15 Great Daytrips from Edinburgh

Get on your feet

A lot of Scotland's most well-known scenery is over on the west coast – achievable in a day by car, but not realistic for the Edinburgh traveller using public transport. But fear not, there is plenty of beauty to be found in the lowlands and east coast. Close at hand are our very own Pentland Hills, which have a grade of walk for every level of outdoorsman. Harlaw Reservoir makes for an easy, peaceful walk, while West Kip, East Kip and Scald Law will deliver views to those with more hiking experience.

If you want to get the full Scottish mountain experience, the south of the Cairngorms are achievable from Edinburgh by train – the stations at Blair Atholl and Dalwhinnie can act as starting points for walks of various difficulty levels.

Alternatively, for a slice of the outdoors that is readily accessible and doesn't ask much of your legs, visit Cramond Island, a tidal island in the Firth of Forth with a history of human occupation stretching back to the prehistoric era. Text CRAMOND to 81400 to get the day's safe crossing times from the RNLI.

And of course, for a Scottish experience so quintessential we made it into a whole song, you can visit Loch Lomond by jumping on a train to Balloch (via Glasgow Queen Street). There are plenty of different walks here, including paths stable enough for a pram. Grab a picnic and choose the route which best suits you.

Infinite room for activities 

For you sporty types, there's all kinds of outdoors activities available within striking distance of Edinburgh. The dry ski slope at Hillend is so close it's visible from the city – a sort of beacon for thrill-seekers with tough elbow skin. The Midlothian Snowsports Centre offers lessons in skiing and snowboarding, as well as the option to go tubing if all you really want is to launch yourself down a big hill.

It might surprise you to hear that East Lothian is great for surfing – in Dunbar in particular several companies have popped up offering lessons. Top spot Belhaven Bay is easily accessible by public transport, so just hop aboard the next ScotRail service to Dunbar – but do be sure to pre-book a ticket for your board.

For something a little less extreme, you can try paddleboarding or kayaking in any number of our still bodies of water – the Willowgate Activity Centre in Perth is a great place to sample a variety of activities, from paddle boarding and kayak city tours, to archery and axe throwing.

Cairngorms. Image: Sean Kinnear

Night-tripping

If you’re after not so much a day trip but more of a night-trip, there’s only one place to go. Trains to Glasgow Queen Street rattle off every quarter of an hour – the journey should take around 50 minutes so check the arrival time before boarding to make sure you’re not on one of the long trains. Start off with a pizza dinner at Paesano in the West End followed by a pub crawl into town – Inn Deep, Bananamoon and The Hug & Pint are all conveniently located along your route down Great Western Road. Finally, sample some of Glasgow’s famed nightlife on Sauchiehall Street before catching a bus back home at any half-hour mark throughout the night. Alternatively, you might want to organise your trip around a specific gig or clubnight – check out The Skinny's Music and Clubs listings to see what’s on in Glasgow this month.

Where art thou

There are galleries aplenty in Scotland's largest city, but if you fancy something off the beaten track, the woefully underrated Dundee plays host to three exciting galleries that are well worth the trip alone. The V&A Dundee juts out into the riverbank like it's about to break away and set sail to the Arctic Ocean. It's Scotland's first dedicated design museum – their exhibition on the history of the kimono runs through January 2025. Dundee Contemporary Arts is an industrially-converted church which now houses a gallery, print studios, two-screen cinema, bar, restaurant and cafe. They've made a name for themselves hosting UK solo debuts for many up and coming artists – they have several more lined up for the rest of the year. Be sure to also check what's on at Generator Projects, a small industrial unit behind the art school which hosts some of the most surprising, and often tongue-in-cheek work Dundee has to offer.

Whisky galore

You're not exactly stuck for choice if you've come to Scotland hoping to tour a whisky distillery. There are a handful in Edinburgh itself, with the newcomer Port of Leith the UK’s first vertical distillery (it also has a top floor bar and restaurant with incredible views – best enjoyed at sunset). If you want to make a day of it, try the Arbikie Highland Estate, just south of Montrose. Not only do they offer the standard tour and tasting, the tour also takes in their crop fields, where the whisky you'll soon be drinking began. To top it all off, Arbikie stands behind the gorgeous Lunan Bay Beach, Angus’s worst-kept secret. It's perfect for walking, sunbathing, and swimming, but maybe not after that dram…