13+ Best Day Trips from Edinburgh: Highlands, Harry Potter, Castles & Whisky

Scottish Highlands & Harry Potter Day Trips from Edinburgh

If there’s only one day trip I’d recommend from Edinburgh, it would be a trip to the Highlands.

This is where Scotland starts to look like the fairytale-like country you probably imagined: rugged mountains, gigantic lochs, misty glens, and spectacular scenery around every winding bend in the road.

The only “downside” is that the Highlands are HUGE, so an organised tour from Edinburgh makes a lot of sense.

Glencoe

🚗 Car: 2½–3 hours each way
⭐ Best option: Glenfinnan Viaduct, Glencoe & Highlands Day Tour or car if you’re doing a road trip

Glencoe is one of those places where you’ll want to keep pulling over just to take it all in. The valley is surrounded by dramatic mountains, and driving through it just feels like a big outdoor adventure.

The glen (Scottish word for a narrow mountain valley) you see today was shaped by enormous volcanic eruptions and a caldera collapse over 400 million years ago, followed by thousands of years of glacial carving.

We parked near the “Meeting of the Three Waters” waterfall and did a short hike up to Ralston Cairn, where you really get a sense of the sheer scale of the Glencoe landscape (sadly, with a tragic backstory). It’s a great little stop for views across the valley and surrounding mountains.

And if you think Glencoe looks like it came straight out of a movie, you’re not imagining it! Its dramatic scenery has featured in Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Braveheart, Outlander and Skyfall.

Glenfinnan Viaduct & the Jacobite Steam Train

🚗 Car: 3–3½ hours each way
⭐ Best option: Magical Highlands Tour with Jacobite Train

Potterheads and steam train fans, this one’s for you!

I’m sure you’ll immediately recognise the Glenfinnan Viaduct from the Harry Potter films. It sits above Loch Shiel, which also featured in The Chamber of Secrets, and is surrounded by rugged mountains.

You can walk up to one of the two viewpoints (East or West) and watch the Jacobite Steam Train, aka the Hogwarts Express, slowly chug across the 21-arched viaduct with steam billowing from the front. A pretty magical spectacle to witness, I have to admit!

The Victorian viaduct dates back to 1901, and the train travels between Fort William and Mallaig along the West Highland Line, passing through beautiful Highland scenery.

If riding the Jacobite is high on your bucket list, but you don’t want to book the tour above, you can check the timetable and prices here.

Sadly, you won’t find Harry, Ron, and Hermione in the next carriage, and the trolley lady won’t be offering you chocolate frogs. But it’s probably about as close to the Hogwarts Express as you can get!

Loch Lomond & The Trossachs National Park

🚗 Car: 1½ hours to the southern end of Loch Lomond (Balloch)
⭐ Best option: Car for flexibility, or guided Loch Lomond, Stirling Castle & Kelpies Tour

Not technically in the Highlands, but close enough that it deserves a spot on this list!

Loch Lomond & The Trossachs National Park is one of the easiest places to escape Edinburgh for a taste of Scotland’s spectacular loch-and-mountain scenery without travelling all the way into the Highlands.

Britain’s largest inland stretch of water is surrounded by mountains, forests and pretty little villages. There are plenty of walking trails and viewpoints you can explore, including the hike up Conic Hill for lovely views across the loch.

You can also take a boat cruise, go wild swimming at spots like Milarrochy Bay, or explore some of its 22 islands and 28 islets, including Inchcailloch.

Stirling Castle

🚆 Train: 50 minutes direct from Edinburgh Waverley + ½-mile uphill walk to the castle
🚗 Car: 1 hour
⭐ Best option: Train or Stirling Castle Tour & Old Town Tour

Stirling, sometimes called “Little Edinburgh”, is one of the easiest day trips from Edinburgh by train. And I have to say, it did remind me of Edinburgh, just on a smaller scale.

We stopped here for lunch on our way from Edinburgh to the Isle of Skye and spent some time wandering around the historic Old Town, with its steep cobbled streets and beautiful old stone buildings.

Just like Edinburgh Castle, Stirling Castle is perched on a volcanic crag above the city, with sweeping views across the surrounding countryside.

The castle was once one of Scotland’s most important royal residences and played a major role in the country’s history. Mary, Queen of Scots, lived here as a child and was crowned at Stirling Castle when she was just nine months old in 1543.

While you’re here, you can also pop into Stirling Distillery right next to the castle; they do walk-in mini tastings for £15!

Hadrian’s Wall

🚗 Car: 2–2½ hours each way
⭐ Best option: Hadrian’s Wall & Roman Britain Tour

Hadrian’s Wall is technically in England, but it’s close enough to make a pretty epic day trip from Edinburgh, especially if you’re into Roman history.

