This blog post will outline a family friendly itinerary for 3 days in Edinburgh, Scotland. My family visited Scotland for the first time this June (see full itinerary here), and are sharing all about our visit and recommendations for you to consider for your upcoming trip!
Arriving in Edinburgh and Where We Stayed
Our family arrived in Edinburgh via a short flight from Amsterdam. We arrived in the afternoon and opted to take a taxi directly to our Airbnb. The area to get a taxi is a short walk outside the terminal where you are directed to add your name to the waiting list using a screen. You input your destination address and number of people, and a taxi showed up minutes later. It was a very simple process and reasonably priced for our family (~$50 USD) to take us to our Airbnb in the Canonmills neighborhood.
We absolutely loved our Airbnb, it was a short walk to old town and extremely clean and quiet. The host also had the fridge stocked with basics like milk and juice, plus a nice selection of coffee and tea. We got a few extra items at the grocery store which meant we were all set for first thing in the morning or for an afternoon snack after naps.
The city itself is fairly walkable but we also used a lot of black cabs. With kids and a limited number of days to see things, we found cabs extremely convenient and affordable. We either would seek out taxi stands on google maps or hail one, which was easy in most areas. When looking for accommodations in the city there are also many beautiful hotels, which would be another great option if you want to be more central and are okay skipping items like laundry on this leg of your trip.
Highlights From Our 3 Days in Edinburgh
Day 1 in Edinburgh
Eat Breakfast at the Edinburgh Larder – Cozy, cute and delicious spot to get a full Scottish breakfast. We booked a reservation ahead of time and would recommend going this route with a family. There is also a part of the restaurant that takes walk ins if you didn’t snag a reservation in time. We were so grateful for a big breakfast ahead of hiking Arthurs seat!
Hike Arthurs Seat – This was a real highlight for our family, mostly because there was a big sense of accomplishment in getting to the top! I would definitely rate this as a medium difficulty hike and challenging for our very active 3 year old. We did see other families braving the trail which gave us some extra energy, and the views at the top were well worth it. Prepare to spend a good couple hours for the 2-mile round trip, and pack plenty of water and snacks to keep everyone going. If you have a child three and under, a hiking backpack would be recommended.
Day 2 in Edinburgh
Visit the National Museum of Scotland – This is a must do whether you are travelling with a family or not. Free entrance and no need to book ahead, there is a whole days worth of activities for children and adults including Natural History, Transportation and Technology.
Walk Through Greyfriars Kirkyard Cemetery Edinburgh – Conveniently located right next to the Museum of Edinburgh is the Greyfriars Kirkyard. This cemetery is home to the famous Greyfriars Bobby, a Skye Terrier who loyally lived next to his owners grave for 14 years. See Booby’s statue outside the cemetery and visit his grave along with other tombstones which are said to have inspired names used in the Harry Potter series.
Dinner at Dishoom Edinburgh – A favorite of ours in London, and the Edinburgh outpost did not disappoint. Does not take reservations but we were quickly seated in the bar to wait for our table, and sat a short 20 minutes later. The food is adventurous for our kids but the staff are always very friendly and accommodating to our family. The high-energy and buzz in the restaurant mean our small children fit right in!
Day 3 in Edinburgh
Pick up Pastries at Lannan Bakery – You will know you have arrived at this popular Stockbridge spot when you see a line wrapped around the block. We arrived around 9AM and waited a reasonable 15 minutes. Everything we ordered was perfection, cardamon buns, pain au chocolat and the smoked ham hough to name a few.
Stop by Deans Village – You have likely seen videos of Dean’s Village pop up on Instagram. It is a beautiful little pocket of the city where a river winds through the historic village. You can take pictures on the famous Dean Bridge or take a stroll down the walkway following the Water of Leith. There is a quaint playground right past the bridge and our boys enjoyed the walkway up to a small dam. This is a quick activity, and required a taxi to get in and out of the area. If you are short on time, this can be a 10 minute or less stop for a few pictures, and just ask your taxi to wait or proactively order a pickup since this area does not typically have a taxi to hail.
Walk Up Calton Hill – We did this on our last evening and wish we would have done it sooner. Such an easy walk for a great payoff! Views of the city and lots of fun statues/monuments to see. You don’t need to carve out much time to accomplish this and we found it easy for our toddlers to navigate.
