Edinburgh Fringe - best way of getting around?
Discussion
We're off to the Edinburgh Fringe this weekend and we've got a few shows booked and are going to see what's about for the rest of our time there, so that's all in hand.
One question I'm thinking is what's the best way of getting around? A 30 minute walk is fine for the daytime, but if it's midnight and raining I'd rather jump in a cab.
Is Uber the way to go? It's not something I've used before as we don't have it where I live (Norwich).
Is there a taxi firm that's reliable and has an app that I can use to say 'pick me up from here'?
Thanks
One question I'm thinking is what's the best way of getting around? A 30 minute walk is fine for the daytime, but if it's midnight and raining I'd rather jump in a cab.
Is Uber the way to go? It's not something I've used before as we don't have it where I live (Norwich).
Is there a taxi firm that's reliable and has an app that I can use to say 'pick me up from here'?
Thanks
Tram or bus. Cheap compared to other cities. Plenty night buses and trams running extra hours during the Festival period. Plenty taxi firms, including Uber, though demand will be high and so will prices with the weighting they apply, Think both Central Taxis and Edinburg Taxis have Apps these days.
FunkyNige said:
Yeah, just South of the castle near the university.
I'll be walking then. Edinburgh city center is extremely safe, even more so during the fringe as there are people out until all hours, plus in that location you may not have to venture far, plenty bars and eateries and fesitval areas in that vicinity. Being near the university there will be plenty bus routes near-by too for a day trip or whatever and they pretty much run 24/7 during the Fringe and they now take chip & pin.If you do need a cab the biggest black taxi firms are Central Taxi's and City Cab's. Biggest private hire firms are Capital Cars and All The Fives. All 4 of those firms have apps. Uber are massive in Edinburgh and you won't have to wait long to pick one up, just be aware at busy times they can bump their prices up a bit. Similarly getting a taxi at shutting out time can sometimes be difficult.
I'm from Edinburgh so any questions fire away. If not - enjoy your stay.
Far and away the best (and cheapest) way to get around - unless it's pissing it down:
https://edinburgh.org/travel/just-eat-cycles/
£3 for a day pass - unlimited hires for less than an hour each time - if you need it for longer than an hour (can't see why you would) just find nearest dock - and take a different bike. Works a treat!
https://edinburgh.org/travel/just-eat-cycles/
£3 for a day pass - unlimited hires for less than an hour each time - if you need it for longer than an hour (can't see why you would) just find nearest dock - and take a different bike. Works a treat!
Went to Edinburgh on a business trip in early summer and thought the Tram prices were excessive compared to London (£6 for a single!) the trams were pretty nice though (leather seats and free wifi and two ticket inspectors on each tram).
Uber seemed to be a reasonable price and I actually got native scottish drivers which was surprising (used to London were 99% of drivers aren't born here).
Place felt safe during the day (with a surprising amount of hassling beggars) although just I arrived a someone worked at the University was stabbed to death on the road by the castle with scissors in broad daylight in the afternoon (apparently by a stranger for no reason), most the stabbings in London are due to gangs who leave the general public alone so that was a bit of an eye opener.
Uber seemed to be a reasonable price and I actually got native scottish drivers which was surprising (used to London were 99% of drivers aren't born here).
Place felt safe during the day (with a surprising amount of hassling beggars) although just I arrived a someone worked at the University was stabbed to death on the road by the castle with scissors in broad daylight in the afternoon (apparently by a stranger for no reason), most the stabbings in London are due to gangs who leave the general public alone so that was a bit of an eye opener.
untakenname said:
Went to Edinburgh on a business trip in early summer and thought the Tram prices were excessive compared to London (£6 for a single!) the trams were pretty nice though (leather seats and free wifi and two ticket inspectors on each tram).
Uber seemed to be a reasonable price and I actually got native scottish drivers which was surprising (used to London were 99% of drivers aren't born here).
Place felt safe during the day (with a surprising amount of hassling beggars) although just I arrived a someone worked at the University was stabbed to death on the road by the castle with scissors in broad daylight in the afternoon (apparently by a stranger for no reason), most the stabbings in London are due to gangs who leave the general public alone so that was a bit of an eye opener.
The tram is only £6 single from/to Edinburgh airport. You can get unlimited travel on the tram and buses for £4 per day or £1.70 for a single trip.Uber seemed to be a reasonable price and I actually got native scottish drivers which was surprising (used to London were 99% of drivers aren't born here).
