52 same-day destinations

Extreme Day Trips from Edinburgh

Out before 08:00, home after 21:00, and up to four hours each way. These are the real morning-out, evening-back routes from Edinburgh Airport, worked out from our live flight schedules so the list stays current.

Destinations

Countries

Times shown are the earliest morning outbound and the latest evening return we can see in the schedules. Hours on the ground are approximate. Always double-check the exact times when you book, and leave room for delays on the way home.

Belfast

BFS

Northern Ireland

0h 46m

each way

06:00

Out from Edinburgh

~18h

On the ground

01:31

Back at Edinburgh

Airport Express 300 runs every 30 mins (£8). Great base for Giants Causeway.

Things to do in Belfast Belfast airport guide

Dublin

DUB

Ireland

0h 54m

each way

06:15

Out from Edinburgh

~15.5h

On the ground

23:30

Back at Edinburgh

Take the Airlink Express 747 bus (€8, 30 mins) to the city centre.

Things to do in Dublin Dublin airport guide

Derry

LDY

Northern Ireland

1h 10m

each way

05:45

Out from Edinburgh

~14h

On the ground

22:05

Back at Edinburgh

Things to do in Derry Derry airport guide

Cork

ORK

Ireland

1h 10m

each way

07:05

Out from Edinburgh

~13.6h

On the ground

23:00

Back at Edinburgh

Things to do in Cork Cork airport guide

Amsterdam

AMS

Netherlands

1h 17m

each way

05:45

Out from Edinburgh

~14.9h

On the ground

23:10

Back at Edinburgh

Schiphol is directly connected to Amsterdam Centraal by train (15 mins). Bikes everywhere!

Things to do in Amsterdam Amsterdam airport guide

Jersey

JER

Channel Islands

1h 23m

each way

07:05

Out from Edinburgh

~11.9h

On the ground

21:45

Back at Edinburgh

Just 6km from St Helier. Perfect for a weekend escape!

Things to do in Jersey Jersey airport guide

Paris

CDG

France

1h 31m

each way

05:40

Out from Edinburgh

~14.8h

On the ground

23:30

Back at Edinburgh

Charles de Gaulle is 25 mins from the city via RER B train. Eurostar is faster for central Paris!

Things to do in Paris Paris airport guide

Copenhagen

CPH

Denmark

1h 41m

each way

07:00

Out from Edinburgh

~14.6h

On the ground

01:00

Back at Edinburgh

Things to do in Copenhagen Copenhagen airport guide

Frankfurt am Main

FRA

Germany

1h 43m

each way

06:10

Out from Edinburgh

~13.6h

On the ground

23:10

Back at Edinburgh

Things to do in Frankfurt am Main Frankfurt am Main airport guide

Geneva

GVA

Switzerland

1h 59m

each way

06:05

Out from Edinburgh

~12.2h

On the ground

22:15

Back at Edinburgh

Things to do in Geneva Geneva airport guide

Munich

MUC

Germany

2h 4m

each way

06:00

Out from Edinburgh

~12.1h

On the ground

22:15

Back at Edinburgh

Things to do in Munich Munich airport guide

Prague

PRG

Czech Republic

2h 5m

each way

06:00

Out from Edinburgh

~12.4h

On the ground

22:35

Back at Edinburgh

Take Airport Express bus (€4) to the city. Beer is cheaper than water!

Things to do in Prague Prague airport guide

Milan

MXP

Italy

2h 10m

each way

07:45

Out from Edinburgh

~11.6h

On the ground

23:40

Back at Edinburgh

Things to do in Milan Milan airport guide

Bergamo

BGY

Italy

2h 13m

each way

07:20

Out from Edinburgh

~12.6h

On the ground

00:20

Back at Edinburgh

Things to do in Bergamo

Venice

VCE

Italy

2h 23m

each way

05:45

Out from Edinburgh

~13.2h

On the ground

23:40

Back at Edinburgh

Things to do in Venice

Barcelona

BCN

Spain

2h 28m

each way

05:45

Out from Edinburgh

~16h

On the ground

02:43

Back at Edinburgh

El Prat is 30 mins from La Rambla via Aerobus (€7.75). Book Sagrada Familia tickets in advance!