The 73-mile-long stone wall was built by the Roman army on the orders of Emperor Hadrian from AD 122, forming the north-western frontier of the Roman Empire. It stretched from Wallsend in the east to Bowness-on-Solway in the west, across northern England.

Today, you can explore different stretches of the wall, along with Roman forts, milecastles, and turrets, while walking through the wild Northumberland countryside.

Whisky Tours & Distillery Day Trips from Edinburgh

Scotland and whisky go hand in hand, and with over 150 distilleries dotted across the country, there are abundant opportunities to experience Scotland’s national drink.

From seeing how whisky is made and matured to sampling a dram or two, a distillery visit is an incredibly fun day trip from Edinburgh. Just do me a favour and book a tour instead of driving!

Glenkinchie Distillery

🚗 Car: 35 minutes
🚌 Public transport: 1¼ hours
⭐ Best option: Car or Glenkinchie Distillery Tour & Whisky Tasting, especially if you’re planning to drink (cause that’s what you’re here for, right?!)

Located in the East Lothian countryside, Glenkinchie is one of the closest working whisky distilleries to the capital and one of the few surviving Lowland distilleries.

Their whisky has been nicknamed “The Edinburgh Malt” and is known for its light, floral, and grassy style.

Founded in 1825, the historic distillery offers guided experiences where you can learn how Scotch whisky goes from grain to glass, see parts of the production process, and finish with a tasting.

Pitlochry

🚆 Train: 1¾–2 hours
🚗 Car: 1½ hours
⭐ Best option (if you want to include a distillery visit): train or Highlands, Pitlochry & Distillery Day Trip

Pitlochry is one of those postcard-pretty Highland towns, with charming stone buildings, pretty bridges, and hills all around. It’s perfect if you want to get a little taste of the Highlands without travelling too far from Edinburgh.

It’s also known as the gateway to the Highlands, and many organised tours from Edinburgh stop here. So if you’re booking a Highland tour, it’s worth checking whether Pitlochry is included!

You can stroll around Victorian Pitlochry for a bit and add a visit to Blair Athol Distillery, which has been producing Scotch whisky since 1798. With its overgrown stone walls and red entrance door, it looks just as cute as the town itself!

Falkirk & Rosebank Distillery

🚆 Public transport: 30–40 minutes to Falkirk by train + local transport to the attractions
🚗 Car: 45 minutes
⭐ Best option: Car if you want to combine the Kelpies, Falkirk Wheel & distillery, or Rosebank Distillery Guided Tour & Whisky Tasting

Falkirk is kind of a random but fun day trip from Edinburgh that combines a couple of completely unrelated Scottish attractions.

First up are the Kelpies, two enormous 30-metre-high horse-head sculptures that have become one of Scotland’s best-known modern landmarks.

Then there’s the Falkirk Wheel, a brilliant bit of engineering and the world’s only rotating boat lift, which connects the Forth & Clyde Canal with the Union Canal.

Finish your Falkirk excursion with a visit to Rosebank Distillery, a historic Lowland distillery which actually closed in 1993 but was rescued by Ian Macleod Distillers in 2017. After a major restoration, production finally restarted in 2023, almost 30 years after the distillery had closed.

Easy Day Trips from Edinburgh by Train

Not every day trip from Edinburgh needs to involve getting up at 5am and spending hours on a coach. There are several places you can easily reach by train from Edinburgh, so let’s take a look at three of them:

Glasgow

🚆 Train: 50 minutes direct
🚗 Car: 1h15
⭐ Best option: Train (especially when you factor in traffic and parking)

Glasgow deserves more love. Even though it’s Scotland’s largest city by population, it often gets overshadowed by Edinburgh. But the two cities have completely different personalities.

Glasgow feels grittier, artsier and more laid-back, with beautiful Victorian architecture, free museums and galleries, independent shops, great food and a brilliant live music scene.

If you enjoy art and architecture, pop into Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum, follow the City Centre Mural Trail, wander down Buchanan Street to admire the Victorian architecture, or visit Glasgow Cathedral and the Glasgow Necropolis.

Many of Glasgow’s museums and galleries are free to enter, so you can do loads on your day trip from Edinburgh without spending a fortune.

St Andrews

🚆🚌 Public transport: 1h20–1h30 by train + local bus
🚗 Car: 1h15–1h30
⭐ Best option: Car, public transport or guided tour of St. Andrews & Fife’s Fishing Villages

St Andrews is a great day trip from Edinburgh that combines history, beaches, and a bit of royal gossip.

This pretty seaside town on Scotland’s east coast is best known as the home of golf, but you definitely don’t need to be a golf fan to enjoy it.

Wander through the historic streets, explore the ruins of St Andrews Cathedral and castle, or head down to West Sands Beach for some fresh, salty sea air. For one of the best views over the town and coastline, climb St Rule’s Tower.

And, of course, there’s the royal connection: Prince William and Catherine, Princess of Wales, met while studying at the University of St Andrews.