How Much Does a Scotland Trip Cost? 2024 Budget

Whether you are dreaming of the lush green Scottish Highlands, the cobbled streets of Edinburgh, the icy waters of deep lochs, rugged castles, ginger-headed men in kilts, or cuddling hairy coos, it is time to start planning your Scotland trip budget! I’m going to walk you through exactly what a Scotland trip costs based on what I spent on my recent one week Scottish road trip.

I’ve visited Scotland twice now and I just can’t get enough of this beautiful country. On this recent visit, I took a one week road trip with friends and we stayed two nights in Edinburgh, two nights in Inverness, two nights on the Isle of Skye, one night in Glencoe, and one night in Glasgow — which is a perfect itinerary to see the Scottish highlights. However, if you only have seven nights, you could cut out either the night in Glasgow or Glencoe.

This Scotland budget includes how much I spent on airfare, lodging, car rental, gas, parking, activities, and food, as well as the average costs. I know you are anxious to know the total Scotland trip cost, so before I go into details, here is the bottom line. A one-week trip to Scotland for two people, traveling in the summer, costs approximately $5,287, or $378 per person, per day. But keep reading to see the breakdown.

Scotland Trip Cost

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Before we get into the details, here are some important considerations to keep in mind when you are planning a trip to Scotland:

• Hotels book up early in the summer, especially in places like the Isle of Skye. To find the most accommodation options at the best prices, try to make your reservations at least four to six months in advance.
• If you would like to visit a lot of castles and gardens, you may be able to save on entrance fees and parking with a membership to the National Trust for Scotland.
• Hotels in Edinburgh are pricey so try to spread out your trip by visiting other destinations in Scotland.
• When renting a car, if you want an automatic transmission, be sure to reserve well in advance for the best availability and rates. Remember to rent the smallest car that will fit your luggage. You will appreciate it when driving on the one-lane gravel roads in Scotland’s interior.
• Pack wisely using my Scotland packing list
• Be sure to read the rest of my Scotland travel tips

Airfare to Scotland Cost

You will find the most flight options into Edinburgh, but to save money, you may want to look at flying into London instead and then either taking an inexpensive regional flight or riding the train up to Edinburgh. You can often find flight sales to London or you could use a budget airline like Norse Atlantic. Another option is taking Aer Lingus and connecting in Dublin.

I was lucky to find a flight deal and booked my flight to Edinburgh using only 20K American Express Membership Rewards points plus fees, which I transferred to Virgin Atlantic to book a Delta code-share flight. I then booked a return flight from London (since we were road tripping through both Scotland and Wales) using 52K JetBlue TrueBlue points plus fees.

If you want to find the best way to accumulate points and miles through credit card spending and sign up bonuses, I’d suggest downloading the Travel Freely app to track your credit cards and learn how to earn points.

I know not everyone has a stash of loyalty points to use, so I highly recommend signing up for a flight deal subscription service such as Going.

If you are flexible with your dates and keep an eye on flight deals, you should be able to find flights for $500-900 to Scotland (even if you decide to take a flight deal to London and then use Ryan Air or Easy Jet to get to Edinburgh.)

Total Airfare Cost: $1400 ($700 x 2 people)

Scotland Accommodations Cost

As I mentioned above, lodging in cities like Edinburgh and Glasgow can be pricey, but you can find affordable accommodations in other parts of the country. Below I have outlined where I stayed and what it will cost for similar dates in 2024, along with some alternatives.

Edinburgh

On this trip, the three of us shared a two bedroom loft apartment at Blackfriars Lofts in Old Town, for $608 per night (or $202.67 per person per night.) This flat can sleep 4-6 and would work for a family. However, if you are a couple, you may want to consider something smaller to save money.

On my previous visit, I stayed in New Town at the Eden Locke boutique hotel, which I loved and would be perfect for a couple or solo traveler. For the same dates, that costs just $260 per night.

Find more places to stay in Edinburgh:

Cost for 2 nights in Edinburgh: $520 ($260 x 2)

Inverness

Since I was traveling with three friends, we decided to rent a three-bedroom Airbnb in Inverness for $319.44 a night (split three ways that was quite a deal.) However, if you are traveling solo or as a couple, you may want to consider the AC Hotel Inverness at $269 per night, which is located downtown and within a short walk to many restaurants, bars, and shops (like Leakey’s Bookshop!)

