Which place is cheaper, Edinburgh or Kathmandu?
These are the overall average travel costs for the two destinations.
Jump to 
Should you visit Kathmandu or Edinburgh?
Which is cheaper to visit? Which is more expensive for vacation?
Trying to figure out where to travel next? This travel comparison between Kathmandu and Edinburgh can help. It includes a travel cost comparison in addition to other factors. For many travelers, the cost of a destination is a primary consideration when choosing where to go.
Where Should I go: Kathmandu or Edinburgh?
Kathmandu
Kathmandu is the capital and largest city in the country of Nepal. Its metropolitan area forms one large urban area that includes the area of Patan to the south. As of 2011 there were 2.5 million residents in the Kathmandu metropolis and over 3 million in the entire metropolitan area. Kathmandu is likely to be your entry point into Nepal and is a great place to pick up supplies and arrange the details for any treks you hope to do. Many travelers rush through Kathmandu, turned off by the pollution and crowds, but to skip Kathmandu is to miss a major cultural, financial, and influential part of what defines the country of Nepal. The city itself is quite fun to explore if you allow it enough time and an open mind.
Edinburgh
Edinburgh is the moderately sized capital of Scotland. It is a medieval city that has managed to perfect the combination of Georgian architecture and medieval relics with a cosmopolitan population and avant-garde atmosphere. The city's population is quite young, in large part because of the University of Edinburgh. This youthful vibe gives this city a lot of vitality. There's a thriving nightlife, many restaurants, theatres, galleries and museums.
For some great organized tour ideas, see The Best Hiking & Trekking Tours in Nepal, The Best 10-Day Tours in Nepal, The Best One-Week (7-Day) Tours from Edinburgh, and The Best 10-Day Tours from London.
-
Average Daily Cost Per person, per dayKathmandu $57Edinburgh $177
The average daily cost (per person) in Kathmandu is $57, while the average daily cost in Edinburgh is $177. These costs include accommodation (assuming double occupancy, so the traveler is sharing the room), food, transportation, and entertainment. While every person is different, these costs are an average of past travelers in each destination. What follows is a categorical breakdown of travel costs for Kathmandu and Edinburgh in more detail.
Accommodation
-
Accommodation Hotel or hostel for one personKathmandu $40Edinburgh $92
-
Accommodation Typical double-occupancy roomKathmandu $80Edinburgh $184
Compare Hotels in Kathmandu and Edinburgh
Looking for a hotel in Kathmandu or Edinburgh? Prices vary by location, date, season, and the level of luxury. See below for options and compare which is best for your budget and travel style.
Kayak helps you find the best prices for hotels, flights, and rental cars for destinations around the world. Compare prices for multiple destinations when planning your next trip.
Our Analysis
We've analyzed the average and typical hotel prices based on guest reviews, star ratings, and hotel amenities here: Kathmandu Hotel Prices and Edinburgh Hotel Prices.
Local Transportation
-
Local Transportation Taxis, local buses, subway, etc.Kathmandu $6.95Edinburgh $21
Typical Local Transportation Prices in Kathmandu
Here are some examples of typical transportation prices from actual travelers in Kathmandu:
-
Taxi Ride$1.50
Hired Cars and Shuttles in Kathmandu
Some specific examples of transportation prices in Kathmandu:
- Private Transfer: Kathmandu to Pokhara Hotels: $244
- Private Transfer: Kathmandu to Chitwan Hotels: $210
- Private Transfer: Kathmandu International Airport to Hotel : $25
- Private Transfer: Kathmandu Hotels to Domestic Airport Vehicle: $20
- Private Transfer to Bhaktapur from Kathmandu : $45
- Private Car Transfer from Kathmandu to Pokhara or Chitwan or Vv: $90
- Private Car Transfer Between Pokhara Airport and Lakeside: $12
- Private Arrival Transfer Kathmandu Airport to Kathmandu, Nepal: $45
- Pokhara: One way transfer To or From Kathmandu: $117
- One-Way Flight Transfer from Kathmandu to Pokhara: $130
- TIA Kathmandu Airport transfer: $18
- Mount Everest Scenic Tour by Plane with Transfers: $88
Typical Local Transportation Prices in Edinburgh
Below are a few samples from actual travelers for transportation costs in Edinburgh:
-
Local Bus$4.48
Hired Cars and Shuttles in Edinburgh
Also for Edinburgh, here are a few examples of actual transportation services:
- Edinburgh Airport: Bus Transfer: $5.57
- Private Transfer from South Queensferry Port to Edinburgh Airport: $28
- Private Transfer from Newhaven Cruise Port to Edinburgh hotels: $28
- Private Transfer from South Queensferry Port to Edinburgh hotels: $28
- Private Transfer from Edinburgh Hotels to Newhaven Cruise Port: $28
- Private Transfer from Edinburgh Airport to South Queensferry Port: $28
- Private Transfer from Edinburgh Hotels to South Queensferry Port: $28
- Edinburgh Airport: Private Arrival or Departure Transfers: $37
- Private One way Transfer Edinburgh Airport to Edinburgh: $40
- Private Transfer - South Queensferry Port to Glasgow Airport(GLA): $46
- Private Transfer from South Queensferry Port to Glasgow Hotels: $50
- Royal Highland Braemar Gathering, transfer from Edinburgh: $56
Is it cheaper to fly into Kathmandu or Edinburgh?
