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Where to Stay in Edinburgh for the Festival Fringe (2027): The Best Areas, 12 Hotels and the 5% Visitor Levy

By Casey, Gently Yonder editor

Where to stay in Edinburgh for the Fringe 2027: Old Town, New Town, West End, Southside and Leith, 12 hotels, and the 5% Visitor Levy on the first five nights.

Last updated · 15 min read

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In this guide14 sections
  1. The short answer
  2. What is published for 2027, and what is not
  3. Edinburgh’s Visitor Levy: 5% on the first five nights
  4. Getting in from the airport, and around
  5. Haymarket and the West End: lower prices and the tram
  6. The Old Town and Royal Mile: walk to the shows
  7. The New Town and Princes Street: Georgian streets, a ten-minute walk to the Royal Mile
  8. Southside and Newington: quieter, by Arthur’s Seat
  9. Leith: the waterfront, a tram ride from Princes Street
  10. Glasgow as a train base
  11. How to book Edinburgh for the Fringe
  12. All 12 at a glance
  13. Before you go
  14. Frequently asked questions

August is the month when Edinburgh’s hotel bill stops being ordinary. The Fringe’s 80th edition is announced for 6 to 30 August 2027, the Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo runs from 6 to 28 August, and rooms near the centre are in demand. Since 24 July 2026 the bill also carries a Visitor Levy: 5% of the cost of the room, charged on the first five nights only.

This guide covers five areas, from the Old Town on the Royal Mile to Leith on the waterfront, plus Glasgow as a train base, 12 hotels, the levy with a worked example, and how to get in from the airport. For the rest of the year, where to stay in Edinburgh covers the city with a different set of hotels. The hotels are researched picks, chosen for location, what each property publishes and consistent guest feedback, and each was checked as operating in November 2026. No hotel pays to appear here.

The short answer

If you want… Stay in Why
to walk to shows The Old Town and Royal Mile The Fringe says many Old Town venues are five to ten minutes’ walk from the Royal Mile
a calmer base with Georgian squares The New Town and Princes Street Three hotels on or near Princes Street and Charlotte Square, with the Old Town about ten minutes from the Caledonian by its own account
lower prices and the tram Haymarket and the West End Hampton by Hilton and the Sheraton sit on the west side, with the tram running through to Princes Street
a quieter night near Arthur’s Seat Southside and Newington Ten Hill Place and Prestonfield House, both south of the city centre
a waterfront stay and a ship hotel Leith Malmaison and Fingal, on a tram line that reaches Princes Street

Not sure which area? Rank these areas for your trip: pick what matters and see the reasons.

A street of tall stone buildings with strings of coloured bunting hung across it and people walking on the pavement under a cloudy sky
A bunting-strung street in the Old Town. Photo: Oleksiy / Pexels

What is published for 2027, and what is not

The Fringe Society’s homepage says the Fringe’s 80th edition will take place from 6 to 30 August 2027. The Tattoo’s own page says its 2027 show, The Same Heart Beat, runs from 6 to 28 August 2027, and the Edinburgh Festivals site says tickets are on sale now, after an almost sold-out audience every night in 2026.

We could not find 2027 dates for the Edinburgh International Festival: its website showed only 2026 when we checked, so we give none. The Fringe’s venue list for 2027 had not loaded on its venues page either, so we do not tie any venue to an area beyond what the Fringe says about the Old Town. Check a show’s address in the Fringe programme before you choose a hotel for it.

The Fringe and the Tattoo both open on 6 August 2027, so the first week is busy from the first day. The Edinburgh Festivals site advises planning as far in advance as possible during the busy August festival season, and says early booking gives the best rates and city-centre locations.

