In this guide
💡 The Short Version: The National Museum of Scotland on Chambers Street is free, open 10.00 to 17.00 daily, and is the one Forever Edinburgh picks for a short visit. The National galleries on the Mound are free and open 10am to 5pm daily, and the Writers’ Museum is free (10.00 to 17.00, last entry 16.30). Exhibitions inside the free museums can charge. Surgeons’ Hall Museum is £10 for an adult, with no pre-booking. The National Museum is closed on 25 December and opens at 12.00 on 26 December and 1 January. Or book a tour: Little Fish Tours’ Old Town walkad (from £18) is a way to see the streets between the museums.
The museums compared
| Museum | Entry | Hours | What decides a visit |
|---|---|---|---|
| National Museum of Scotland | Free | 10.00 to 17.00 daily | Closed 25 December. Some special exhibitions charge |
| The National, the Mound | Free | 10am to 5pm daily | Some exhibitions charge |
| Writers’ Museum | Free | 10.00 to 17.00, last entry 16.30 | Lady Stair’s Close, off the Lawnmarket |
| Surgeons’ Hall Museum | £10 | 10.00 to 17.00, last entry 16.30 | Human remains. Recommended age 10 and over |
National Museum of Scotland
Free · 10.00 to 17.00 daily · Chambers Street, EH1 1JF
Two buildings joined together: the Victorian Royal Museum, opened in 1866 around a light-filled Grand Gallery inspired by the Crystal Palace, and the Museum of Scotland, opened in 1998, which tells Scotland’s story in order. In 2025 it had 2,318,305 visitors, the most of any visitor attraction in Scotland that year, according to Wikipedia. Forever Edinburgh’s guide to free attractions picks it as the single museum for a short visit.
The Grand Gallery of the National Museum of Scotland. Photo: Elshad, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Dolly the sheep, the first mammal cloned from an adult cell, is on display.
- The Millennium Clock is a large kinetic sculpture, and the Scottish Maiden is an early beheading machine that predates the French guillotine.
- The Lewis Chessmen and the Queen Mary Harp are displayed.
- The roof terrace has panoramic views of the city.
Lockers in the Entrance Hall take bags up to 58 x 44 x 66 cm. Cafés (the Balcony Café, the Hawthornden Café and the Museum Kitchen) are open 10.00 to 17.00, and there is a Lunch Space in the Entrance Hall for your own food. The museum is closed on 25 December and opens 12.00 to 17.00 on 26 December and 1 January.
The National and the other National Galleries
Free · 10am to 5pm daily · Some exhibitions charge
The National (formerly the Scottish National Gallery) stands on the Mound, close to Princes Street, in a building that opened in 1859. It holds world-class international and Scottish art from 1300 to 1945, including paintings by Vermeer, Titian, Rembrandt, Velázquez and the Impressionists, and Scottish galleries for 1800 to 1945. The main entrance is in East Princes Street Gardens, off the Mound, five minutes’ walk from Waverley station. The Scottish Café and Restaurant is open 10 to 5 (last orders 4) and lockers cost £1 and £2.
The National Gallery on the Mound. Photo: Enric, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.
Portrait, on Queen Street, holds the national collection of portraits of Scots and the Scottish National Photography Collection, in a red sandstone building built from 1885 to 1890. Modern, on Belford Road, west of the centre, has the collection of modern and contemporary art from about 1900 in two buildings, Modern One and Modern Two. Forever Edinburgh says all three are free.
The exhibitions that charge: at the Royal Scottish Academy building next to the National, “Catherine Opie: To Be Seen” was £3.50 to £14 until 1 November 2026. The permanent collections stay free.
The Writers’ Museum
Free · daily 10.00 to 17.00, last entry 16.30 · Lady Stair’s Close, off the Lawnmarket
A 17th-century townhouse, Lady Stair’s House, holds portraits, rare books and personal objects of Robert Burns, Sir Walter Scott and Robert Louis Stevenson. Burns’s writing desk, Scott’s rocking horse, Stevenson’s riding boots and a plaster cast of Burns’s skull are among them. It is on the Royal Mile walk.
Surgeons’ Hall Museum
£10 adult, £6.50 over 60s and students, £5.50 child (5 to 15) · daily 10.00 to 17.00, last entry 16.30 · Nicolson Street
The museum of the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh, about 10 minutes’ walk from Waverley station. The museum recommends at least two hours. Family tickets are £25 for two adults and two children, and tickets are bought at the Level 3 reception, with no pre-booking for standard visits. The recommended age is 10 and over, and the displays include human remains. It is closed from 17.00 on 23 December 2026 until 10.00 on 5 January 2027.
Surgeons’ Hall on Nicolson Street. Photo: Kim Traynor, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0.
What to see
If you have one free morning, spend it at the National Museum of Scotland: start in the Grand Gallery, then take Dolly the sheep, the Millennium Clock and the Scotland galleries, and finish on the roof terrace. If you have an afternoon, The National on the Mound is five minutes from Waverley station and sits beside Princes Street Gardens.
What to skip: the paid exhibitions, unless one is the reason you came; the permanent collections of both are free.
Forever Edinburgh’s free-attractions list also names the Museum of Childhood, the People’s Story, the Museum of Edinburgh, the Museum on the Mound and the City Art Centre.
Closed days and weekdays
- 25 December: the National Museum of Scotland is closed. On 26 December and 1 January it opens at 12.00.
- 23 December 2026 to 5 January 2027: Surgeons’ Hall Museum is closed.
- Tuesdays and Wednesdays from 17 September to 20 May: Holyroodhouse is shut, and the museums are open every day, so they fill those days.
The museums are the free half of the city; free things to do in Edinburgh covers the hills and gardens. What to book before you go to Edinburgh has the closed days for every sight. For a wet day, Camera Obscura and the Real Mary King’s Close are the paid options. To stay near the museums, see hotels near the Royal Mile and where to stay in Edinburgh.
Common questions
Are the museums in Edinburgh free?
The National Museum of Scotland, the National Galleries of Scotland and the Writers' Museum are free to enter. Some special exhibitions charge. Surgeons' Hall Museum is £10 for an adult.
What are the opening hours of the National Museum of Scotland?
10.00 to 17.00 daily. It is closed on 25 December and opens 12.00 to 17.00 on 26 December and 1 January.
How long does the National Museum of Scotland take?
The museum is large, with two connected buildings on Chambers Street. Two hours covers the Grand Gallery and a handful of highlights, such as Dolly the sheep and the Millennium Clock.
Can I leave my bag at the National Museum of Scotland?
Yes. Self-service lockers in the Entrance Hall take luggage up to 58 x 44 x 66 cm.
Do Edinburgh's free museums charge for exhibitions?
Some do. The Royal Scottish Academy's Catherine Opie exhibition was £3.50 to £14 until 1 November 2026, while the permanent collections are free.
Is Surgeons' Hall Museum suitable for children?
The recommended age is 10 and over, and children under 16 must be with an adult. The museum shows human remains, which some visitors find distressing.
