The Best 8 Day London and Edinburgh Itinerary

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Wondering if you have time in one week to see both London and Edinburgh? This one-week London and Edinburgh itinerary will walk you through how to experience the best of both cities in about a week.

While there is plenty to see and do in London, I found that after a few days, I was ready to experience something a little bit different. Pairing Edinburgh with London is a wonderful choice as you’ll have time to see the major attractions and landmarks in both cities with just a few days in each. You can always decide to come back to one or the other on a future trip if you feel like you’d like more time there!

London has that fast-paced big city energy that, while super fun, can also leave you feeling ready to take a break after a bit. Edinburgh is still very much a city, but much smaller than London, and offers the chance to experience Scottish culture and the classic Edinburgh historic charm.

Edinburgh is only about a 4-hour train ride from London. This makes it difficult to do a day trip to Edinburgh from London, but it is an excellent next stop if you’re looking for something a little bit different to add to your trip.

While this itinerary is set up for a total of 4 days in London and 3 days in Edinburgh, adding up to 1 week, I would recommend adding an extra day in between for your travel day. This makes this itinerary more of an 8-day itinerary, but this is totally doable with a week off of work if you utilize the weekends on both sides of that week.

This itinerary is perfect for first-time visitors looking to experience a little bit of both cities. It is also great for history lovers and city explorers.

London and Edinburgh Itinerary Days 1-4: London

Day 1: Arrival and Exploration

Arrive in London in the morning, make your way to your hotel, and start exploring the city!

• Check in to your hotel
• London Eye
• Westminster Abbey
• Big Ben

This day is for getting your bearings and starting to explore the city. You may be able to see more, depending on what time your flight arrives. See the full London itinerary here.

Day 2: Iconic Landmarks and Royal Attractions

On Day 2, we’ll focus more on the iconic attractions of London, while also incorporating some time for history.

• Tower of London
• Tower Bridge
• Borough Market
• St. Paul’s Cathedral
• Sky Garden or the Shard for views of the city
• End your day with a show at the Globe Theatre

Step back in time with your visit to the Tower of London and explore the famous Borough Market, while also getting to see some other iconic landmarks and more views of the city. See the full London itinerary here.

Day 3: Buckingham Palace and St. James’s Park

Day 3 will take us to Buckingham Palace for the changing of the guard and for a stroll through St. James’s Park before exploring some of the most famous neighborhoods in London.

• Buckingham Palace
• St. James’s Park
• Covent Garden and Soho exploration
• West End Show to end the day

You’ll have a few options for how you want to explore on this day. For the full London itinerary click here.

Day 4: Choose Your Own Adventure

Day 4 is about picking what calls to you the most. There are a ton of options for things to do in London and, while it isn’t possible to do them all in 4 days, you can absolutely do what is most important to you. Some options are:

• For history or art lovers, experience museums such as the British Museum
• Afternoon tea at a fancy hotel or on a tour bus
• Day trips to Bath, the Cotswolds, or Stonehenge
• For sports fans, attend a local sporting event

It is important to customize your trip to your interests. See the full London itinerary here.

London and Edinburgh Itinerary Day 5: How to Get from London to Edinburgh: Best Transport Options

There are a few options for getting to Edinburgh from London. You can take a train, a bus, or a flight. My favorite of those options is to take the train. I found it to be a pretty relaxing journey. You don’t have to worry about getting through airport security and checking your luggage. It was a very easy trip and pretty scenic. Coming from a country that doesn’t have a ton of trains like this, it also felt like a unique experience and a good way to see more of the country.

Train

This is the fastest and most scenic option. Technically the flight would be faster if you didn’t have to deal with getting to the airport early and checking your bag and going through security and all of that.

It is best to book in advance to find cheaper fares. We booked through LNER but there are other options as well. The trains depart from London King’s Cross and arrive at Edinburgh Waverly. Edinburgh Waverly is pretty centrally located in Edinburgh. We were able to take a short 10-minute walk to our hotel but you can also take a bus if your hotel is further out.

Flight

The actual travel time is the shortest for this option but again, you’ll spend more time getting to the airport than getting to King’s Cross most likely (it depends a little bit on where you’re staying in London). You’ll probably depart from either London Heathrow or Gatwick and you will arrive at Edinburgh Airport and have to take a taxi or a tram to the city.

Bus

This is the cheapest option but it is much slower than the other two options. It will take about 9 hours to get to Edinburgh by bus. Megabus and National Express offer overnight options.

Once you arrive in Edinburgh, head to your hotel to check in, grab some dinner, and explore the city.

London and Edinburgh Itinerary Days 6-8: Edinburgh

Day 6: Old Town and Edinburgh Castle

Day 6 will take you to the most historic parts of Edinburgh with a visit to Edinburgh Castle and some time to explore Old Town.

• The Milkman
• Edinburgh Castle
• The Royal Mile
• Palace of Holyroodhouse
• Arthur’s Seat

This would also be a great night to grab some traditional Scottish food or go to a local pub or whiskey tasting. See the full Edinburgh itinerary here.

Day 7: History and Neighborhood Exploration

Day 7 will take you to more historic locations and some of Edinburgh’s best neighborhoods.

• Stockbridge
• Water of Leith Walkway
• Dean Village
• National Museum of Scotland or The Scotch Whiskey Experience
• Princes Street Gardens
• Calton Hill

This day comes with some choices for your afternoon activities. See the full Edinburgh itinerary here.

Day 8: Day Trip or Harry Potter Locations

Similar to the last day of the London itinerary, this Edinburgh itinerary calls for a bit of a choose-your-own-adventure on the last day. Some potential choices are:

• Go on a tour of the highlands! There are tours that will take you to Loch Ness or the Glenfinnan Viaduct or Stirling Castle so you have plenty of choices for day trips.
• If you are a Harry Potter fan, visit some of the locations that inspired the Harry Potter books and go on a Harry Potter-themed walking tour.

My personal choice would be to do a day trip tour to the highlands but it depends on what you’re most interested in! See the full Edinburgh itinerary here.

Final Thoughts and Packing Tips

This London and Edinburgh itinerary is perfect for first-time visitors as it allows you to get a feel for both cities and have more varied experiences. It allows for just enough time to see all of the major attractions and to do something that interests you the most in each city. With this itinerary, you’ll cover iconic landmarks, explore historic streets, and get a taste of both English and Scottish culture—all in just over a week.

The weather can change quickly in both London and Edinburgh so don’t forget to pack layers, a rain jacket, and good walking shoes. It’s also a good idea to bring a wall plug adapter if traveling from the U.S. although I will say most of the hotels I’ve staying in have had USB plug-ins available. I still think it’s better to have it and not need it than to need it and not have it.

A good map app like Google Maps or Apple Maps is great for helping you get around each city. You can use it to map out directions to pretty much anywhere and it will tell you exactly what platform you need to go to for trains, which train to get on, when to get off, and where train stations and bus stops are located. It truly makes it so easy to get around both cities.

I also think it’s best to book tickets for everything you can in advance just to make sure nothing sells out. For most of the activities here, you would probably be fine to not book too far in advance but I like to play it safe and book early. It can also be a little bit cheaper for some things to book them in advance.

Check out the detailed 4-day London itinerary and my detailed 3-day Edinburgh itinerary for a more detailed breakdown of how to spend each day.

Have you ever split a trip to the U.K. between London and Edinburgh? What was your favorite part of your trip? Let me know in the comments!