Edinburgh’s Visitor Levy: 5% on the first five nights

Charge Rate in 2026-27
Edinburgh Visitor Levy 5% of the paid overnight accommodation cost, charged before VAT, for the first 5 nights of a stay
Start Stays from 24 July 2026
Not charged on Extras such as parking, meals, drinks or transport

The City of Edinburgh Council describes the levy as a 5% payment on the cost of the paid, overnight accommodation. It says the levy is charged before VAT, is only charged on the first 5 nights’ stay, applies at the same rate every day of the year and covers stays from 24 July 2026 onwards. The council’s announcement describes the cap as five nights in a row. The existing where to stay in Edinburgh guide goes through how VAT applies to the levy in more detail.

Our arithmetic: a room at £300 a night including 20% VAT is £250 before VAT, so the levy at 5% is £12.50 a night, or £62.50 over five nights. A nine-night stay still pays the levy on five nights only. Hotels display the levy in different ways, so compare the final total at the payment step, not the headline rate.

Getting in from the airport, and around

Haymarket and the West End: lower prices and the tram

A white tram with Edinburgh Trams branding stopped at an outdoor platform, with people standing beside it on a clear day
A tram at an Edinburgh stop. Photo: Dan Wright / Pexels

The west side of the centre is where the tram from the airport arrives first, and where the Haymarket tram stop sits. It is not on the Royal Mile, so expect to take the tram, a bus or a longer walk to shows in the Old Town.

Where to stay in Haymarket and the West End

How the hotel links work: a hotel’s name goes to its own website. “Check rates” opens it on Booking.com through our partner Stay22, which pays us a commission if you book, at no extra cost to you.

The Old Town and Royal Mile: walk to the shows

The Fringe says that in the Old Town you would not need more than five to ten minutes to walk from the Royal Mile to many Old Town venues. That makes the Royal Mile the easiest place to stay if you plan several shows a day, and the hardest place to find a bargain.

A curving street of tall stone buildings with brightly painted shopfronts in blue, orange and red, and a red shopfront in the foreground
Victoria Street in the Old Town. Photo: Igor Passchier / Pexels

Where to stay in the Old Town

The New Town and Princes Street: Georgian streets, a ten-minute walk to the Royal Mile

A tall, dark, pinnacled stone monument rising above green gardens under a bright blue sky, with a few visitors on the grass below
The Scott Monument beside Princes Street Gardens. Photo: Oleksiy / Pexels

The Fringe describes the city as having two distinct areas, both UNESCO listed: the Old Town, dominated by Edinburgh Castle, and the neoclassical New Town. A New Town hotel gives you wider pavements, a night away from the Royal Mile crowds and the tram on Princes Street, with the Old Town a walk across the gardens.

Where to stay in the New Town and Princes Street

Southside and Newington: quieter, by Arthur’s Seat

A green hillside with a footpath curving across it, looking out over a city and a flat horizon under scattered cloud
The view over Edinburgh from Arthur's Seat. Photo: Agnieszka Palmowska / Pexels

South of the Old Town, Ten Hill Place stands in a university quarter near Nicolson Street, and Prestonfield House sits further out in parkland. We could not load the Fringe’s venue list, so we cannot say which 2027 venues stand nearest; check your show’s address.

The University of Edinburgh’s Residences, on the Pollock Halls campus, are open to the public in summer, but the university page we read does not mention festival visitors, so we have not counted them among the 12 hotels. They are described as 2-star accommodation with shared bathrooms.

Where to stay in Southside and Newington

Leith: the waterfront, a tram ride from Princes Street

Modern apartment-style buildings reflected in still water at sunset, with moored boats at the edge of the dock
Buildings reflected in the water at Leith. Photo: Valentine Kulikov / Pexels

Edinburgh Trams runs from the airport to Newhaven by way of Princes Street, St Andrew Square and Leith, with stops at The Shore, Port of Leith and Ocean Terminal. Leith is where to stay for restaurants and water rather than for walking to shows.