Place felt safe during the day (with a surprising amount of hassling beggars) although just I arrived a someone worked at the University was stabbed to death on the road by the castle with scissors in broad daylight in the afternoon (apparently by a stranger for no reason), most the stabbings in London are due to gangs who leave the general public alone so that was a bit of an eye opener.
untakenname said:
Went to Edinburgh on a business trip in early summer and thought the Tram prices were excessive compared to London (£6 for a single!) the trams were pretty nice though (leather seats and free wifi and two ticket inspectors on each tram).
Tram is £3.60 return from anywhere beside the airport? Anyway, OP; just walk. If you're near the Uni you're not far from anywhere, and given how huge the Fringe is, you'll see a lot of stuff just wandering around. Even late at night Edinburgh is safe and friendly.
Was at fringe last week, stayed in the uni halls - great location to see shows
We walked everywhere, lots of streets were pedestrianized so no other choice
We walked at night even in the pissing rain, just grab a bucky bomb in every pub you see , then you wont care about rain
By the time you have sorted transport you could have walked there
Had a cracking time and one of the friendliest/safest cities/festivals Ive ever been to
I saw the trams, but they weren't near any of the Fringe I went to at all
We walked everywhere, lots of streets were pedestrianized so no other choice
We walked at night even in the pissing rain, just grab a bucky bomb in every pub you see , then you wont care about rain
By the time you have sorted transport you could have walked there
Had a cracking time and one of the friendliest/safest cities/festivals Ive ever been to
I saw the trams, but they weren't near any of the Fringe I went to at all
another edinburgh resident here, as said by everyone else- just walk! by far the quickest and easiest way around town. it’s a really small compact city for the most part.
taxis: if you need to get around get the apps for uber or city cabs. although be aware that uber has been on surge central over the past few weeks and normal £5 fares have been easily been £20
trams: you’ll only need it to/ from the airport, for festival fun/ drinking/ shows i don’t really think they will be going anywhere you need them (it’s a one way route to/from the city centre to the airport)
buses: get the edinburgh bus & tram app. it’s great! it knows where you are, you tell it where you want to go, and it tells you different busses/ routes and how long till the next one arrives. edinburgh has a great bus system!!! and finally you can use contactless payments and don’t need the bloody exact change!!!!
fire away for any food/ pub recommendation, i’m sure everyone could inundate you with our own favs!
taxis: if you need to get around get the apps for uber or city cabs. although be aware that uber has been on surge central over the past few weeks and normal £5 fares have been easily been £20
trams: you’ll only need it to/ from the airport, for festival fun/ drinking/ shows i don’t really think they will be going anywhere you need them (it’s a one way route to/from the city centre to the airport)
buses: get the edinburgh bus & tram app. it’s great! it knows where you are, you tell it where you want to go, and it tells you different busses/ routes and how long till the next one arrives. edinburgh has a great bus system!!! and finally you can use contactless payments and don’t need the bloody exact change!!!!
fire away for any food/ pub recommendation, i’m sure everyone could inundate you with our own favs!
Jasey_ said:
red - Rugby Stadium
blue - roughly where we're staying
black - broadly the city centre.
We're going to the Rugby Saturday and we are walking everywhere
PS if its raining a 22 bus will take you from the area you are staying to Muurrayfield. They'e very frequent, a bus every 7-10 minutes or so.
Thanks everyone, looks like we'll be doing a lot of walking! I just wanted to double check that it was fine to walk about, etc.
malks222 said:
fire away for any food/ pub recommendation, i’m sure everyone could inundate you with our own favs!
Any veggie friendly recommendations would be great - my wife is vegetarian and she likes to have a decent selection to choose from! We're off to Novapizza as that's where we got engaged...FunkyNige said:
Any veggie friendly recommendations would be great - my wife is vegetarian and she likes to have a decent selection to choose from! We're off to Novapizza as that's where we got engaged...
david bann (just off the royal mile)- is a very well known/ established vegetarian restaurant, been once many years ago, and it was nice. i’m not a veggie but had a nice dinnerharmonium (leith)- is a new place that i ate in very recently and loved it. was only in for lunch, but thought it was very tasty vegetarian/ vegan food. maybe worth a wee trip down to leith would be worth while.
I did a couple of days at the festival last week. As everyone has said the city lends itself to walking. We stayed on the outskirts and got a bus in and out then just walked all day/night. One of the things that struck me was how safe the whole place felt at all times without a huge visible police presence, but a very obvious lack of dodgy looking people.
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