For more of a splurge, stay at the luxurious Ness Walk, or try the River Ness Hotel or the Kingsmill Hotel for just a touch more. If these are all too rich for your taste, there are a number of guest houses located on the outskirts of town for under $200 a night.

Cost for 2 nights in Inverness: $538 ($269 x 2 nights)

Isle of Skye

It was April by the time we went to book our lodging on the Isle of Skye for late June and many of the cottages and hotels were already booked. We decided to try something different and booked cabins at The Bracken Hide, which is a new adventure hotel with individual hobbit house-shaped cabins. Since these only sleep two in a queen bed, we each booked our own for £240 a night.

Cost for 2 nights on Isle of Skye: $608 ($304 x 2 nights)

Glencoe

We debating driving straight from the Isle of Skye to Glasgow, but since we wanted to spend more time in the Highlands, we booked one night at the simple but scenic Clachaig Inn for $226.50 per room. There isn’t a lot in the area and this is a classic pub and popular with hikers. As long as you don’t need something fancy, you can’t beat the view from the Clachaig Inn.

Cost for 1 night in Glencoe: $259

Glasgow (Optional Additional Night)

If you want to add an additional night to your trip for a chance to see Glasgow, I really enjoyed the location of the Glasgow Grosvenor Hotel, however, there are many options for $250-300 per night.

Total Scotland Accommodations Cost: $1,925

Scotland Car Rental Cost

As I mentioned before, you will save money if you book a manual transmission car, but if you aren’t comfortable driving stick, especially on some of the narrow and winding roads in Scotland, you will need to pay a bit more for an automatic. I use Auto Europe to compare rates from different vendors to find the best deal.

We ended up booking with Enterprise and it cost $826.92, but that was for a two week road trip through Scotland and Wales. If you are just staying for one week and picking up on your departure from Edinburgh, it should only cost $367 – 700 for a compact or midsize.

Even though we complain about the price of gas in the U.S., it is more expensive in the U.K. During our time in Scotland, we filled up the car three times for a total cost of $307.

You will need to pay for parking at most of the car parks around Scotland. It is based on how long you stay, but plan on spending about $60 in parking.

Total cost for a rental car, gas, and parking: $860

Activities in Scotland

Luckily, Scotland is quite affordable when it comes to activities as you don’t need to take expensive tours or pay high museum fees. For the most part, you will be enjoying the outdoors and the gorgeous scenery. However, if this is your first trip to Scotland, there are a few paid activities that I would recommend. Some of these I did on my first trip and some on my second: (cost shown per person)

• Edinburgh castle: $24.70
• Palace of Holyroodhouse: $25.35
• Afternoon tea: $82 (at the Colonnades at Signet Library, my favorite of 4 I have done in Scotland)
• Culloden Battlefield: $17.74
• Urquhart Castle: $16.47
• Eilean Donan Castle: $13.94
• Dunvegan Castle: $20.91

Total activities cost: $201.11 x 2 people = $402.22

Food Costs in Scotland

You will find amazing restaurants in both Edinburgh and Glasgow, but outside of the cities, the food is simpler and more affordable (for the most part.) Looking through my receipts, I spent $360 on food during my week in Scotland. In general, you can estimate approximately:

• Breakfast: $5.00-10.00 per day
• Lunch: $15.00 per day
• Dinner: $15.00-30.00 per day

Total cost for food: $350 x 2 people = $700

Total Scotland Trip Cost

A one-week trip to Scotland costs approximately $5,287 for two people traveling from the U.S. in late June to early July, or $378 per person, per day.

Category	Expense
Airfare	$ 1,400
Accommodations	$ 1,925
Transportation	$ 860
Activities	$ 402
Food	$ 700
The total cost of a trip to Scotland for 2 people	$ 5,287

Of course, if you want a luxury trip or need to hire a driver because you aren’t comfortable driving on the small roads, the cost can increase significantly. You can also save a bit more on accommodations if you aren’t picky. But this is a solid estimate of a Scotland trip cost for the moderate to upscale traveler.

Still Deciding? Find more average trip budgets for:

• Europe trip cost
• Ireland trip cost
• London trip cost
• Iceland trip cost
• Paris trip cost
• Portugal trip cost
• Italy trip cost
• Greece trip cost
• Morocco trip cost
• Japan trip cost

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