10 best affordable hotels in Edinburgh, Scotland

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In this post, I wanted to share with you 10 best affordable hotels in Edinburgh, Scotland recommended by a local.

More about budget-friendly Edinburgh you can find in this post.

Summer is coming, and it means Edinburgh is getting more crowded and hotels are getting full. It’s not a secret that during the famous Edinburgh Festivals in August, Edinburgh hotels are all sold out. Thus, it makes sense to book them in advance. There are, however, alternative ways of finding accommodation for Edinburgh Festivals, which I already covered in this post.

In case, you’re interested in visiting Edinburgh for a short-term and looking for great affordable hotels and guesthouses in Edinburgh, keep reading this post. I lived in Edinburgh for more than 1.5 years and had countless visits of friends to Edinburgh, so I decided to create this post in order to help you to decide where to stay in Edinburgh. These are generally great budget hotels located close to the city centre (most of them are located further than walking distance to the Old Town, however, you can always hop on a bus and get to the Edinburgh City Centre in 10 minutes).

Also, if you could only take one tour and visit two attractions in Edinburgh, I recommend taking this 2-hour Witches and history Edinburgh walking tour where you will discover the Old Town of Edinburgh and hear some amazing but very creepy medieval stories, going to The Real Mary King’s Close experience (I’ve been 4 times!) and The Scotch Whisky Experience (both are really popular and need to be pre-booked in advance during summer and busy periods)!

Most Instagrammable spots in Edinburgh, Scotland - tips from a local

General tips for finding great cheap hotels in Edinburgh

Best location in Edinburgh is obviously the city centre (the Old Town and part of the New Town), however, some zones like Cowgate should be better avoided (unless you want to hear plenty of drunk people shouting just under your window). It doesn’t make much sense to live close to the airport, but it does make sense to live close to some park (Holyrood park is great as well as the Meadows).

The zone near Edinburgh University and further down the Nicholson street is really affordable and has plenty of budget-friendly food places for students and everybody who happened to be in this zone.

Read my post about 15 best free things to do in Edinburgh >>>

Without further ado, let’s get started with the best budget hotels in Edinburgh!

Best affordable hotels in Edinburgh

94DR

94DR is a Victorian guesthouse located in Newington, a modern district of Edinburgh, around 30 minutes walking to the main street of Edinburgh, Princes street and just 20 minutes away from the Edinburgh university and Edinburgh Festival facilities. This zone is very well connected to the city centre with buses, but in order to get to the airport, you’ll have to take at least 2 buses. However, it’s worth it, because the rooms are really exceptional as well as the breakfast.

10 best affordable hotels in Edinburgh, Scotland
Source: Booking.com

Interested in reading more about the prices in Edinburgh and Edinburgh travel budget? Read more information here >>>

Antler Guest House

Antler Guest House is located in a very quiet neighbourhood just off the Leith walk, a budget-friendly district with plenty of good restaurants. It’s 25 minutes walking away from the main street of Edinburgh, Princes Street, but there are plenty of buses, which could take you there. In case you’re coming for festivals, Leith walk might not be the best option (it’s quite far), but if you’re staying just to explore the city, Antler Guest House is a good option.

Browns Bed & Breakfast

Another of best budget hotels in Edinburgh, Brown’s Bed & Breakfast is a 4* property located on the Leith Walk again, but a bit closer to the city centre than Antler Guesthouse. It has very clean and modern rooms and great breakfast. The prices during the high season (in July) can be as high as £110-120 (which is a good price for accommodation in Edinburgh).

10 best affordable hotels in Edinburgh, Scotland
Source: Booking.com

Destiny Scotland – Distillers’ House

Destiny Scotland is a chain of apart-hotels located in different parts of Edinburgh. They offer affordable, yet incredibly well-rated apartments in very convenient spots across the city and usually also located in period buildings. This one (Distillers’ House), for example, is located in West End, close to Haymarket, which is a great location with lots of shops and restaurants around and incredible transport links as well.

Edinburgh Sixteen

Edinburgh Sixteen is a very quiet guesthouse located in a detached Victorian villa. It has a lovely garden and offers a great breakfast in the morning. In case you’re fine with getting to all the sights of Edinburgh by public transport, you’ll love this accommodation. It’s also a bit cheaper than Browns B&B, for example (because of the location), so even during the high season, the prices are lower than £100 per night. It’s a good location for the Festivals, though and you can even get there walking in 20-25 minutes.