Things to do in Barcelona Barcelona airport guide

Nice

NCE

France

2h 30m

each way

05:35

Out from Edinburgh

~13.8h

On the ground

00:25

Back at Edinburgh

Things to do in Nice Nice airport guide

Lyon

LYS

France

2h 30m

each way

05:40

Out from Edinburgh

~12.1h

On the ground

22:45

Back at Edinburgh

Things to do in Lyon Lyon airport guide

Bratislava

BTS

Slovakia

2h 30m

each way

05:45

Out from Edinburgh

~14.3h

On the ground

01:05

Back at Edinburgh

Things to do in Bratislava

Wrocław

WRO

Poland

2h 30m

each way

05:45

Out from Edinburgh

~11.6h

On the ground

22:20

Back at Edinburgh

Things to do in Wrocław

Riga

RIX

Latvia

2h 30m

each way

05:45

Out from Edinburgh

~12.3h

On the ground

23:00

Back at Edinburgh

Things to do in Riga

Rome

CIA

Italy

2h 30m

each way

05:50

Out from Edinburgh

~13h

On the ground

23:50

Back at Edinburgh

Things to do in Rome

Sofia

SOF

Bulgaria

2h 30m

each way

05:50

Out from Edinburgh

~13.7h

On the ground

00:30

Back at Edinburgh

Things to do in Sofia

Bucharest

OTP

Romania

2h 30m

each way

06:00

Out from Edinburgh

~14.2h

On the ground

01:10

Back at Edinburgh

Things to do in Bucharest

Gdańsk

GDN

Poland

2h 30m

each way

06:00

Out from Edinburgh

~13.4h

On the ground

00:25

Back at Edinburgh

Things to do in Gdańsk

Dubrovnik

DBV

Croatia

2h 30m

each way

06:10

Out from Edinburgh

~12.8h

On the ground

23:55

Back at Edinburgh

Things to do in Dubrovnik Dubrovnik airport guide

Krakow

KRK

Poland

2h 30m

each way

06:20

Out from Edinburgh

~13.6h

On the ground

00:55

Back at Edinburgh

Things to do in Krakow

Tirana

TIA

Albania

2h 30m

each way

06:20

Out from Edinburgh

~13.2h

On the ground

00:30

Back at Edinburgh

Things to do in Tirana

Preveza/Lefkada

PVK

Greece

2h 30m

each way

06:35

Out from Edinburgh

~11.7h

On the ground

23:15

Back at Edinburgh

Things to do in Preveza/Lefkada

Beauvais/Tille

BVA

France

2h 30m

each way

06:40

Out from Edinburgh

~11.5h

On the ground

23:10

Back at Edinburgh

Things to do in Beauvais/Tille

Kaunas

KUN

Lithuania

2h 30m

each way

06:45

Out from Edinburgh

~13.5h

On the ground

01:15

Back at Edinburgh

Things to do in Kaunas

Warsaw

WMI

Poland

2h 30m

each way

06:50

Out from Edinburgh

~13h

On the ground

00:50

Back at Edinburgh

Things to do in Warsaw

Nantes

NTE

France

2h 30m

each way

06:55

Out from Edinburgh

~10h

On the ground

21:55

Back at Edinburgh

Things to do in Nantes

Burgas

BOJ

Bulgaria

2h 30m

each way

07:10

Out from Edinburgh

~12.3h

On the ground

00:30

Back at Edinburgh

Things to do in Burgas

Gothenburg

GOT

Sweden

2h 30m

each way

07:25

Out from Edinburgh

~11.3h

On the ground

23:40

Back at Edinburgh

Things to do in Gothenburg

Marseille

MRS

France

2h 30m

each way

07:45

Out from Edinburgh

~11.3h

On the ground

00:05

Back at Edinburgh

Things to do in Marseille Marseille airport guide

Madrid

MAD

Spain

2h 31m

each way

05:50

Out from Edinburgh

~13.3h

On the ground

00:10

Back at Edinburgh

Things to do in Madrid Madrid airport guide

Budapest

BUD

Hungary

2h 38m

each way

