Tips and what to expect from Edinburgh Fringe Festival

Tips and what to expect from Edinburgh Fringe Festival

“The Edinburgh Festival Fringe is the single biggest celebration of arts and culture on the planet”

thEGRA2425There’s street performances, traditional theatre, comedy, dance, physical theatre, circus, cabaret, children’s shows, musicals, opera, music, spoken word, exhibitions and all sorts of events going on in hundreds of venues all over the capital so if you love being immersed in all things arts, theatre and entertainment from all over the world this is the place for you.

I have never made it up to Scotland for it but have wanted to go to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival for years and as I wanted to write about ideas for getaways I wanted to write a post about this awesome celebration of theatre but obviously cannot from first hand SO with a bit of help from my friends and looking at various websites I’m going to try and give you some advice before you set off 🙂

 

Things to consider before heading to Scotland:

Travel– depending how far you’re travelling have a look into trains, buses, flights or websites such as GoCarShare or Tripshare for at least parts of the journey. A lot of discounts can be found, maybe you have money back offers through your bank or other loyalty schemes you can use. Whilst you’re in the city try and walk as much as you can, there is so much to see that you might miss out on if you spend your time in taxis or on public transport but also walking means you could save money, get exercise and weather permitting your fix of vitamin D.

Duration– how long are you going for? Are you lucky enough to be able to stay for the whole festival? Or are you going for a few days? A week? A fortnight? This can have a huge effect on budget and time you have to spend going round all the acts, also have a look at the shows you most want to see and make sure the dates you’re going include some of their performances, shows change over a LOT so I hope you don’t miss out.

Accommodation– depending on how long you’re going for you may want to stay in different levels of luxury. There are lots of options in Edinburgh from hostels and hotels to some gorgeous rooms/apartments available through airbnb but I’d book sooner rather than later as this is a very popular event and places will book up very quickly! Groupon/wowcher also may provide you with some good offers but might take some searching.

Food– again this depends on your budget, if you’re staying in a place that offers breakfast that one less worry or if you’re in self catered accommodation you can stock up in supermarkets and corner shops. Or if you’re up for treating yourself on a few meals out there are PLENTY to choose from, and for those of you who want the luxury but not the price tag have a look at this site, might find a bargain offer to use to save some pennies 🙂

What to pack– SUN CREAM! If you’re anything like me don’t forget to pack a bottle or two, although it is a UK festival I would recommend packing clothes for various weathers, even if you pack purely summer clothes and add a jumper/jacket, raincoat and umbrella that should do the trick. Bring your sunglasses, sun hats, chargers, cameras, selfie sticks, (and if you want to) pack a few flower headbands and body glitter too.

Ticket prices– this one can vary as there are several shows which are free, there is street theatre to enjoy for free too, some shows offer a pay what you can price, others have 2for1 offers and if you become a ‘friend of the fringe’ you can get access to lots of other offers too (find out more about the friend scheme and other money saving ideas here), but research the prices of the shows you want to see, make sure that’s part of your itinerary planning.

Where am I going?– a very handy virtual map that I found on the Edinburgh Fringe website, might come in handy whilst wandering the streets, seeing how long it will take you to get between venues and working out the finer details of your itinerary.

Fancy doing something else?– if you have the time and you want to do something a bit different while you’re in this amazing city why not go onto a site like tripadvisor and get tickets to see Edinburgh Castle, do a walking tour, or hop on a coach tour and see Loch Ness, Highlands and a Whiskey Distillery.

 

This years dates for Edinburgh fringe are Friday 3rd- Monday 27th August 2018 but if you can’t get all the way up to Scotland and fancy a theatre fringe a bit closer to home (if you’re near the south like me) why not head to London and try something at the Camden fringe? Dates for which are 30th July- 26th August 2018. It’s a lesser known fringe festival which I only discovered last year but also has a fair bit of entertainment to offer and is definitely worth giving a go at least once-plus a few of my friends are in shows for this one too ^_^

 

Until next time, TTFN.

 

Any tips or tricks you’ve got for either Fringe? Are you going for the first time this year? Have you been before? What did you think? Let me know in the comments.

 

Disclaimer: none of these photos are my own. Found them all with a simple Google search but they were too vibrant not to use.

 

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