Edinburgh Scotland Trips in 5 Days on a Budget
Five days nests the Loch Ness, Stirling, Rosslyn Chapel and Glasgow days from the 4-day version, then adds a 1h45 coach to St Andrews as day five. Book the Highlands seat first; the remaining four days run on ScotRail, Lothian buses and one coach ticket. See the 6-day and 7-day versions for what comes after.
Book these before you go
- A Loch Ness, Glencoe and Highlands day tour , the one genuine sell-out risk here
- A Stirling Castle and whisky day tour , if you would rather skip the ScotRail timetable
- Five nights somewhere central, compared on Booking.com
| Day | Trip | One-way travel time | Return cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Loch Ness / the Highlands | 3.5 to 4 hours, coach tour | from about GBP 56 |
| 2 | Stirling | about 50 min, ScotRail | GBP 12 to 13 |
| 3 | Rosslyn Chapel + Forth Bridges | 45 to 60 min bus; 20 min train | GBP 10.50 entry plus bus and train fares |
| 4 | Glasgow | about 50 min, ScotRail | GBP 12 to 20 |
| 5 | St Andrews | about 1h45, direct coach | roughly GBP 10 to 15 |
Is 5 days enough for Loch Ness, Stirling, Glasgow, Rosslyn and St Andrews?
Yes, this is the point where the itinerary stops feeling rushed. Five days spreads one long Loch Ness day, two 50 minute ScotRail days and two bus days across enough time that no single day requires back-to-back early starts, and you can drop one leg entirely if the weather turns without losing the trip.
Should St Andrews replace Loch Ness if you are short on time?
No, they solve different problems. St Andrews is a cheap, easy full day, about GBP 10 to 15 by direct coach, with free sights beyond the golf course; Loch Ness is the expensive, slow day that this whole family is built around. Cutting Loch Ness for St Andrews saves money and time but skips the trip’s headline reason for existing.
Day 1: Loch Ness and the Highlands
Book early, since this is the one day in the trip that needs advance planning. The Loch Ness, Glencoe and Highlands day tour booked above leaves central Edinburgh around 8am and returns close to 9pm, a genuine 12 to 13 hour round trip covering 155 to 170 miles each way.
Day 2: Stirling Castle by ScotRail
Direct ScotRail trains to Stirling run roughly every 30 minutes and take under an hour; the current ScotRail fare sits around GBP 12 to 13 for a day return. Stirling Castle, run by Historic Environment Scotland , charges roughly GBP 17.50 to 20 online.
Day 3: Rosslyn Chapel in the morning, the Forth Bridges in the afternoon
Take Lothian Bus 37 out to Roslin, 45 to 60 minutes each way; entry to Rosslyn Chapel runs about GBP 10.50 and includes a guided talk. In the afternoon, a 20 minute ScotRail hop to Dalmeny and a 15 minute walk reach South Queensferry and all three Forth bridges, free to view from the shore.
Day 4: Glasgow, the day trip people skip
The direct ScotRail run to Glasgow takes about 50 minutes at roughly GBP 12 to 20 return. The Kelvingrove Art Gallery, the Riverside Museum and the Burrell Collection are all free, which makes this one of the cheapest full days in the itinerary despite being a different city entirely from Edinburgh.
Day 5: St Andrews, worth it beyond the golf
A direct coach covers the roughly 55 miles to St Andrews in about 1h45. Even if you do not golf, you can walk near the Old Course and the Swilcan Bridge, and the ruined cathedral and castle grounds cost nothing to see. It is a working university town beyond the golf pilgrimage, and it earns the full day.
Five days is long enough to skip a day entirely if the Highlands weather turns bad, so book the coach seat first and hold the St Andrews and Glasgow tickets loose until closer to the date.