05:45

Out from Edinburgh

~13.2h

On the ground

00:15

Back at Edinburgh

Things to do in Budapest Budapest airport guide

Palma de Mallorca

PMI

Spain

2h 43m

each way

05:55

Out from Edinburgh

~13.4h

On the ground

00:45

Back at Edinburgh

Palma Airport is just 8km from city centre. Buses run every 15 mins (€5).

Things to do in Palma de Mallorca Palma de Mallorca airport guide

Ibiza

IBZ

Spain

2h 46m

each way

07:20

Out from Edinburgh

~10.5h

On the ground

23:20

Back at Edinburgh

Things to do in Ibiza Ibiza airport guide

Lisbon

LIS

Portugal

2h 48m

each way

04:55

Out from Edinburgh

~13.4h

On the ground

23:55

Back at Edinburgh

Airport is just 7km from centre. Metro is cheapest option (€2).

Things to do in Lisbon Lisbon airport guide

Alicante

ALC

Spain

2h 49m

each way

05:55

Out from Edinburgh

~13.4h

On the ground

00:55

Back at Edinburgh

Airport is just 15 mins from city via C6 Bus. Perfect for Costa Blanca beaches!

Things to do in Alicante Alicante airport guide

Naples

NAP

Italy

2h 59m

each way

05:35

Out from Edinburgh

~13.2h

On the ground

00:45

Back at Edinburgh

Things to do in Naples Naples airport guide

Malaga

AGP

Spain

3h 1m

each way

06:30

Out from Edinburgh

~12.4h

On the ground

00:55

Back at Edinburgh

Costa del Sol gateway! Airport is 8km from city with train and bus connections.

Things to do in Malaga Malaga airport guide

Faro

FAO

Portugal

3h 1m

each way

06:35

Out from Edinburgh

~12.5h

On the ground

01:05

Back at Edinburgh

Gateway to the Algarve! Just 4km from town, but most visitors head straight to the coast.

Things to do in Faro Faro airport guide

Catania

CTA

Italy

3h 25m

each way

06:10

Out from Edinburgh

~11.5h

On the ground

00:30

Back at Edinburgh

Things to do in Catania

Kerkyra Island

CFU

Greece

3h 26m

each way

07:15

Out from Edinburgh

~10.8h

On the ground

00:55

Back at Edinburgh

Things to do in Kerkyra Island Kerkyra Island airport guide

Luqa

MLA

Malta

3h 34m

each way

06:00

Out from Edinburgh

~12.1h

On the ground

01:15

Back at Edinburgh

Things to do in Luqa

Zakynthos Island

ZTH

Greece

3h 41m

each way

06:00

Out from Edinburgh

~10.2h

On the ground

23:35

Back at Edinburgh

Things to do in Zakynthos Island Zakynthos Island airport guide

Marrakech

RAK

Morocco

3h 43m

each way

07:05

Out from Edinburgh

~9.2h

On the ground

23:45

Back at Edinburgh

Things to do in Marrakech

Athens

ATH

Greece

3h 51m

each way

07:00

Out from Edinburgh

~11.6h

On the ground

02:15

Back at Edinburgh

Things to do in Athens

Agadir

AGA

Morocco

3h 54m

each way

06:25

Out from Edinburgh

~12h

On the ground

02:15

Back at Edinburgh

Things to do in Agadir

How we work these out

We scan the real departure and arrival schedules at Edinburgh Airport, then match an early morning outbound (before 08:00) with a late evening return (landing back after 21:00, including red-eye arrivals). We only keep destinations within about four hours' flying each way, so every trip on this list is a genuine there-and-back-in-a-day adventure. The list refreshes as schedules change through the seasons.