Hi!

Im planning to go to Edinburgh, and would appreciate it if someone could explain to me the use of the Edinburgh Pass for a day.

There's a Free return to the Airport, But is this from Edinburgh center to the Edinburgh Airport?

Also, would you suggest one of those sites tours, to Edinburgh Castle-Holyrood, or just to walk along? Would maybe getting there be a problem?

The plans I have at the moment:
Day 1: Hoping to catch Edinburgh Castle in the day and then at night the witchery tours.

Day 2: Wanted to see the vaults and perhaps the britannica tour. Don't really know what else to do here.

Do let me know what you think. Thanks so much!!!

If you are purchasing a day pass for £20 you will save if you concentrate on doing all the things that the pass permits in your One Day.
It also depends on your flight arrival and the location of your accommodation if you are going to get your moneys worth for the first day. If you have a later flight or if you have to go to your accommodation outwith the city centre to book in / drop off luggage then it may not be suitable to use the pass on the first day. You will have to consider your own requirements. However an example of making the pass work for you would be:
If your flight arrives in the early / mid morning then if you purchase the pass ahead of arrival you can obtain your return airport bus ticket (saving £5) when you get on the bus at the airport. The bus will take you into the Airport bus stance on Waverley Bridge bridge and within walking distance there is the Edinburgh Dungeon - does not get a great write up for a cost of £11 but is is on the pass so you may consider using it. Walking from there up towards the castle you will find the Scotch Whisky Heritage Centre - but pass can only be used for free entry prior to 12.30p.m (saving £7) almost opposit there is the Camera Obscura and for this you need a clear day - cost £7, A short distance away is Gladstones Land £5. There is a 20% discount on meals at the Hub and Amber restaurant is spending more than £6.50 on a meal. From there you may wish to walk down the Royal Mile and perhaps do one of the Mercat or Vaults Tours (£7 each) . Continue down the Royal Mile and you can go to the Loch Ness Experience (£5) special events section of the Queens Gallery at Holyrood Palace (£5) and round the corner is Dynamic Earth £9.
Most of that is do able in the day when events etc are open. In the evening you may wish to think about making your way back up the Royal Mile and using your pass again for a meal before taking in the likes of the Witchery or other Ghost Tours (£7.50).

I would not consider going to Edinburgh Castle, Holyrood Palace or Britannia on a day when you are using the Edinburgh Pass. These attractions are not included in the pass and will take up too much valuable time when you could be effectively using the pass.

As there are numerous free and other attractions which charge an entrance fee to see which are not included on the pass then I doubt if the pass would save much money over two days as most of the main attractions on the pass can be seen in the one day.

"Return" means round trip. The airport coach travels from EDI through the west end to Waverly Station on Princes Street. If you are staying near one of its stops it is practically door-to-door. Otherwise you need to take a different bus or a taxi from Waverly station.

Are you only in Edinburgh 2 days? The 2 day pass is £36 and I don't think I'd get £36 of value from it. For one, the biggies like Edinburgh Castle, Holyrood Palace, the Royal Yacht Britania and the Guide Friday hop-on-hop-off bus are not included. Many of the covered attractions would not be on my top 20 list. Plus it is a bit deceiving - most of the galleries and museums listed are free - it is only the special exhibitions covered by the Pass. And finally the airport bus is only £5 return.

I personally would not invest in the Pass. I would take the Guide Friday tour bus first thing in the morning and do one full loop and then stay on the tour bus and up to the Castle, get off, tour the castle, then wander down the Royal Mile and old town for the rest of the day.

The next morning you can take a local bus out to the dock to visit the Royal Yacht and then back into the city center for the galleries/museums.

I was writing the same time meks was posting

Just one comment - I would NOT go to schlocky attractions like the dungeon, etc., simply because "hey, it's free on the pass" - if you only have 2 days do not waste one minute on those sorts of things.

oops also meant to add - the 1 day pass at £20 isn't a great bargain either. To make it cost effective you'd have to miss many of the "musts" of Edinburgh.

Just because a Pass has good marketing doesn't make it a good idea.

Hey!
Thank u so much!
the friday guide sounds good then!

also, just wondering, whats the difference between the airport bus and the free return transfer (from one airport to the other is it?)

Thanks!!
Have a great week.

Also, would u recommend the Friday Guide over the (most popular apparently) City Sightseeing tour?
I don't see much of a difference between the two.

I've always understood that Guide Friday is the only one with a live guide as opposed to taped commentary, but maybe things have changed.

"also, just wondering, whats the difference between the airport bus and the free return transfer (from one airport to the other is it?)"

From the Edinburgh pass website

Just use the travel tickets provided with your Edinburgh Pass and you can enjoy FREE return airport transfer (normal price £5.00 return) between Edinburgh Airport and the city centre, as well as unlimited travel on any Lothian Bus except Tours and Nightbuses (adult price £2.30). £5.00 return bus transfer on Scottish Citylink buses between Glasgow Airport and Edinburgh city centre (normal price £9.00).

The Bus tours are all owned and run by the same company - Lothian Buses and hence the reason that the similarity in prices. See www.edinburghtour.com
The latest offer is rather than doing one tour which generally costs £9 per adult, then for £3 extra you can do all four tours - the Grand Tour over a 24 hour period- however you will have to watch as the tours seem to finish about 8p.m - even during June - August.
Guide Friday has the on board guide which helps if the bus is stuck in traffic, It also means that you can at anytime ask the guide questions about the city which are of importance to you.
The City Sightseeing Tour is a recorded tour and has to be stopped and started by the driver so that is not as good.
If you take the Grand Tour then you can hop on and off the four tours at anytime you wish to enable you to see parts of the city which suit you. This can also include the trip to Leith for those interested in the former Royal Yacht Britannia which would save £3 if you intended visiting Leith Docks. The Britannia tour has improved recently but still not worth using 3 - 4 hours to go and see if you are short for time and only have a day or a couple of days in Edinburgh.
For those interested in doing all the bus tours plus visiting Edinburgh Castle, Holyrood Palace and Britannia then a 2 day Royal Edinburgh Ticket is available at £34 see www.royaledinburghticket.co.uk
When you have ascertained your own priorities then look at the websites and see which is best financially for you in the the limited tiome you may have in Edinburgh.
Unfortunately the Airport bus is not included in the Grand tour offer.

Alternatively, to get to Britannia, just get a regular number 22 bus & pay £1 each way, or get a daysaver ticket covering all the regular buses but not airbus or night buses) for £2.30.