of Princes Street, free, for the best low-effort Castle-and-skyline photo in the city.
Evening: dinner and a cheap pint (GBP 4-6) in a Grassmarket pub below the Castle rock.
Day 2: The Castle and the Free Museum
Morning: your booked 30-minute Castle slot (current hours at edinburghcastle.scot ). Budget 2 to 2.5 hours, including the National War Museum on the same ticket. More on ticket tiers and what is inside is in our Edinburgh Castle guide .
Afternoon: the National Museum of Scotland on Chambers Street, free general admission (confirmed at nationalmuseums.scot ), permanent collection only. The rooftop terrace is one of the better Castle views in the city.
Evening: a wee dram flight at an Old Town whisky bar (GBP 5-12 a measure) instead of the GBP 24 Scotch Whisky Experience tour.
Day 3: Arthur’s Seat and the New Town
Morning: hike Arthur’s Seat, 45 to 60 minutes each way from Holyrood, genuinely steep in parts and free the entire way. Good boots matter more here than in flatter capital cities.
Afternoon: Princes Street Gardens (free) below the Castle rock, then the Georgian grid of the New Town, Charlotte Square and George Street, for window-shopping rather than spending.
Evening: dinner in Stockbridge, a short walk from the New Town and consistently cheaper than the Royal Mile’s tourist-menu frontage.
Day 4: Leith
Morning: bus or walk to Leith (Lothian single GBP 2.40, or capped at GBP 5.70 if you have used the bus already today), then the Water of Leith walkway, free, for the port district’s food and drink scene without the Old Town crowds.
Afternoon: the Royal Yacht Britannia at Ocean Terminal, GBP 21, self-guided, 1.5 to 2 hours, is the one genuine splurge on this day; skip it if the budget is tight and spend the afternoon in Dean Village instead, free.
Evening: dinner in Leith, which has a real food and drink scene at a fraction of Royal Mile prices.
Day 5: One Paid Extra and the Grassmarket
Morning: Real Mary King’s Close, GBP 25, guided tours only, if the underground 17th-century streets interest you; otherwise the Vennel Viewpoint gives the same postcard Castle photo for free.
Afternoon: Grassmarket and Victoria Street shopping, away from the Royal Mile’s marked-up souvenir frontage.
Evening: dinner and a folk music pub, with two more days still to come.
Day 6: Portobello and Cramond, the Free Coastal Day
Morning: a Lothian bus (GBP 2.40, or free if your day cap already kicked in) out to Portobello Beach, Edinburgh’s Victorian seaside, for a walk along the promenade and a cheap chippy lunch.
Afternoon: Cramond village and the Cramond Island causeway walk, free, tide-dependent (check tide tables before you set out; the causeway floods and strands walkers most years). The walk out and back takes roughly 1.5 to 2 hours depending on how far you go.
Evening: Greyfriars Kirkyard (free) on the way back into the centre, then dinner.
Day 7: Free Galleries, Final Shopping and Departure
Morning: the Scottish National Gallery on The Mound, free, for the paintings, followed by the Portrait Gallery a short walk away, also free. Skip Camera Obscura’s paid ticket unless optical illusions genuinely interest your group; the free viewpoints already on this itinerary give a better Castle view for nothing.
Afternoon: final shopping on Victoria Street and around the Grassmarket, away from the Royal Mile’s marked-up souvenir shops, then one last coffee in the Old Town.
Evening: the airport. The tram runs GBP 7.50 online (GBP 7.90 on board), about 35 minutes; the Airlink 100 bus runs GBP 6 single, about 25 to 30 minutes. There is no direct rail line to the airport terminal, whichever you pick, allow extra time during the evening rush.
How much do seven days in Edinburgh cost on a budget?
Excluding accommodation, expect roughly GBP 175-245 across the full week, the same core spend as the 6-day plan plus a free gallery morning and one airport transfer fare. Hostel beds and any optional Britannia or Mary King’s Close tickets run separately.
Do I need a full week to see Edinburgh properly?
Not for the headline sights, which fit comfortably into 2 to 3 days. A full week suits travelers who want the free hills, the free museums, a full Leith day and a coastal day without rushing any of them, and still leaves slack for a rain day, which Edinburgh will likely give you at least once.
Getting around: the same Lothian Buses fare applies across the week in the city, flat GBP 2.40, capped at GBP 5.70 daily on one contactless card; only the final airport transfer uses a different fare structure. Details at lothianbuses.com and edinburghtrams.com .
Pack proper rain layers for the whole week, and confirm your Castle slot and any Britannia or Mary King’s Close bookings before you go; both sell out in July and August without warning.