You've made it into the city, you've dropped your bags, and the whole of August is stretching out ahead of you with roughly four thousand shows to choose from. ButI know from friends and customers I've spoken to that it can be hard to know where to start. So here's what to actually do first when you arrive in Edinburgh for the festival, when you first roll into town, in the order I'd do it.
1. Get the app and a proper map before you do anything else
Download the EdFringe app before you leave your accommodation - I've heard that mobile signal can get patchy in the centre once the crowds are heavy. If you'd rather have something physical, the Fringe Shop hands out free maps marking every venue, which is genuinely useful given how many tiny closes and steep wynds this city has hiding shows down them.
2. Get your bearings - the Royal Mile is the centre of the whole thing
Before you commit to anything, walk the length of the Royal Mile once just to get oriented. Or shuffle - this road is thick with crowds in the Festival. Everything else radiates out from it: Bristo Square and George Square to the south (Pleasance, Gilded Balloon, and a cluster of other major venues), the Mound running down toward Princes Street, and the Grassmarket tucked below the Castle. Apart from some more far flung venues, it's all pretty central and easy to walk from A to B.
3. Head to the Fringe Box Office and book your one must-see show
This is the step people often skip and then regret - I so often do. When you do go to the Fringe Box Office at 180 High Street, book tickets for the one show you already know you want to see - if you arrive in the early days of the Festival. Arrive towards the end and you may have to take what you can get. Popular shows at the big venues sell out within days, sometimes hours. While you're there, note where the Half Price Hut is (right next door, at Old Assembly Close) - you'll want it later in the week for spontaneous, same-day tickets once you're in the swing of things.
4. Check what's actually good today
With this many shows running, reviews can shift daily. So in the morning have a quick look at what The Scotsman or The List are recommending that day — both publish daily picks through the festival, and it's a far better filter than scrolling star ratings on the app for twenty minutes.
5. Walk the Royal Mile properly, not just through it
Once your first ticket's booked, actually slow down on the Royal Mile itself. The street performers here are a genuine part of the festival, not just background noise on your way somewhere else - jugglers, fire-eaters, there's always a fantastic unicyclist - it's one thing to ride a unicycle in a crowd, another to do it on centuries-old cobbles, on a hill! Give them 10 minutes and a couple of pounds if you can these guys work hard for their money.
6. Find somewhere good for a coffee and go through the full programme properly
Once you've got your bearings and your first ticket sorted, find somewhere to sit down and go through the programme. The Milkman, on Cockburn Street just off the Royal Mile, is a good independent. cafe - though not many seats. Or Edinburgh Larder or Santu Coffee - there are lots to choose from, do try to visit them rather than the usual soulless international chains.
7. If you're a book person, know the Book Festival's moved
If literature's part of why you're here but you haven't been for a few years, note that the Edinburgh International Book Festival now runs from the Edinburgh Futures Institute on Lauriston Place, not its old Charlotte Square home. Quite a bit away from the old venue so good to avoid any last minute confusion.
8. And when you want to take something home
Once the shows, the queuing and the street performers have had their moment, if you want to bring something back for yourself or for whoever couldn't make the trip, Made Scotland has gifts and hampers sourced directly from independent Scottish makers, shipped anywhere in the UK - and if you're ordering a few things I can always deliver to central Edinburgh for you. Worth bookmarking for the end of the trip rather than trying to shop mid-Fringe when you're dashing from show to show.
Alexandra Borthwick is a journalist, editor, and founder of Made Scotland (madescotland.com), an online store helping individuals and businesses find beautiful Scottish-made gifts - including bespoke corporate gifting.
