10 top day trips from Edinburgh for hiking and beach walks

How to get there: The car park for Ravensheugh Sands is a 45 minute drive from the city. You can also hop on a train to Tyninghame (the quickest is just under an hour) and walk to the beach via Tyninghame Links. 

Ravensheugh Sands, otherwise known as Tyninghame Links is a huge, spectacular stretch of sand concealed by forest. As soon as I emerged at Bass Rock (an island home to the world’s largest colony of Northern gannets), with its pristine sands and dramatic waves, I got it: it’s easy to see why this is considered one of East Lothian’s most impressive beaches.

💡 Editor’s tip: Whatever you do, take the route through the woods. It feels at once mythical and dystopian, scattered with perfectly cubed blocks of concrete, placed there to defend against any seaborne invasion in WW2. –Amy Houghton

📍 Discover more of the best beaches in Scotland

How to get there: Direct train from Edinburgh Waverley to Newcastle Central which takes between an hour and 30 minutes and just shy of two hours.

Fancy an adventure? How about this: board the train at Waverly and disembark less than ninety minutes later not only in a new city, but in an entirely new nation. That’s right. It’s shockingly easy to get from the Scottish capital to Newcastle where you can find a world of affordable food, drinks, and escape the throngs of well meaning yet slow moving Americans. Newcastle has it all. Delicious brunch spots on the canal, a covered market full of independent sellers and eccentric knicknacks, and a couple of bars which still sell 3 trebles for a fiver. Try one of the city’s many modern art hubs, or just enjoy a walk along the Tyne listening in to those gorgeous Geordie accents.

👀 Our take: ‘Newcastle is sort of like if Manchester had a younger, smaller sibling which hadn’t gotten ridiculously expensive in the past few years; all the liveliness without the pretence.’ –Annie McNamee

📍 Discover the best things to do in Newcastle

How to get there: it's about two-hour drive from Edinburgh to Cairngorms, about three hours by train or three and a half by bus. 

As the largest national park in the British Isles, there’s naturally huge amounts to explore within the Cairngorms, from skiing and birdwatching to fishing and hiking. But for a more chilled out activity, there are numerous castles and historical sites to check out too, including Balmoral Castle (the Queen’s private residence), Braemar Castle and the Highland Folk Museum. And then there’s the Dalwhinnie Distillery, currently the highest distillery in the country, where you can get a tour or a masterclass if you so desire.

💡 Editor’s tip: If you’re heading up there with the family, the Aviemore Zip Trek Park, the Landmark Forrest Park and Highland Wildlife Park are just some ways to keep everyone entertained. The drive-through reserve at the Highland Wildlife Park is particularly wonderful for spotting animals like bison, red deer, elk and vicuna.

📍 Discover more of the best national parks in the UK

How to get there: The first bus from the centre to Aberlady takes just under an hour.

Edinburgh itself has a beach at Portobello, a suburb with a jolly seaside-resort feel. Beyond the city, however, there are more expansive and equally attractive beaches to be found in East Lothian.

A few minutes’ walk east of the village, along the A198, you’ll find Aberlady Local Nature Reserve, a haven for birds big and small. Follow the path round to the sands on the north side of Aberlady Bay and there’s beach and headland all the way to Gullane (approximately 5km). This village has a beautiful sweeping beach, some decent places to eat and drink, and a regular bus service to take you back to central Edinburgh. 

How to get there: there are tour companies which offer day trips to Loch Ness from Edinburgh, as the one-way journey takes nearly four hours. 

It takes less time than you’d think to get up to the Highlands, so a day trip to Loch Ness is completely doable. You’ll probably know it as home to Nessie, a cryptozoological sea creature whose sightings began in 595 and have continued ever since. There’s more to an excursion to Loch Lomond than monster-spotting, however. Lots of touring companies in Edinburgh will take you there (check out The Hairy Coo, Timberbush Tours or Rabbies). Some pass by Stirling Castle before stopping at Kilmahog – frequented by fairies, we’re told – while others go via Glencoe. Once at Loch Ness, you can cruise its waters, explore nearby Urquhart Castle and take part in whisky tastings. The whole trip will take up a full day (with an early rise), so it’s not for the faint-hearted. And remember to bring layers – this is Scotland, after all.

