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Edinburgh’s centre is small and its buses are cheap, so being absolutely central matters less here than the price difference suggests.
The decision that matters
Old Town or New Town? The Old Town is the medieval ridge — atmospheric, touristed, and noisy where it meets the Cowgate and Grassmarket. The New Town is the Georgian grid: handsome, quiet at night, ten minutes’ walk away, and generally the better choice.
Beyond them, Stockbridge is a village fifteen minutes downhill with a Sunday market, and Leith is twenty minutes by tram with the best restaurants in the city. Both are better value.
The full comparison is in where to stay in Edinburgh.
Before booking
Stairs and lifts. This is the most common complaint about Edinburgh accommodation. Old Town tenements and New Town townhouses were built before lifts and many still have none — a fourth-floor flat can mean four flights of a stone turnpike stair with a suitcase. Ask directly.
Noise, if you are near the Cowgate, Grassmarket or George Street. Ask for a rear-facing room.
August. Book by January if you can. Prices roughly double and the good places go first.
Hogmanay. The same, plus the city centre is fenced for the ticketed street party — check which side of the cordon you are on.
Short-term lets now require a licence in Edinburgh and the council operates a control zone, so supply is tighter than it was. Book through a platform that will rehouse you if a listing is withdrawn.
The visitor levy — a percentage of the room rate — applies from 2026.
When it costs most
August, then Hogmanay, then May, June and September. January to March are cheapest, with short days as the trade-off.