Thinking of heading to Edinburgh for a long weekend? Here’s the 3 day itinerary I used for my trip last November.
Day 1 – Edinburgh Zoo
Who doesn’t love a day at the zoo? We started our Edinburgh trip with Edinburgh Zoo, seeing all sorts of different animals from giraffes to penguins.
The zoo is a must visit for me as it is home to Pandas Yang Guang and Tian Tian whose names mean Sunshine and Sweetie in Mandarin. However, I recommend being prepared to check back on them throughout the day as they are often hidden away sleeping.
The penguins were also a highlight of my visit. They had multiple species living together and a fantastic zoo keeper on hand who answered all our questions. I recommend a whole day for the zoo as it is a lot of walking on very steep hills to get around the different enclosures.
Check out the zoo Here. We easily used Google maps to find a bus to the zoo, which takes approximately 15 minutes.
Day 2 – Princes Street, Victoria Street and Carlton Hill
Our second day was spent exploring around Edinburgh. They do have different bus tours readily available, but we choose to walk everywhere as it is a surprisingly small area with plenty of shops to pop into.
We started on the main high street, Princes Street. Princes Street is home to Scotts monument and the famous Christmas markets in the winter.
Victoria Street was next, which you’ve definitely seen on your Instagram feed before with its fun line of colourful buildings. Aside from the picture opportunities there are some cute shops here and an amazing lunch spot Oink!
After this, we headed up Carlton Hill. With how hilly the whole of Edinburgh is this really wasn’t much of a trek but still bouts some amazing views from the top. We got here for sunset and got some great photos.
Day 3 – Edinburgh Castle and Dean Village
You can’t go to Edinburgh without seeing the castle! No literally, you can see it on top of the hill from pretty much anywhere! So we had to venture up to it on the 3rd day.
There is a slightly pricey entry free (of £18 when we visited) and audio tours were an additional cost but if you want to learn about the history and enjoy some amazing views from the top it can definitely be worth it. Check out Edinburgh castle and buy tickets Here.
Afterward, we visited the picturesque Dean Village, which was perfect for seeing a different side of Edinburgh. It is about a 20 minute walk from Princes Street and you can continue along the water of Leith to finish up your trip.
Finally Thoughts
Edinburgh is a lovely short trip location but be prepared for lots of walking!
3 days felt like the perfect length of time for us as it is a fairly small place. However, if you find yourself with more time an extra day or two could definitely be filled.
Ice skating in the winter or the camera obscura attraction are fun additions to this list.