Edinburgh is now a very popular destination for American tourists as the city is preparing for its biggest year yet, as the numbers continue to grow. Many visitors see Edinburgh as a must-stop destination on any trip to Great Britain. After the ghost tours and whisky tastings are finished, these people will often unwind in a variety of ways.
The Numbers Tell a Story
International visitors to Edinburgh spent about £1.64 billion in 2024 during their trips, which was a 9% year-on-year rise and a massive 38% increase from pre-pandemic levels.
Projections are that US visitor expenditure in the UK as a whole was £6.7 billion last year alone, which accounts for about one-fifth of the total spend of visitors from every other country combined. Edinburgh is now the UK’s second most visited city after London.
The average international tourist spends £639 per visit to the city. American tourists tend to stay longer and spend more money on premium experiences, so their average is typically higher. Hotels, restaurants, whisky distilleries, and guided tour operators are seeing record bookings during peak seasons.
What Brings Americans to Edinburgh?
There’s a wide range of answers you’ll get when asking an American this question. People enjoy the scenery, history, the friendliness of the locals, and the festivals.
The Edinburgh International Festival and the legendary Fringe always bring hordes of people each summer from North America. The city’s UNESCO World Heritage status is another strong draw, with its dramatic skyline defined by the castle and Arthur’s Seat. The ability to easily walk around the city also makes it very appealing.
Then there’s something deeper that pulls people to Scotland. Millions of Americans have Scottish heritage, making it a personal journey for many who are returning to their ancestral home. Genealogy sites, clan heritage centres, and Highland experience tours are all very popular among US visitors.
The food and drink scene has also improved massively. Edinburgh now has more Michelin-starred restaurants than almost any other city in the UK. There’s also a thriving coffee culture, a growing number of gin distilleries, and craft cocktail bars spread across the city.
How Americans Relax While Travelling
Understanding what American tourists do in their downtime helps explain why Edinburgh’s hospitality sector has invested so heavily in evening and late-night entertainment. Back home, Americans have access to a vast and rapidly expanding leisure market. Online gambling is one of the fastest-growing parts of that picture — the US market has expanded dramatically since the federal loosening of sports betting laws in 2018, and as the BBC has reported, the sector now generates billions in revenue across dozens of legal states. For many American visitors, browsing US online casinos is simply part of how they wind down on a normal evening, in the same way someone else might stream a show or scroll through social media.
Edinburgh, though, offers something different entirely. There’s culture to absorb and entertainment that is deeply human — live music spilling out of a pub on the Royal Mile, a late-night comedy show at the Fringe, or a dram of single malt by a fireplace in a centuries-old bar. For many American visitors, that shift away from screens and toward something more grounded is exactly what they came for.
Preparing for Bigger Things
Edinburgh is introducing a 5% visitor levy on overnight accommodation starting in July 2026. It will be the UK’s first city to implement such a charge, with the expectation that it will generate around £150 million each year. The money will go toward improving key infrastructure and public services.
This levy wouldn’t be possible without the volume of American tourists visiting the city. They represent a massive economic opportunity for residents and businesses alike. The challenge is balancing the benefits of tourism while ensuring a good quality of life for locals — and the visitor levy is one way of working toward that balance.
There is also now more of an emphasis on spreading tourism beyond the Royal Mile and into neighbourhoods that don’t get as much foot traffic. The appeal of Edinburgh to American tourists certainly shows no signs of slowing. Improvements to infrastructure will only broaden its appeal for a city that has been welcoming travellers for centuries.