Where to stay in Leith

Glasgow as a train base

Glasgow is an option only if you accept an evening commute. The Edinburgh Festivals site says Glasgow is only a 50-minute train journey and that trains leave there every 15 minutes for the capital. The council says the Edinburgh scheme covers the whole of the City of Edinburgh Council area; we have not checked whether Glasgow charges its own levy.

What we could not confirm is the last train home. ScotRail’s timetable pages were behind a security check when we tried to read them, and we have no official 2027 timetable. The Fringe says ScotRail’s festival timetable is normally available in August, so look for it before you commit to a Glasgow base, and leave time for the Fringe’s late shows. We name no Glasgow hotels here; the 12 below are all in Edinburgh.

How to book Edinburgh for the Fringe

All 12 at a glance

Hotel Area Tier Best for Watch out for
Hampton by Hilton Edinburgh West End West End Good value The lowest price on the west side A mile from the castle
Sheraton Grand Hotel & Spa, Edinburgh West End Comfortable A pool and castle-view rooms One Spa for suite guests
Motel One Edinburgh-Royal Old Town Budget The lowest price by the Royal Mile No on-site parking
Radisson Blu Hotel, Edinburgh City Centre Old Town Comfortable A full-service Royal Mile hotel Superior rooms are smaller
The Witchery Old Town Splurge A romantic suite by the castle Two adults per suite
Kimpton Charlotte Square New Town Splurge The Georgian New Town No room count published
The Balmoral New Town Splurge The landmark address No rates on its main page
The Caledonian Edinburgh, Curio Collection by Hilton New Town Comfortable Castle views on Princes Street Ten minutes to the Old Town
Ten Hill Place Southside Comfortable A quiet university-quarter hotel Extras only when booked direct
Prestonfield House Southside Splurge A parkland retreat Only 23 rooms
Malmaison Edinburgh Leith Comfortable A waterfront brasserie hotel Cashless
Fingal Leith Splurge A night on a ship Book the restaurant early

Before you go

Frequently asked questions

When is the Edinburgh Fringe in 2027?

The Fringe Society says the Fringe's 80th edition will take place from 6 to 30 August 2027. The Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo runs from 6 to 28 August 2027. We found no 2027 dates for the Edinburgh International Festival on its website.

Where is the best place to stay for the Fringe?

The Old Town and Royal Mile are the easiest for walking to shows: the Fringe says many Old Town venues are five to ten minutes' walk from the Royal Mile. The New Town is calmer, Haymarket and the West End have the tram, Southside and Newington are quieter, and Leith is on the waterfront.

Does Edinburgh charge a tourist tax?

Yes. The Edinburgh Visitor Levy is 5% of the cost of paid overnight accommodation, charged before VAT, for the first five nights of a stay, for stays from 24 July 2026. It is not charged on extras such as parking, meals, drinks or transport.

How do I get from Edinburgh Airport to the city centre?

Edinburgh Trams lists an adult airport single at £7.90 and an open return at £9.50, and Edinburgh Airport says the journey to the city centre takes 30 minutes. The Fringe's visiting page gives the Airlink 100 express bus as £6 for a single and £8.50 for a return.

Can I stay in Glasgow for the Fringe?

It is possible: Edinburgh Festivals says Glasgow is a 50-minute train journey with trains every 15 minutes. We could not confirm the last train home because ScotRail's timetable pages were not readable; the Fringe says ScotRail's festival timetable is normally available in August.

When should I book a hotel for the Fringe?

As early as you can. Edinburgh Festivals advises planning as far in advance as possible for the August festival season, and says early booking gives the best rates and city-centre locations.

Sources & further reading

Dates, rates and hotel terms change, and the Fringe had published only its dates, not 2027 venues, when we checked; the International Festival had published no 2027 dates. Every hotel detail here was checked in November 2026; confirm room types, rates and cancellation terms with the hotel before booking. These are researched picks, not reviews. This article contains affiliate links: hotel rates on Booking.com and other booking sites through Stay22, and tours, transfers and eSIMs through our partners; if you book through them we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. No hotel pays to be included.

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