Edinburgh.

ESN Edinburgh, part of the wider Erasmus Student Network, exists specifically to build community among international and exchange students, running social events and trips throughout the year on top of the university's own societies. The real highlight of the calendar is August, when the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, the world's largest performing arts festival, takes over the city for 25 days with thousands of shows across hundreds of venues. In 2025 it sold more than 2.6 million tickets to performers from 68 countries. Even if you are not around for the full run, catching a handful of Fringe shows is close to compulsory.

• ESN Edinburgh runs social events and trips built around exchange students.
• The Fringe took over the city for 25 days in 2025, selling 2.6 million tickets.
• Catch a handful of Fringe shows even if you miss the full run.

The University of Edinburgh's own 2026/27 estimate puts average student living costs at 1,546 pounds a month, made up of about 980 pounds for accommodation and utilities, 248 for food and shopping, 248 for socialising and leisure, and 58 for local bus travel, excluding tuition and study costs. A student Ridacard covering Lothian Buses, Edinburgh Trams and night buses costs 68 pounds for four weeks, with a 9 month option at 570 pounds that skips the summer months you will not need it. Actual spending depends heavily on which accommodation you choose.

• Budget about 1,546 pounds a month, per the university's own 2026/27 estimate.
• Accommodation and utilities alone average around 980 pounds of that monthly total.
• A 4 week student Ridacard for buses and trams costs 68 pounds.

University run halls, mostly self catered with some catered options at Pollock Halls, come with one simple price and no separate deposit, and cover more than 10,000 students across the city. Apply as early as possible, since guarantee terms and deadlines change from year to year, and confirm your eligibility as an exchange student with accommodation services. Off campus, Marchmont's Victorian tenement flats near the Meadows are a short walk from the university and hugely popular with students, though that popularity keeps rents high. Wherever you rent privately, expect to share a flat and budget for a deposit on signing.

• University halls cover more than 10,000 students with one price and no deposit.
• New students securing a place by 31 August are guaranteed a room.
• Marchmont's tenement flats near the Meadows are popular but push rents up.

Lothian Buses, Edinburgh Trams and the night bus network all run on the same Ridacard, with a four week student pass costing 68 pounds and a discounted nine month option for the academic year. The tram line runs from the airport through the city centre to Newhaven, useful for both arrivals and for reaching Leith, extended there in 2023. Waverley and Haymarket are the two main railway stations, putting the rest of Scotland within easy reach. The compact centre itself, with its steep closes and hills, is best explored on foot once you know your way around.

• Get a student Ridacard for unlimited Lothian Buses, trams and night buses.
• Take the tram from the airport through the centre to Newhaven and Leith.
• Waverley and Haymarket stations connect you to the rest of Scotland by rail.

The University of Edinburgh, founded in 1583, is Scotland's largest university with just over 39,000 students and sits in the world's top 40 across the three major rankings. It runs over 200 exchange places for partner universities outside Europe alone, waives tuition fees for incoming exchange students, and lets them study for one semester, two semesters or a full year. Heriot-Watt University, based at a 380 acre parkland campus in Riccarton, adds close to 9,850 students on its Edinburgh site, part of a global network stretching to Dubai and Malaysia. Edinburgh Napier University rounds out a genuinely academic city on top of its festivals and history.

• The University of Edinburgh runs over 200 exchange places outside Europe alone.
• Heriot-Watt adds close to 9,850 students on its 380 acre Riccarton campus.

Since Brexit, EU citizens no longer have free movement, so most non-Irish students need permission to study. For an exchange of up to six months you can often come under the Short-term study route or simply as a Standard Visitor, depending on your nationality and course length. For a full year you will need a Student visa sponsored by your host university.

What applies depends entirely on your passport, so confirm with the university and official UK government guidance early. The Student visa needs a CAS reference from your uni, proof of funds and usually the immigration health surcharge, so budget both time and money for it.

• Exchange under 6 months, often Standard Visitor or Short-term study
• Full year, Student visa with a CAS from your uni
• Irish citizens, no visa needed under the Common Travel Area
• Budget for the immigration health surcharge on longer visas

Edinburgh's food scene runs alongside its festivals: the Fringe and the wider August festivals turn the city into a permanent street party for most of the month, with venues and pop up food stalls everywhere you look. Leith, once a working port for shipbuilding and whisky storage, has reinvented its waterfront with restaurants and pubs in what Time Out ranked the fourth coolest neighbourhood in the world in 2021. The Royal Yacht Britannia, moored there, is a reminder of the area's maritime past. Away from festival season, the city's steep closes and hidden courtyards reward slow exploring on foot.

• The August festivals turn the whole city into a month long street party.
• Leith was named the fourth coolest neighbourhood in the world by Time Out in 2021.
• Visit the Royal Yacht Britannia, moored in Leith's regenerated waterfront.

Marchmont, a dense grid of Victorian tenements just south of the Old Town, sits an easy walk from both the University of Edinburgh and Edinburgh Napier, which keeps it constantly popular with students despite the high rents that popularity brings. Leith, the old port to the north, has gone from industrial decline to one of the world's most talked about neighbourhoods, with a waterfront now lined with restaurants and bars rather than warehouses. The Old Town keeps you inside the UNESCO listed medieval streets, while the New Town's Georgian terraces offer a calmer, more residential alternative nearby.

• Marchmont puts you within walking distance of two universities, at a price.
• Leith has reinvented its old port into one of the world's coolest areas.
• The Old Town and New Town offer UNESCO listed history on either side.

Glasgow is as little as 44 minutes away by train, with the average journey around 1 hour 13 minutes, making it an easy day trip or night out. North Berwick's beaches are even closer, reachable in as little as 23 minutes. For something bigger, the West Highland Line runs from Glasgow up through Fort William to Mallaig, crossing the Glenfinnan Viaduct and passing Corrour, the UK's highest mainline station, on a route voted the world's best rail journey by Wanderlust readers in 2009. It makes a genuinely spectacular weekend away without ever needing a car.

• Glasgow is 44 minutes away by train at its fastest, easy for a day trip.
• North Berwick's beaches are as little as 23 minutes away by train.
• Ride the West Highland Line to Fort William, voted the world's best rail journey.

Climb Arthur's Seat in your first week: it is barely a mile from the castle and one of the easiest ways to get your bearings over the whole city. If you are staying through August, book festival accommodation and travel months ahead, since the Fringe alone sold 2.6 million tickets in 2025 and fills the city fast. Sort your student Ridacard early too, since the discount needs a valid matriculation card shown in person at a TravelHub on Shandwick Place or Waverley Bridge.

• Climb Arthur's Seat in your first week to get your bearings over the city.
• Book August accommodation and travel early, since the Fringe fills the city fast.
• Get your student Ridacard in person at a TravelHub with your matriculation card.