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Day trips from Edinburgh

Edinburgh is one of my favourite cities to live in, and visit. It also makes a great base for exploring the surrounding areas! If you are looking for a day trip from Edinburgh here are 5 of my favourites.

Linlithgow – Royal Palaces, boat trips and loch side strolls

The royal burgh of Linlithgow lies 20 miles west of Edinburgh and is a bustling little town complete with its own palace and loch to explore. On the historic high street sits the recently refurbished Burgh Halls as well as lots of local shops. To the south of the town centre is the Union Canal on which you can take a boat trip either through the town or over the nearby aqueducts. A visit to Linlithgow is one of my favourite Edinburgh day trips!

Melrose – Abbeys, Abbotsford and Scott

The opening of a Borders rail line has made the Scottish Borders towns more easily accessible from Edinburgh. Melrose is my favourite; it has small town charm, a beautiful setting and more history than you can handle. It is home to one of the Scottish Border’s four famous Abbeys and Abbotsford, the home of Sir Walter Scott is nearby. Take time to wander around the galleries and traditional shops (there is a great vintage shop!) and relax in the friendly Scottish Borders way of life.

Read more – my complete guide to Midlothian and the Scottish Borders and my Midlothian and Scottish Borders Itineraries

North Berwick – beaches, lobster dinner and seabirds

North Berwick is East Lothian’s proper old-fashioned seaside resort. With two town beaches, a seabird centre, a harbour for boat trips out to the Forth estuary islands, fish & chips and plenty of galleries and shops to wander around it has all the beach town charm you could wish for. North Berwick is where my now husband and I had our first date, and it will always hold a special place in my heart.

Read more – how to visit North Berwick

Culross – Outlander tales and a Royal Burgh

The pretty village of Culross in the south-west coast of Fife is one of Scotland’s best preserved medieval villages. Thanks to the National Trust for Scotland you can step back into the 17th Century to explore both real and fictional history (it is the village of Cranesmuir in Outlander) between its cobbled streets.

Don’t miss the frankly fascinating and incredibly well-preserved Culross Palace. If you have a car, you can make this a circular trip, driving across the Forth Road Bridge and the Kincardine Bridges and visiting Blackness Castle.

Read more – How to visit Culross

day trips from Edinburgh

St Abbs – Nature reserves and crab sarnies

The Scottish Borders coastal village of St Abbs is a thriving fishing harbour, providing a home for six lobster boats who bring in daily catches of lobster and local edible crabs known as Poos! With a nature reserve offering up spectacular cliffside walks and seabirds galore, it is a great stopping point if you are heading north or the perfect distance for a day trip from Edinburgh.

St Abbs

Love from, Scotland x

More day trips from Edinburgh

laretour

Tuesday 17th of May 2016

Love this post, Smidge! I was running out of ideas for our day trips so it's just what I needed to read! :) Hope you're doing well x