Living in Edinburgh
Edinburgh is often voted one of the best cities to live in Europe.
Quality of life
Edinburgh is a city often praised for being beautiful - with its many parks and gardens around town and aesthetically aged Old Town (the oldest region of the city of Edinburgh) it's not hard to see why.
Edinburgh often ranks as one of the top cities for people to live, work, and study in, and has recently been named as the UK's most attractive city to live and work in a study commissioned by the Royal Mail.
- Best student cities 2022 (QS) - Edinburgh ranks 12th in the world
- Quality of life ranking (Numbeo) - Edinburgh is 7th in Europe
- Great city for start-ups - second only to London in UK
History
Edinburgh has been the capital of Scotland since the 15th century, its old and new towns are recognised as UNESCO World Heritage sites. The city is built on and around a long-extinct volcano now known as 'Arthur's Seat' which gives the city a unique and spectacular landscape. Edinburgh University was founded in 1582 and is the sixth oldest University in the English-speaking world.
Nightlife
Edinburgh has hundreds of pubs, restaurants and clubs which cater for a huge variety of tastes and budgets. Being the capital of Scotland, some bars in Edinburgh can be on the pricier side for drinks but many bars offer student discount making it a lot more affordable.
Festivals and the arts
Edinburgh is a culturally vibrant city which plays host to the world's largest arts festival plus scores of other smaller festivals. It also has several world-class art galleries and theatres.
In August, Edinburgh is transformed by the Fringe Festival – the largest arts festival in the world. People come from everywhere in the world to see comedy, drama, music, and entertainment here in Edinburgh.
Sport and exercise
Edinburgh is home to countless sports groups and organisations including two professional football teams, a professional Rugby Union team and a commonwealth length swimming pool. Edinburgh University also has one of the best sports and gym facilities amongst UK universities.
List of Edinburgh University sports societies
Edinburgh sports facilities:
Outdoors
If you like to spend time in nature you don't have to go far, Edinburgh is surrounded by countryside and the Pentland Hills Regional Park is only half an hour away from the city centre. The Scottish Highlands are home to some of the last few areas of true wilderness in Europe and can be reached in about 3 hours from Edinburgh by bus, car or rail. Scotland also has an abundance of opportunities for adventure and water sports.
- Pentland Hills Regional Park
- Arthur's Seat & Holyrood Park
- The Scottish Highlands
- Top 5 Walkable Areas around Edinburgh
Edinburgh also gives access to the outdoors through the Meadows – the central park of Edinburgh that is the hub for barbeques, sports, and sun (pictured right).
Finance
Edinburgh is very competitive in terms of cost of living compared with other UK cities.
As it is the capital of Scotland, it does have its more expensive parts of town but it is a lot more affordable than its English capital counterpart.
