Edinburgh Festival Fringe
How the box office, 2-for-1 days and Half Price Hut work, what is free, and how Edinburgh's new 5 percent visitor levy changes the price of a room.
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Edinburgh Festival Fringe in short
The 80th Edinburgh Festival Fringe runs from 6 to 30 August 2027. Book popular shows early. Savings come from the 2-for-1 days on the first Monday and Tuesday, the Half Price Hut from the first Wednesday, over 400 free shows and free street events. Rooms now carry Edinburgh's 5 percent visitor levy on the first five nights.
What happens when
- Fri 6 Aug
- The 80th Fringe opens.
- Mon 9 and Tue 10 Aug
- The first Monday and Tuesday. In 2026 many shows offered 2-for-1 on these days.
- Wed 11 Aug
- The first Wednesday. In 2026 the Half Price Hut opened this day.
- Mon 30 Aug
- Closing day.
Where Edinburgh Festival Fringe happens
Dates are for 2027 where they have been announced.
How to see more for less
- Cheap start
2-for-1 days
Many shows take part on the first Monday and Tuesday.
9 and 10 August 2027
- Same-day
Half Price Hut
Half-price tickets for that day's shows. Counter only at the Fringe Box Office, not online.
Ask for it by name
- Free
Free shows and street events
Over 400 free shows in 2026, and 334 street performers, buskers and street artists.
Donations encouraged
- Where to start
The Royal Mile and the Mound
Street events on the High Street and the Mound, where there is a food and drink village.
Busy, weak mobile signal
The Edinburgh Festival Fringe guide
How the Fringe works
The Fringe Society says anyone can take part in the Fringe. In 2026, the 79th edition, 4,232 shows from 77 countries gave 61,277 performances in 306 venues over 25 days, closing on 31 August. The Society counted about 2.8 million tickets issued, up 8 percent on 2025, and the busiest day on record was Saturday 15 August with over 164,000. Those figures exclude free and non-ticketed shows. The 80th edition runs from 6 to 30 August 2027.
The venues are spread across the city. The center of the activity, according to the Fringe's own first-timer advice, is around the Royal Mile, the Grassmarket and the Bristo and George squares, where the streets get busy and mobile signal can be weak. Download a city map in advance, or pick up a free map of Fringe venues at the Fringe Shop.
Booking and saving
Book early for anything popular: the Fringe's advice is that well-reviewed shows can sell out quickly. You can book at edfringe.com around the clock, through the EdFringe app, by phone, or at the Fringe Box Office at 180 High Street, entered through the Fringe Shop. In 2026 the box office was open from 10am to 6pm every day from 3 to 31 August. It charged a booking fee of 1.50 pounds a ticket, up to 9 pounds, which is six tickets, per transaction.
All shows are e-ticketed: you receive a QR code by email, and it also sits in My Planner in the app. The app sells in-person shows only, and online shows must be booked on the website. Baskets time out after 30 minutes on the website and 10 minutes in the app. Tickets are non-refundable and non-exchangeable unless a show is canceled or its details change so that you cannot attend, and booking fees are never refunded. Concessions cover children under 18, and some shows have family tickets. Babes-in-arms policies vary by venue, and parents of children under two are asked to sit where they can leave easily.
The Fringe asks you to allow at least 30 minutes between shows in the same venue, and more between venues, because August crowds slow walking. The box office has an access bookings team, reachable by phone on +44 (0)131 226 0002 or by text-only WhatsApp on +44 (0)7923 525799.
2-for-1 days
Many shows take part in 2-for-1 on the first Monday and Tuesday of the festival. In 2026 those were 10 and 11 August. They are separate from the 2-for-1 offer for Fringe Friends, which runs every day in August and needs a membership. In 2027 the first Monday and Tuesday fall on 9 and 10 August.
Half Price Hut
The Half Price Hut sells half-price tickets for performances that day, or the next morning for shows before 2pm. Tickets for shows before 2pm went on sale from 2pm the previous day in 2026, and for later shows from 10am on the day. The offer cannot be bought online and does not apply to shows using multi-option pay-what-you-can pricing. Browse the list online, which updates daily at 10am, then ask for it by name at the counter. It opened on Wednesday 12 August in 2026.
Preview performances, marked in darker navy blue on the show calendar, are another saving, and individual venues run their own offers.