Prices for flights to both Edinburgh and Kathmandu change regularly based on dates and travel demand. We suggest you find the best prices for your next trip on Kayak, because you can compare the cost of flights across multiple airlines for your prefered dates.
Food
-
Food Meals for one dayKathmandu $8.31Edinburgh $49
Typical Food Prices in Kathmandu
Some typical examples of dining costs in Kathmandu are as follows:
-
Dessert$1.35
-
Dinner for Two$3.01
Food Tours and Cooking Classes in Kathmandu
Also, here are some specific examples of food and dining related activities in Kathmandu.
- Momo Making & Cooking class in Thamel with Pickup: $8.56
- Half Day cooking class in Kathmandu by Local Chefs & Pickup: $9.34
- Best Half-Day Nepali Cooking Class & Hotel Pickup: $9.50
- Best Half day cooking class in Thamel Kathmandu with Pickup: $10
- Dinner with Cultural Show Kathmandu : $12
- Cultural Dinner Show with Traditional Dance: $17
- Nepali Cooking Class in Thamel, Kathmandu with Pickup: $19
- Nepali and Newari Cooking Class with Optional …: $22
- Food Tour In Kathmandu With Walking Local Market: $23
- Half Day Cooking Class in Thamel with Local Market Visit: $23
- Cooking Class in Thamel Kathmandu by Local Chef with pickup: $25
- Cooking Class with Special Day Celebration in Thamel: $27
Typical Food Prices in Edinburgh
For Edinburgh, here are some examples of average food and meal prices for travelers:
-
Breakfast$11
-
Dinner at Filling Station$12
-
Lunch for Two$19
-
Sandwich$2.30
-
Cheese & bread$9.01
-
Thai Restaurant Dinner (for 2)$31
-
2 Coffees and Scones$7.23
-
Turkish Delight$1.74
-
Soup at the Pub$7.35
Food Tours and Cooking Classes in Edinburgh
For Edinburgh, here are some samples of tours and activities related to meals and dining experiences:
- Hard Rock Cafe with Set Menu for Lunch or Dinner: $31
- Hard Rock Cafe Edinburgh with Set Menu for Lunch or Dinner: $33
- Scottish Dinner and Folk Music Experience: $87
- Edinburgh Holiday Donut Adventure & Walking Food Tour: $90
- 'Scotland meets Sardinia' - 8-course Dinner in Leith, Edinburgh: $110
- 3-Hour Guided Secret Food Tour: $114
- Edinburgh Walking Food Tour With Secret Food Tours: $120
- Edinburgh Food Tour for Families: $120
- The 10 Tastings of Edinburgh Private Food Tour: $148
- Edinburgh Food Tour with a Local Foodie Custom & Private: $167
- Private Edinburgh Food Tour of Old Town: $178
Entertainment
-
Entertainment Entrance tickets, shows, etc.Kathmandu $8.04Edinburgh $25
Typical Entertainment Prices in Kathmandu
Some typical examples of activities, tours, and entrance ticket prices in Kathmandu are as follows:
-
Monkey Temple for Two$1.50
-
Patan Durbar Square Entrance for Two$3.76
-
Swayambhunath Stupa$1.50
Tours and Activities in Kathmandu
Some specific costs of activities, tours, and entrance tickets for Kathmandu are as follows:
- 4 Days Kathmandu Nagarkot Tour : $235
- Hire Tour Guide Nepal : $81
- Manakamana Darshan- Day Tour: $199
- One Day Tour inside Chitwan National Park: $117
- Private Kathmandu Day Tour: $70
- Two Days Sightseeing in Kathmandu Tour UNESCO Heritage sites: $150
- "Unleash the Adventure: Conquer the Annapurna Circuit Trek": $1,288
- 1 Day Cycling Tour in Kathmandu: $311
- 1 Day Everest base camp helicopter tour: $2,141
- 1 Day Kathmandu Shopping Tour Experience: $100
- 1 Night 2 Days Chitwan Jungle Safari Tour from Pokhara or Kathmandu: $141
- 1-Day Bungee Jumping Tour from Kathmandu: $160
Typical Entertainment Prices in Edinburgh
Below are a few sample prices from actual travelers for Edinburgh's activities, tours, and tickets:
-
Show Tickets$40
-
Movie Tickets for Two$15
-
Donation for Storytellers$7.47
Tours and Activities in Edinburgh
