Is August a good time to visit Edinburgh?

What is the best month to visit Edinburgh?

If you’ve asked yourself these questions, allow me to make the case as to why August is the best – or possibly worst – month to visit Scotland’s capital city!

Why August is the best month to visit Edinburgh

The weather

The weather is pretty mild in Edinburgh thanks to its position next to the sea.

That being said, you’ll find the best temperatures in August. Temperatures tend to hover between 10 and 20 degrees Celsius (around 50 to 67 degrees Fahrenheit), making it perfect for exploring the city and its environment.

As for precipitation, you’ll probably still find rain any time of year (the British Isles are notorious for rain); it’s just something you probably won’t be able to escape.

Days are longer

It may not be anywhere near the Arctic Circle, but Edinburgh is located decently far north.

What does that mean? Well, in August, you’ll get plenty of daylight – as much as 16 hours.

Sunrise can be as early as 5:15am and set after 9:00pm.

When I was there, I didn’t even bother putting an alarm on to catch a morning flight, because the light woke me up bright and early.

It also means you’ll have plenty of daylight to enjoy the beautiful sights of the city.

The festivals

I’ll be honest – the #1 reason why August is the best month to visit Edinburgh is because of the festivals. Several take place in August, including the two most famous – The Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo and the Edinburgh Fringe Festival – which have become part of the very fabric of the city itself.

The Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo

Born from an earlier tradition of military tattoos, the Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo takes place on the Esplanade of Edinburgh Castle. Trust me, you can’t ask for a better location.

The first official performance was held in 1950. Since then, it’s become one of the most famous military tattoos in the world and a major event on the calendar – the final performance is typically televised.

This was one of the highlights of my trip to Edinburgh. There are two performances on Saturdays and occasionally on Fridays. If you plan on attending on one of these days, go for the later performance, which takes place after dark. Then you can see the fireworks display in all its glory.

The Edinburgh International Festival

First held in 1947, the Edinburgh International Festival showcases musical and performing arts from around the world. Strong emphasis is on classical music, but you can also find performances of opera, ballet, and drama.

Edinburgh Fringe Festival

If you haven’t heard of the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, you have now! It is the largest festival of its kind in the world.

It was first held in 1947, when a few theatre groups set up their own shows after not being invited to perform at the Edinburgh International Festival. The shows took place in alternative venues instead and the Fringe Festival was born.

Tens of thousands of performances take place over a 3-week period every August. I’m not kidding – I was flipping through the official book listing all the performances, and it was several hundred pages.

You can watch theatre, comedy, dance, spoken word, musicals, circus – nearly anything you can think of. In fact, the only two events that sell more tickets globally are the Olympics and the World Cup.

Luckily, if you’re in Edinburgh during the Fringe, chances are you’ll get to be a part of it, even if you don’t pay for any of the ticketed performances. Street performances are all over town, on seemingly every street corner, and you can watch them for free.

This is what really made it for me – just a fun atmosphere that takes over the entire city, artists performing all over town, music filling the air, and everyone everywhere enjoying themselves.

Edinburgh International Book Festival

Calling all book lovers! The Edinburgh International Book Festival is the largest of its kind in the world.

Running for two weeks, the festival includes talks, performances, writing workshops, and more from authors, playwrights, historians, illustrators and others from all over the world.

Edinburgh Art Festival

The youngest of the Edinburgh festivals (it was founded in 2004), the Edinburgh Art Festival has since become the largest visual arts festival in Scotland.

Why August is the worst month to visit Edinburgh

It’s not all fun and games in August, however. In the spirit of fairness, here’s why you might want to reconsider a visit to Edinburgh in August.

Accommodation is hard to find

It seems the entire world wants to visit Edinburgh in August – and I can’t blame them.

The number of hotel rooms in the city doesn’t change, but in August everyone is clamoring to book them, making accommodation difficult to find.

Think about it – not only do you have people from literally all over the world who want to come experience Edinburgh and the festivals, but many of the festival performers themselves are coming from out of town, bringing their friends and family with them, sometimes bringing their crew with them, and everybody needs a place to stay.

If you’re planning an August visit, I recommend booking as early as possible, especially if you are travelling as a family or with a group.

I was lucky to find reasonable accommodation with only a month before my visit, but I was travelling solo and even then, there weren’t that many affordable places left that late in the season.

Accommodation is expensive

Say you do get lucky enough to find a place to stay? It will likely cost more than at any other time of year.

It’s no secret that hotel prices fluctuate throughout the year. They tend to be more expensive during popular travel times like summer.

And when there’s a major event, like the Edinburgh festivals? The prices are even more jacked up.

Booking well in advance of your trip likely won’t help you much in this regard. The dates of major events are typically known at least a year or more out. Hotels and other places to stay adjust their prices (higher, of course) accordingly.

You could try looking at alternatives to hotels, like Airbnb or other rental-type accommodations, but even those will likely be higher in price than they are during the rest of the year.

There will be crowds everywhere

Another consequence of the festivals’ popularity? There will be a lot of other people. A lot. Everywhere.

It’s fun to rub shoulders (literally, in some cases) with people from all over the world, but it can be chaotic, especially around the more major events.

After attending the Edinburgh Military Tattoo, the crowds were so thick that I judged it would be quicker to walk to my accommodation rather than try and take public transportation; there were so many people everywhere that the taxis and buses were having trouble making it through the sea of bodies.

It’s not the same Edinburgh as during the rest of the year

It’s a lot of fun to have people from all over the world gathered in the same place. I lost track of the number of different languages I heard during my visit.

But if you just go in August, it also means you don’t get to experience what Edinburgh is like most of the rest of the year – calmer, and a lot closer to the pace of life locals live every day.

As one Edinburgh native told me, it’s best to stay a month: two weeks during the festivals and two weeks after. Then you can experience the best of both worlds.

Conclusion

So after reading all of the above, you may have come to the conclusion that August is the best month to visit Edinburgh. Or maybe you think it’s the worst.

But for better or worse, one thing’s for sure:

At least once in your life, you must experience Edinburgh in August!

Need some inspiration on what to do in Edinburgh? Check out my itineraries here.