How to get there: From Edinburgh, take a SCOTRAIL train to Falkirk Grahamston station and then hop on the number 2 bus from Weir Street to Grangemouth station. 

If you’re visiting the nearby Falkirk Wheel, you’d do well to stop by at at Helix Park, home to the Kelpies, two monumental sculptures of mythical water horses, each nearly 100ft high. Legend has it kelpies had the strength of 10 horses and could shape-shift into human form – just as the landscapes in these parts have metamorphosed drastically over millennia. They’re made of steel in a nod to both contemporary sculptural trends and traditional artisan techniques. Enormous, glittering and utterly magnificent, the dual artworks have been open to the public since spring 2014, alongside a visitor centre where you can get guided Kelpie tours and explore exhibits relating to their history.

How to get there: trains take less than 35 minutes from Edinburgh Waverley

A small and attractive seaside town, North Berwick has beaches stretching east and west from its harbour, a decent selection of bars and restaurants, small islands immediately offshore and the imposing presence of the Bass Rock, with its gannet colony, around 5km out into the Forth. Standing sentinel over it all is the 187-metre bulk of North Berwick Law directly behind the town, an ancient volcanic plug which affords brilliant views if you make the effort to reach the top.

💡 Editor’s tip: Nearby you’ll find the Scottish Seabird Centre, which is great for children and birdwatching enthusiasts, and there are also scenic seasonal boat trips, some going all the way to the Isle of May – the last stop before Scandinavia. Put all that together and you have a well-rounded day trip in store. 

How to get there: ScotRail trains from Edinburgh Waverley to Linlithgow take around 20 minutes.

The main reason tourists flock to Linlithgow is to see the striking ruins of its royal castle. The birthplace of both James V and his daughter Mary, Queen of Scots, Linlithgow Palace echoes with the history of the Stuart dynasty that ruled Scotland from 1371. Perched on the shore of the town’s small loch, right next to St Michael’s Church with its distinctive modern steeple, you couldn’t deny it’s in a prime location. There’s been some form of royal palace here since the 12th century, although the current structure was built in the 15th and 16th centuries. Its heyday as the Stuarts’ primary residence came to an end when James VI became king of Great Britain in 1603 and relocated to London with his court. The building fell into disrepair over the next hundred years; a fire finally put the old place out of its misery in 1746.

How to get there: It's about an hour drive from Edinburgh, but you can also hop on the 101 bus. 

It may be a bit cheeky to describe this range of hills as outside Edinburgh, given a chunk of it sits well within the city boundary. All the same, the Pentlands stretch over 30km away to the South West of the capital with a number of peaks over 500 metres – the area was designated the Pentlands Regional Park back in 1984. Among the hills, you’ll find an artificial ski slope at Hillend (the Midlothian Snowsports Centre), farms, lochs, a military training zone that has live firing exercises and no end of trails to follow. The gentle way to experience the Pentlands is to drive or catch a First bus from the city centre to Flotterstone, walk 1.5km up the minor road to the picturesque Glencorse Reservoir, take in the view, then walk back the way you came, stopping for a drink and some pub grub at the Flotterstone Inn before heading back to the city. 

💡 Editor’s tip: Feeling adventurous? Start at Flotterstone, before embarking on a circular 18km hill walk, including Scald Law, the Pentlands’ highest peak at 579 metres. 

How to get there: It’s just off the A701 and takes about 30 minutes. Lothian Buses number 37 to Penicuik/Deanburn takes around 45 minutes to an hour, and a number of tour companies organise day trips.

Roslin’s biggest draw has to be the ancient Rosslyn Chapel, built by William Sinclair, 1st Earl of Caithness in the mid-15th century. If the name ‘Rosslyn’ rings a bell, you might have read Dan Brown’s Da Vinci Code, in which the chapel is namechecked due to its supposed connections with the Knights Templar, Freemasons and the Holy Grail. Inside, you’ll find an intriguing space whose central feature is the Apprentice Pillar – myth has it a jealous stonemason killed his apprentice due to his ability to complete such an intricate carving. There are also elaborate carvings of green men, plants and fruit, as well as a slightly spooky crypt that some believe contains the actual mummified head of Jesus Christ. Elsewhere in Roslin, you can explore the ruins of its 14th-century castle and picnic on its lush green glen.