Getting to Edinburgh
How to reach Edinburgh by train, bus, taxi, car, or bicycle.
Train
Edinburgh has two central stations. Edinburgh Waverley (CRS code EDB, listed by National Rail simply as 'Edinburgh') sits in the valley between the Old and New Towns, directly below the Balmoral clock tower; Haymarket (HYM) serves the West End four minutes further along the line. LNER runs direct trains from London Kings Cross in around 4 hours 8 minutes, with dozens of direct weekday services; ScotRail connects Glasgow in as little as around 44 minutes on the fastest trains, plus the rest of Scotland; Avanti, CrossCountry, TransPennine and the Caledonian Sleeper also serve the city.
- Station Name
- Edinburgh Waverley (also Haymarket for the West End)
- Station Code
- EDB / HYM
- Operator
- LNER, ScotRail, Avanti West Coast, CrossCountry, TransPennine Express, Lumo, Caledonian Sleeper
- Getting From Station
- Waverley exits directly onto Princes Street and the Old Town ridge; the Castle is a 15-minute uphill walk
Tips
- •CRS codes verified against nationalrail.co.uk station pages (2026-07-24): Edinburgh Waverley is EDB, Haymarket is HYM.
- •Staying in the West End or at Haymarket? Alight at Haymarket (HYM) rather than Waverley and save the walk back.
- •London-Edinburgh advance fares vary enormously; book ahead on lner.co.uk for the best prices.
- •The Caledonian Sleeper from London Euston arrives at Waverley in the early morning, a genuinely useful festival-season trick when beds are scarce.
Useful Links
🚆 National Rail from Edinburgh
Live departures, both stations
National Rail service from Edinburgh. Updates every few minutes.
Buses & Trams
Lothian Buses runs one of the UK's best urban bus networks, and Edinburgh Trams runs a single line from Edinburgh Airport through the West End and Princes Street to Newhaven via Leith. Fares are aligned: an adult single on bus or city-zone tram is £2.40, a day ticket £6.00, and contactless tap-on works across both with a daily cap around £5.70 (tap the same card or device all day). Note: Tram running was disrupted from July 2026, when a fire at the former Debenhams building closed Princes Street and trams turned at the West End. Full-route Airport to Newhaven running was due to resume on 29 August 2026; check edinburghtrams.com for the current route before relying on the Leith leg.
- Operator
- Lothian Buses and Edinburgh Trams
- Coverage
- Citywide bus network; one tram line, Airport to Newhaven via Princes Street and Leith
- Fares
- Adult single £2.40; city day ticket £6.00; contactless daily cap around £5.70 (fares from 22 February 2026)
Tips
- •Use contactless tap-on-tap-off (TapTapCap) rather than buying tickets: it caps your day automatically, but use the same card or device all day.
- •Exact fares are set at each February revision; figures here are from the 22 February 2026 revision, confirm current prices at lothianbuses.com.
- •Tram running was disrupted from July 2026, when a fire at the former Debenhams building closed Princes Street and trams turned at the West End. Full-route Airport to Newhaven running was due to resume on 29 August 2026; check edinburghtrams.com for the current route before relying on the Leith leg.
- •Buses down Leith Walk are the easy way to The Shore and the Kitchin end of Leith.
Useful Links
Taxi
Black cabs rank at Waverley Station, the airport's East Terminus and across the centre, with fares set by the City of Edinburgh Council; app-based services also operate. The airport run takes roughly 20 to 25 minutes to the centre outside rush hour, metered. For Leith restaurant evenings, a taxi back up to the centre is around ten minutes.
- Ranks
- Waverley Station, the West End, and the airport East Terminus (operated by Capital Cars at the airport rank)
- Airport Run
- Roughly 20-25 minutes to the city centre, metered; fares set by the council
Tips
- •No verified flat airport fare exists; the meter applies, so treat quoted fixed prices with caution.
- •During festival August, allow extra time for any crosstown taxi; the centre's closures multiply.
Useful Links
Driving & Parking
Edinburgh is reached by the M8 (Glasgow), M9 (Stirling), A90/Queensferry Crossing (Fife and the north) and the A1 and A68/A7 from the south. Driving into the centre is the least good option the city offers: the core is medieval and Georgian, on-street parking is scarce and enforced, and a city-centre Low Emission Zone has been enforced continuously since 1 June 2024 with camera-issued penalties for non-compliant vehicles. If you must drive, use a multi-storey: NCP Castle Terrace (750 spaces, 24h, roughly £7/hour) under the Castle's west side, or Q-Park OMNI (1,000 spaces, 24h) at the east end.