Gifford House

Gifford House is located right next to number 9 in our list, hotel Ceilidh-Donia and not so far from the 94DR hotel. So it means it’s located also around half an hour walking from the main street of Edinburgh, Princes street, but it’s just 20 minutes walking away from the university of Edinburgh and the festivals. As many other guest houses in Edinburgh, it has a great breakfast included in the price of the room. The rooms, however, are quite old-fashioned, so if you want to feel like in the 19th century, this guesthouse is totally for you.

10 best affordable hotels in Edinburgh, Scotland
Source: Booking.com

The Inn on the Mile

The Inn on the Mile might be the priciest of all the hotels and guesthouses in Edinburgh that I have featured here, but it’s definitely worth it. The location just can’t be better than that – it’s located right on the Royal Mile, in the heart of the Old town, walking distance from the Edinburgh castle (7 min walking), the Holyrood palace (15 min walking), the main railway station Waverley (5 min walking) and the Princes street (5 min walking). It’s also very close to all the Edinburgh Festival facilities, so the location is really the best. All the rooms are brand new and fancy, but breakfast is not included in the price (prepare to pay £10 extra).

10 best affordable hotels in Edinburgh, Scotland

Aparthotel Agadio Edinburgh Royal Mile

Aparthotel Agadio Edinburgh Royal Mile is also located in the prime location, on the Royal Mile, 6 minutes walking to the Holyrood palace house and about 10-14 minutes walking to Princes street and Waverley railway station. Royal Mile gets extremely crowded in summer, with plenty of tourists walking it down and up to reach the most famous landmarks in Edinburgh. Aparthotel Adagio is cheaper than Inn on the Mile, but still, a bit more pricey than the hotels and guesthouses in Edinburgh featured before. The breakfast is not included in the price, but all the rooms are very modern and stylish.

10 best affordable hotels in Edinburgh, Scotland
Source: Booking.com

Interested in visiting some other places in Scotland as well? Read my post about 5 day trip ideas from Edinburgh or 7-day itinerary for Scotland >>>

Hotel Ceilidh-Donia

As I already mentioned above, hotel Ceilidh-Donia is located right next to the Gifford House, which means that it’s a bit far away from the main landmarks (you will need to take a bus), but walking distance (less than half an hour) to all the festival facilities. The district of this hotel is purely residential and very quiet and there’s a big park nearby. Hotel Ceilidh-Donia is a 3* hotel with a very good rating, pretty affordable price (below £90-100 for a double room with amazing breakfast included), nice new rooms and fabulous view from the windows. Some rooms even have the view of Arthur’s Seat.

Motel One Edinburgh-Royal

10 best affordable hotels in Edinburgh, Scotland

Motel One Edinburgh-Royal is a pretty cheap and well-rated hotel in the city centre of Edinburgh, located in the heart of the Old Town. It’s just 5 minutes away from the Waverley station and few steps away from the Royal Mile and Edinburgh castle. All the rooms are very nice, clean and basic, but the breakfast is not included in the price (you’ll have to pay extra). It’s also a great option for some off-season travel because the prices can be as low as £59 for a double room, which is an incredibly great value for such a central location.

I could continue this list forever, but hopefully, these affordable hotels in Edinburgh were enough to make your mind. If not, just check the Edinburgh section on Booking.com.

I also recommend you to take some of the tours in Edinburgh, especially Edinburgh vaults (creeeeepy) and Edinburgh walking tours! I always book the tours with GetYourGuide, so I can definitely recommend them to you! You can see some of the trending tours for Edinburgh below!

You can also check my blog post about the best tours to take in Edinburgh >>>

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10 best affordable hotels in Edinburgh, Scotland

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7 thoughts on “10 best affordable hotels in Edinburgh, Scotland”

  1. I stayed at Aparthotel Adagio and loved it! While it’s a little pricey, you get a sleek apartment with kitchen and living room, and everything is shiny and new. Would definitely stay there again. I didn’t buy their breakfast, but walked a little down the Royal Mile and ate at a cafe.

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