Edinburgh in the summer is the Festival City and definitely the place to be with six of Edinburgh's festivals taking place. They are all independently organised, but collectively they form one of the biggest and most intoxicating celebrations of the arts in the world. A whole jamboree of events takes place including film, theatre, books, children's events, talks, music, dance, comedy, military bands... and many more. So there is, quite literally, something for everyone.
Follow this link for the dates of the Festivals taking place this year.
All the individual programmes are available throughout Edinburgh in various arts venues, theatres, bookshops and cinemas.
To book tickets please go to the About the Festivals page. From there please select the Festival you wish to purchase tickets from to get further information.
Alternatively, if you know the show details use the Listings Search to search for the show and use the "Book Now" button. This will take you through to the individual Festival's website booking form.
Other festivals in Scotland's capital city:
Pipefest
Over 400 marching bands from 28 different countries converge on Edinburgh.
Beltane Fire Festival
Annual fire festival on Calton Hill celebrating the coming of summer.
Edinburgh Harp Festival
The next Edinburgh Harp Festival runs from 6th to 12th April 2006.
Edinburgh International Television Festival
The UK's leading event for broadcasting and television professionals.
Edinburgh Interactive Entertainment Festival
Celebrating the interactive entertainment industry.
Edinburgh People's Festival
Billing itself as the "a ceelbration of the arts by the people and for the people", the EPF runs cut-price performances in many of the less fashionable areas of the city.
Edinburgh has a wide variety of accommodation to suit all budgets and tastes. Edinburgh in the summer gets pretty busy so it is best to plan well ahead of your visit.
VisitScotland Edinburgh & Lothians has a huge database of hotels, guest houses and B&B's that have all been inspected and graded. Visit their website to search for accommodation or call their VisitScotland's National Booking & Information Service on 0845 22 55 121.
www.stayinedinburgh.net. A wide range of hotels in Edinburgh from the Edinburgh Principal Hotels Association, with online availability and booking.
Other agencies:
Festival Beds: 0131 225 1101, www.festivalbeds.co.uk
Festival Flats: 01620 810 620, www.festivalflats.net
The Festival Partnership: 0131 478 1294, www.edinburghfestival.net
Festival Apartments: 0131 2255 070, www.festivalapartments.com
EdLets: (International Callers) +44 131 510 0020 / (UK Callers) 0870 777 5885, www.edlets.com
University accommodation:
Edinburgh First Accommodation: 0131 651 2184, www.edinburghfirst.com
Napier University: 0131 455 4331, www.napier.ac.uk/cca
Queen Margaret University College: 0131 317 3310 www.qmuc.ac.uk/services/holiday_accommodation.htm
For more rental accommodation in and around Edinburgh, visit Scotsman.com Property.
Edinburgh airport (0131 333 1000) (website) is ten miles west of the city centre.
The Airlink Express runs between the airport and Waverley Bridge every 10 minutes during the day. The main pick-up/drop-off points in town are at the West End of Princes Street and Haymarket train station. A single ticket costs £3.30 and a return £5.00. The 25 minute journey time will be longer during the rush hours.
The fare to Edinburgh city centre in a taxi should be about £15.
Domestic scheduled airlines
BMI British Midland: www.flybmi.com
British Airways: www.britishairways.com
Eastern Airways: www.easternairways.com
EasyJet: www.easyjet.com
Flybe: www.flybe.com
Fly Globespan: www.flyglobespan.com
Jet2: www.jet2.com
Scot Airways: www.scotairways.co.uk
Train
All trains to Edinburgh go to Waverley Station at the east end of Princes Street. This is where the main ticket booking office is. Watch out for peak periods, when a wait of 40 minutes is not unusual. Leave at least 10 minutes to buy tickets for immediate travel.
Taxis pick up from the station concourse, but if the queue is very long there is another taxi rank on Waverley Bridge.
All trains to the north and to the west coast, including Glasgow, also stop at Haymarket Station. The number for all timetable and ticket enquiries is 08457 48 49 50.
Train operators:
GNER East coast mainline to Newcastle, York & London King's Cross.
First ScotRail Sleeper service to London Euston & trains to the rest of Scotland.
Virgin Trains West coast mainline to Carlisle, Manchester & London Euston, and UK cross-country services.
Follow this link for useful travel information.
Getting around
Most venues are in or near the city centre and can be easily reached on foot. Traffic in the summer can become very congested and parking is quite difficult, so it's a good idea to leave the car behind and travel around the city on foot, by public transport or taxi.
Buses run frequently to most parts of the city. There are two main companies - the maroon Lothian Regional Transport buses and First Edinburgh.
LRT insist that you have the exact fare ready, and will not give change.
Taxis are plentiful for the most part, but do become scarce at peak times. Tipping is discretionary, but around 10% is usual.
Central Radio Taxis accept euros if you tell the driver before your journey starts, but they won't accept coins and won't give you any change.
City Cabs allow you to book a taxi online.
Check out the individual festival websites or call their offices directly to find out the situation.
For more jobs check out jobs.scotsman.com
For a variety of maps of Edinburgh and the surrounding area go to the Edinburgh & Lothians Tourist Board website at www.edinburgh.org and look under Travel Tips.
For a five-day weather forecast go to www.scotsman.com/weather
BBC Online - the BBC's coverage of the Edinburgh Festival.
Inside Out Film - the latest on the Film Festival from Inside Out.
The Gallery Guide - exhibitions taking place in Edinburgh.
The Gig Guide - music gigs across Scotland.
Visiting Arts - a comprehensive guide to all international arts across the festivals
(overseas artists at the festivals).
Edinburgh and Lothians Tourist Board
Useful information for tourists.
Edinburgh.pubs
Listings and reviews of Edinburgh pubs.
Edinburgh247
Entertainment listings, Edinburgh info.
EdinburghGuide.com
News and events from Scotland's capital.
liftshare.com
The UK's free online journey matching service. Share a car, reduce
travelling costs and congestion.
VisitScotland.com
The official site of the Scottish Tourist Board.
Edinburgh: World Heritage City website of the Edinburgh World Heritage Partnership Group.
For general enquiries about the Edinburgh Festivals or about this website, please email editor@edinburghfestivals.co.uk
|