Free shows and the street
The 2026 programme had more than 400 free shows. They cost nothing to enter, though you are encouraged to donate at the end. The Fringe also listed 691 pay-what-you-want or pay-what-you-can shows out of 3,649 in the programme at launch, where you either buy a ticket in advance or pay at the venue after the show.
The Fringe Street Events are free, with donations encouraged and many performers taking contactless payments. In 2026 there were 334 street performers, buskers and street artists. The High Street and the Mound are where to find them, and the Mound has a food and drink village.
Other August dates
The Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo, on the Esplanade of the castle, runs from 6 to 28 August 2027 with a show titled The Same Heart Beat. Tickets are sold through the Tattoo's own website, by phone on +44 (0)131 225 1188 from 12pm to 4pm on weekdays, or by email, and the Tattoo also sells accommodation and ticket packages with an official travel partner.
Where to sleep
The Old Town, around the Royal Mile and the Grassmarket, puts you in the middle of the venues and the street events. The streets around George Square and Bristo Square are the other cluster the Fringe names as busy. The New Town is the walkable alternative on the other side of Princes Street Gardens. The Fringe's own advice is to leave time to travel between venues, because the streets are crowded in August.
- Walk to the Fringe Box Office and the Royal Mile
- Guest score of 9/10 from 1,339 reviews
The visitor levy
Edinburgh has charged a visitor levy since 24 July 2026. It is 5 percent of the cost of paid overnight accommodation, calculated before VAT and excluding extras such as parking, meals, drinks and transport. It is charged on the first five nights of a stay. On a five-night stay at 250 pounds a night that is 62.50 pounds. Stays booked and paid for, in whole or in part, before 1 October 2025 were not charged. It applies to anyone staying in paid overnight accommodation in Edinburgh, tourists and business travelers alike.
What to skip
Do not try to see everything. The Fringe's advice for first-timers is to schedule a reasonable number of shows per day and leave time to travel between venues. The 2026 programme launched with 3,649 shows, and the EdFringe app filters them by time, date and genre.
Do not overlook the opening week. The first Monday and Tuesday are the 2-for-1 days, and the Half Price Hut opens the next day.
Where to stay for Edinburgh Festival Fringe
Tours and tickets
Partner options we would book ourselves.
We may earn a commission. It never decides our picks.
Right now in Edinburgh
Local time, today's weather and the exchange rate, refreshed through the day.
7
- Feels like
- 6°
- Humidity
- 82%
- Wind
- 5 km/h
- Chance of rain
- 0%
Edinburgh
08:44 PM
Monday, November 2
- Today10°4°0%Monday: Cloudy. High 10°, Low 4°. Chance of rain 0%.
- Tue11°7°8%Tuesday: Drizzle. High 11°, Low 7°. Chance of rain 8%.
- Wed10°5°4%Wednesday: Drizzle. High 10°, Low 5°. Chance of rain 4%.
- Thu10°7°13%Thursday: Drizzle. High 10°, Low 7°. Chance of rain 13%.
- Fri10°8°18%Friday: Drizzle. High 10°, Low 8°. Chance of rain 18%.
- Sat8°7°22%Saturday: Drizzle. High 8°, Low 7°. Chance of rain 22%.
- Sun10°2°6%Sunday: Cloudy. High 10°, Low 2°. Chance of rain 6%.
Updated 06:30 PM local time · Powered by WeatherAPI.com · Weather data by Open-Meteo.com
Edinburgh Festival Fringe FAQ
When is the Edinburgh Fringe 2027?
6 to 30 August 2027, the festival's 80th edition, according to the Fringe Society. The 2026 festival ran for 25 days and closed on 31 August.
How big is the Fringe?
The 2026 festival had 4,232 shows from 77 countries and 61,277 performances in 306 venues. About 2.8 million tickets were issued, up 8 percent on 2025.
What does the Half Price Hut do?
It sells half-price tickets for shows that day, and the next morning for shows before 2pm. Tickets are sold at the Fringe Box Office counter only. Ask for it by name.
Are there free shows?
Yes. The 2026 programme had more than 400 free shows, which cost nothing to enter although a donation at the end is encouraged. Fringe Street Events are free too.
Is there a tax on Edinburgh hotels?
Since 24 July 2026 Edinburgh charges a visitor levy of 5 percent of the cost of paid overnight accommodation, before VAT, for the first five nights.