How to travel to Edinburgh, Scotland using points and miles
Edinburgh is one of our favorite capital cities. The Old Town of the city is a UNESCO world heritage sight, and the city has a lot to offer families. It’s also the perfect first city to visit from the United States; if you are weary about traveling abroad, and want to visit a walkable, safe, and fun city, then Edinburgh is a great start. It’s less intimidating than London or Paris, and the people are incredibly friendly.
We traveled to Edinburgh in June of 2026 as a family. It was the first stop on our trip last summer; since this was a return visit, we only stayed for 3 days before moving on to Paris.
Before our daughter was born, we spent 16 days in Scotland.
Here’s how we planned our trip from the East Coast to Edinburgh using points and miles. The good news is, it only took two credit cards to help us cover this portion of our trip.
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How to travel from the East Coast to Edinburgh:
Flight option #1: American Airlines
We flew from Philadelphia to Edinburgh on American Airlines. This is a direct seasonal flight that was newly added last year. Philadelphia is an American hub, so we fly with them often. We have multiple Citibank credit cards which allow us to accrue American miles and transfer to them.
Total miles used: 30,000 per person/ 90,000 miles total
Cash paid: $5.60 per person/ $16.80 total
Credit card used: Citi AAdvantage Platinum Select World Elite Mastercard
Other cards you could use: Citi Strata Elite, Citi AAdvantage Globe
Sample itinerary using points to travel in June on American Airlines (booking direct).
Flight option #2: Alaska Airlines
You can acquire Alaskan Airlines’ currency, Atmos miles, through their Bank of America credit cards. Since Alaska is a partner of American Airlines, you can often find American flights on Alaska’s website. They are also often LESS than what you would pay on American’s website. (On short haul flights in the US, we can fly for as little as 4,500 points, and Europe is often less than 25,000 points.) Below is an example of fares for summer of 2026 for Edinburgh.
Total miles used: 22,500 per person/ 67,500 miles total (for 3 people)
Cash paid: $19 per person/ $57 total
Credit cards you can use: Bank of America ATMOS points
Sample itinerary using points to travel in June on American Airlines using Alaska Airlines.
Flight option #3: Delta Airlines
If you have an abundance of American Express or Delta points, then you can also book a Delta flight directly from JFK to Edinburgh. Delta requires more points, but the taxes and fees are low.
Sample itinerary using points to travel in June on Delta Airlines.
Where to stay in Edinburgh on Points
Hotel Option #1: IHG hotels
When you stay in Edinburgh, you will likely want to be as close to the Edinburgh Waverly (the main train station) or the Royal Mile as possible. The Royal mile offers most of the museums and activities that you will want to explore. We always walk when we are in Edinburgh, so being in the city is important. Having a stock pile of IHG points can come in handy in this city.
Here’s a list of IHG hotels that you could stay with points:
Holiday Inn Express, Royal Mile
Holiday Inn Express, City Centre
Hotel Indigo, Princes Street
Kimpton Charlotte Square
We stayed at the Holiday Inn Express, City Centre, which was a perfectly fine hotel. However, I would probably not recommend this if you can stay closer to the Royal Mile. It was about a 20 minute walk for us each day. The room was perfectly suitable, but the breakfast and air conditioning in the main areas left a bit to be desired. Still, this is a good budget option, and the standard rooms can fit 3 people. If you are visiting during a festival, like the Edinburgh Fringe in August, then you might want to be further away from the fireworks over Edinburgh Castle at night, and this could be a good choice.
If I had booked our trip earlier, I would haved tried to stay at the Holiday Inn Express, Royal Mile, instead.
Remember, if you stay 4 nights at any IHG property with points, that 4th night is free.
Four nights in Edinburgh would allow you plenty of time to explore the city and give you opportunities to book a day trip to explore other areas. We took a break from Edinburgh and a tour with Heart of Scotland to Northumberland and Alnwick Castle (where the first Harry Potter was filmed, among other movies.)
Points used: 215,000 (this hotel can range from 50,000-80,000 points per night)
Cash paid: $0
Credits cards you could use: IHG Premier or Chase Sapphire Preferred
Wandering Edinburgh, June 2025
Hotel Option #2: Hilton Edinburgh Carlton
While we did not stay here, many people recommend staying at the Hilton Edinburgh Carlton. For Hilton properties, if you book with points, you can stay 4 nights and get the 5th night free. (We have yet to take advantage of this!)
Total points: 70,000 (or more) per night/ 280,000 (or more)
Credit cards you could use: AMEX Gold, Hilton Honors Surpass (or any AMEX and Hilton card)
We visited Edinburgh in June of 2026 as part of our annual summer trip to Europe.
Keep reading to learn more about our other adventures and how we use points and miles to subsidize our travel in the US and abroad.