For Edinburgh, here are a few prices for actual activities, tours, and tickets provided by various companies:
- First Discovery Walk and Reading Walking Tour: $3.20
- Escape Game and Tour: $3.73
- Old Town's Highlights Walking Tour: $4.35
- Edinburgh Stand Up Comedy Ticket Show in Scotland: $5.07
- Audio Tour Royal Mile: del Castillo hasta "The Tron Kirk": $5.32
- Edinbourgh, Royal mile: walking tour with audio guide: $5.33
- Edinburgh Highlights Self-Guided Scavenger Hunt & City Tour: $5.54
- City Exploration Game and Tour on your Phone: $6.38
- Audio Tour through History of Crime: $7.00
- Edinburgh Royal mile: Self-guided walking tour: $7.20
- Must-See In App Audio Tour: $7.61
- Harry Potter’s A Self-Guided Audio Tour: $7.99
Alcohol
-
Alcohol Drinks for one dayKathmandu $5.77Edinburgh $19
Typical Alcohol Prices in Edinburgh
Here are a few samples of the prices for alcohol and nightlife in Edinburgh from other travelers:
-
Beer & Wine$18
-
Half Pint at Tollbooth Tavern$2.06
Sample the Local Flavors in Edinburgh
Also in Edinburgh, these are the prices for nightlife and alcohol related activities from various tour providers:
- Pub Crawl with Free Shots & Discounts: $11
- Brewery Tour & Tasting: $18
- Edinburgh Bar Crawl: 5+ Venues, Free Shots, Free Club Entry: $19
- Edinburgh Literary Pub Tour with "Real-Actors": $25
- Guided Gin Tasting at 56 North Distillery: $28
- Lind & Lime Gin Distillery Tour & Tasting: $31
- Pickering's Gin Jolly Distillery Tasting Tour: $31
- Pub Crawl 7 Bars with 6 Shots: $31
- Pickering's Gin Jolly Distillery Tasting Tour: $32
- Visit a Working South Loch Gin Distillery: $32
- The Original Edinburgh Pub Crawl: $32
- 5 Hours Edinburgh Halloween Bar Crawl: $32
When we compare the travel costs of actual travelers between Kathmandu and Edinburgh, we can see that Edinburgh is more expensive. And not only is Kathmandu much less expensive, but it is actually a significantly cheaper destination. Since Kathmandu is in Asia and Edinburgh is in Europe, this is one of the main reasons why the costs are so different, as different regions of the world tend to have overall different travel costs. So, traveling to Kathmandu would let you spend less money overall. Or, you could decide to spend more money in Kathmandu and be able to afford a more luxurious travel style by staying in nicer hotels, eating at more expensive restaurants, taking tours, and experiencing more activities. The same level of travel in Edinburgh would naturally cost you much more money, so you would probably want to keep your budget a little tighter in Edinburgh than you might in Kathmandu.
If you're trying to decide if either of these two destinations are within your price range, also see Is Kathmandu Expensive? and Is Edinburgh Expensive?.
Which is Bigger, Kathmandu or Edinburgh?
Kathmandu has a larger population, and is about 3 times larger than the population of Edinburgh. When comparing the sizes of Kathmandu and Edinburgh, keep in mind that a larger population does not always imply the destination has more attractions or better activities. So, always research the type of place that you want to visit along with the activities and attractions that interest you.
Budget Your Trip is all about finding out how much everything costs so that you can travel cheaper and longer. Created by avid travelers Laurie and Bryan, our goal is to help you plan your next trip on the right budget. With average daily travel costs that are calculated from the budgets of real travelers, plus an analysis of hotel and tour prices, you can find out how much money you need to plan your next adventure. We also have plenty of travel advice, accommodation reviews, and activity suggestions.