Fringe Festival in August in Edinburgh, then road trip to The Lake District, The Cotswolds and ending off in Oxford. Our two week stunning trip.
We visited in August 2023.
Edinburgh in August – the City of the Festivals
During the month of August, Edinburgh hosts The Fringe Festival and plenty other festivals – the city becomes home to a multitude of live performances. Theatre, Dance, Musicals, Stand-up Artists, Music, Street Performences, Childrens’ shows and more. There is something for everyone. Some of the shows are free and others charge relatively reasonable prices.
Being in Edinburgh during the festivals is a treat for all the senses. Although crowded with people from all over the World, as are the performers, it was never unbearably full.
During our four days in Edinburgh we indulged in 5 shows and barring one all were excellent.
The Royal Mile during The Fringe
Being our first time in this exhilirating city, in between going to the shows and stopping to watch (albeit briefly) the street performers, we tried to see and savor as much of the City as possible.
We stayed at the Cheval Old Town Chamberswhich is in a superb location in the middle of the famour Royal Mile. The location of the Hotel is excellent – the price is unreasonably high. The great location of the Hotel allowed us to be able to walk everywhere.
If you want a good cup of coffee with a great pastry try The Milkman – it is just off the Royal Mile on 7 Cockburn Street.
We did a “free” morning walking tour with https://cityexplorerstours.com/– which I highly recommend. We walked up and down the Royal Mile, enjoyed the many street performers and the great vibe. We entered some of the many Closes (the alleyways) and crossed several times from the Old Town to the New Town.
One of the many Closes in Edinburgh
If you walk down the Royal Mile in the opposite direction to the Castle, in the direction of the Palace take a tea break at Clarinda’s Tearoom
Clarinda’s Tearoom
Went to the Castle but didn’t wait in the very long line to get in and just saw it from outside.
We did an organized tour, of approximately an hour, of The Real Mary King’s Close– it is a very worthwhile historical tour of the underground streets of Edinburgh.
If you rent a car in Edinburgh make sure you have both your physical local Driving Licence and your International Driving Licence (if you don’t have either a British or EU Driving License).
The currency in Scotland and England is the same yet the notes are different. Although supposedly all notes are accepted in both Scotland and England the further south you go the less enchanted are the vendors/shops etc to receive notes from Scotland.
