Flights from London to Edinburgh

London to Edinburgh flights land at Edinburgh Airport (EDI), and the flight time is around 1 hour 15 minutes on a direct flight. Direct departures leave from five London airports: Heathrow, Gatwick, Stansted, Luton and London City.

British Airways, easyJet and Ryanair all fly the route direct.

Over the last few days, the cheapest London to Edinburgh flight found on Opodo was £12. Fares change with your dates, so comparing a few days around your trip can find you a lower price.

London has six major airports. Each is linked to Central London by the Tube or by train, and some rail and coach services also reach the main airports from other UK cities.

How to reach each London airport from the centre:

• London City (LCY): the closest to Central London, about 7 miles away, with DLR trains from Canning Town around every 8 to 15 minutes
• London Gatwick (LGW): south of London, about 47km from the centre, where the Gatwick Express runs every 30 minutes to London Victoria alongside other regular trains
• London Heathrow (LHR): west of London, about 25km from the centre, with the Piccadilly line at least every 10 minutes and the Heathrow Express and the Elizabeth line are faster rail options
• London Luton (LTN): north-west of London, with daily train and coach services from Central London by East Midlands Railway, Thameslink and National Express
• London Southend (SEN): one of the smaller London airports, east of the city in Essex, with trains from Liverpool Street or Stratford
• London Stansted (STN): near the M11 motorway north-east of London, with the Stansted Express as the main rail link around every 15 to 30 minutes and Terravision coaches

Edinburgh Airport is the city's one main airport, with a single terminal used by the London route's airlines as well as Jet2.com, Loganair, KLM and Air France.

Trams run from Edinburgh Airport to the city centre around every 7 minutes during the day, and the journey takes about half an hour on average. The Airlink bus is the other direct public transport link into the centre.

If you would rather drive, Edinburgh Airport has a car hire centre close to the terminal and sits near the M8 and M9 motorways.

The services and facilities at Edinburgh Airport include:

• Banking and currency exchange: Travelex stores and ATMs for changing cash into British pounds or euros
• Dining: coffee shops and a kitchen bar before security, with more bars, cafés and restaurants after security
• Shopping: shops for cosmetics, food, electronics and fashion, plus Luggage-Point, which sells travel essentials and handles lost luggage
• Car hire: reserve or get a quote on the airport's website, or visit the car hire centre in person on arrival
• Wi-Fi, lounges and prayer room: free Wi-Fi, three different lounge areas and a prayer room on the terminal ground floor

The best time to fly to Edinburgh depends on what you want from the trip. The weather is warmest between June and August, but this is also peak season and the city gets busy.

August in Edinburgh is the month of the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, when shows fill theatres, pubs and streets across the city and visitor numbers peak. The same month brings the Edinburgh International Festival and the Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo on the Castle Esplanade.

For smaller crowds and the cheapest tickets, the winter months are often a better bet, apart from the holiday season over Christmas and New Year. Scotland is the coldest part of the UK in winter and temperatures can drop below zero. Even so, Edinburgh is stunning in the snow, its festive markets light up the city, and New Year arrives with the Hogmanay street celebrations.

Spring in Edinburgh is a good middle ground, with milder weather and cheaper deals. May is the driest month of the year.

Edinburgh packs plenty into a short stay, even a single day. For the city's history and architecture, these sights are free to visit:

• National Museum of Scotland: the national collections, from natural history to the story of Scotland itself
• National Gallery: the Scottish national collection of fine art, set at the foot of the Mound off Princes Street
• Royal Botanic Garden: free to enter apart from the glasshouses, and at its best when the weather is nice
• St Giles' Cathedral: the historic High Kirk of Edinburgh, standing halfway along the Royal Mile

Other Edinburgh highlights to fit in:

• Edinburgh Castle: book a ticket to look around a castle that claims to be one of the oldest fortified structures in Europe
• The Scotch Whisky Experience: an hour-long, tutored tasting session close to the castle on the Royal Mile
• Royal Mile: the historic street of closes and wynds running downhill from the castle to the Palace of Holyroodhouse
• Calton Hill: a short climb from Princes Street for views over the Old Town, the New Town and the Firth of Forth
• Holyrood Park: the royal park about one mile from the castle, free to enter, with the climb up Arthur's Seat on a fine day