- Main Road
- M8, M9, A90/Queensferry Crossing, A1 and A68/A7 approaches
- Parking
- NCP Castle Terrace and Q-Park OMNI are the big central 24-hour options; tariffs at ncp.co.uk and q-park.co.uk
- Low Emission Zone
- City-centre LEZ enforced since 1 June 2024; most modern petrol/diesel cars comply, but check at edinburgh.gov.uk/lez before driving in
Tips
- •Check your vehicle against the LEZ rules before driving into the centre; penalties are camera-issued and automatic.
- •In festival August, do not bring a car at all if you can avoid it: park-and-ride sites ring the city (Ingliston, Hermiston, Straiton and others) with tram and bus links in.
- •Confirm current car park tariffs before travelling; the figures here were checked in July 2026.
Cycling
Edinburgh is hilly but has a genuinely useful off-road network built on old railway lines: the Water of Leith Walkway and the North Edinburgh path network link the centre, Stockbridge, the Botanics and Leith almost traffic-free. The Union Canal towpath runs west from Fountainbridge toward the Pentlands and, eventually, Glasgow. Road cycling in the centre means cobbles, tram tracks and hills; cross tram rails at a wide angle.
- Main Routes
- Water of Leith Walkway, North Edinburgh paths, Union Canal towpath
- Terrain
- Hilly on-road; the old railway paths and towpath are flat and mostly traffic-free
Tips
- •Cross tram tracks as close to perpendicular as you can manage; they catch road tyres.
- •The Water of Leith Walkway is shared with walkers and narrow in the gorge sections; ride considerately.
Useful Links
From the Airport
Live options for reaching the village from the nearest airports. Times and fares are a guide and can change with traffic or operator schedules.
Edinburgh AirportEDI
13 km away- Duration
- Around 30 minutes to the city centre, every 7 minutes at daytime frequency
- Cost
- Adult airport single £7.90 (£7.50 online); fares from the 22 February 2026 revision
Level boarding, luggage space, and no traffic risk. Tram running was disrupted from July 2026 while Princes Street was closed after a fire; check edinburghtrams.com for the current route.
Operator: Edinburgh Trams
- Duration
- Around 30 minutes to Waverley Bridge, up to every 10 minutes daytime, running 24/7
- Cost
- Adult single £6.00, return £8.50
The 24-hour option: night services cover early flights when trams are not running.
Operator: Lothian Buses
- Duration
- Roughly 20-25 minutes to the centre outside rush hour
- Cost
- Metered; fares set by the City of Edinburgh Council, no verified flat rate
Exact fares were not independently verifiable; budget accordingly and expect surcharges at antisocial hours.
Operator: Capital Cars (airport rank)
Glasgow AirportGLA
90 km away- Duration
- Around 2 to 2.5 hours end to end depending on connections; a reasoned estimate, not a live-routed figure
- Cost
- Varies; airport bus plus rail fare, book rail ahead for the best price
Only worth considering when Edinburgh flights are unavailable; the Glasgow-Edinburgh rail leg takes as little as around 44 minutes on the fastest services.
Operator: Glasgow Airport Express / ScotRail
Parking
Parking options in and around Edinburgh. On busy weekends, arriving early or taking the train is recommended.
NCP Edinburgh Castle Terrace
Around £7 for 1 hour, around £38 for 9-24 hours; confirm current tariffs at ncp.co.uk. 24-hour multi-storey a short walk from the Castle and the west end of the Old Town (tariffs checked at ncp.co.uk, 2026-07-24). Central on-street parking is scarce and heavily enforced. Note Edinburgh's city-centre Low Emission Zone: enforced continuously since 1 June 2024 with camera-issued penalty charges for non-compliant vehicles (edinburgh.gov.uk/lez); most modern petrol and diesel cars comply, but check before driving in.
Q-Park OMNI
24-hour car park at Greenside Row off Leith Street, convenient for Calton Hill and the east end of Princes Street (q-park.co.uk, checked 2026-07-24).
Planning the wider trip?
Our country-level primer covers national rail, intercity buses, airports, the Leap Card, and whether you actually need a hire car for your trip around United Kingdom.
Getting Around United Kingdom →Top Tip
The train is the best way to get to Edinburgh. You arrive right in the heart of Edinburgh, there’s no parking hassle, and you can enjoy a meal and a drink without worrying about driving home.