Edinburgh Airport Tram Terminus
Scotland may not have a tram system that can mark 150 years of continuous operation, but it does have one that is very popular. In 2024, the first full year of operation from the Airport to Newhaven, Edinburgh Trams had 12.1 million customers, the first time in nearly 10 years that they have breached that 12 million milestone.
To plan my trip, I consulted the website [LINK}
which is managed by the company that operates the tram, Edinburgh Trams Limited. The website provides a “Farefinder” page, which you can find by clicking on the “Tickets” option at the top of the home page. I was looking to find the cost of a day ticket along the entire route, from the Airport through to Newhaven. The adult day ticket including the Airport is £14.00; the one for the “city zone” is priced at £6.00. The “Farefinder” page helps define the city zone boundary: every tram stop on the route except the Airport is within the “city zone”. A single from the Airport to any other stop is £7.90; a return £9.50.
The website provides a timetable that you can download. This includes a line diagram of the route, which highlights the fact that the Airport is in its own fare zone.
To buy a ticket, you can purchase one at the machines at the tram stops (cash or debit/credit card) or alternatively, you can use your contactless debit card or device to tap in and tap out using the card readers at the tram stops.
I start at the Airport. On exiting the terminal, there are a number of Edinburgh Trams staff who are by the terminus, assisting either to sell tickets to you directly, or to help customers use the ticket machines. I buy my day ticket from a machine. I picked up a leaflet that contains the timetable as well as information on the ticketing options and the route map. Trams run at a 7-10 minute frequency, from 6.30am in the morning until 11.56pm every day from the Airport to Newhaven.
I board the tram – a “Famous Grouse”. From what I saw, a significant number of the 27 trams in the fleet have such overall advertising: Emirates Airline (red) looks to be the most popular livery, followed by the Royal Yacht Britannia (navy blue), LoganAir (red) and Uniqlo (white). I guess that the income from these advertisers is an essential revenue stream for Edinburgh Trams. It certainly makes them colourful.
Ingliston Park & Ride platform, typical of the tram stops between the Airport and Haymarket. One of the two ticket machines accepts cash; the other is card payment only.
Boarding at the Airport is busy and chaotic, with most flight passengers tending to remain close to their luggage on the tram. There are six large luggage racks in the three carriage tram, which means that seating is already relatively scarce, without customers blocking access to seats with their cases. Three stops on from the Airport, two Edinburgh Trams ticket inspectors board; and the first thing that they do is direct passengers with suitcases to use the luggage racks, so that the centre space available for the wheelchair and prams is kept free. The door by this space is also available for cycle users to stand with their bikes.
During the inward journey, the ticket inspectors find that several of passengers have boarded with their debit cards activated on their phone, looking for the validators on the tram. That is a mistake; the cashless debit card validators are located on the tram stops, at either end of the platform. For visitors, this isn’t immediately obvious. The inspectors are understanding and helpful in providing guidance to customers looking to use the tap on, tap off option.
Ingliston Park & Ride – debit card validator at the end of the platform. There are two validators at each end of the platforms.
The tram makes good progress from the Airport to Haymarket, along segregated tram tracks. On this part of the route, there are two stops which provide an interchange with rail services: at Edinburgh Gateway and Edinburgh Park Station. Most of the stops along this part of the route serve business and/or retail parks (Gyle Centre). The last stop before Haymarket is the stop at Murrayfield, where you do get a tremendous view of the Stadium.
The journey to Haymarket, where the track joins the road in shared space with motor traffic, takes around 25-30 minutes. From this point on, the tram progresses at a more sedate pace, with frequent stops at traffic lights all the way along to Newhaven (Haymarket to Newhaven is 30-35 minutes). I also noticed was that there are a number of tight turns along this section of the route, in particular from Prices Street into St Andrew Square; and from St Andrew Square on to Picardy Place. There are also a number of twists and turns along the route from The Shore to Newhaven, all of which slow our progress as the tram reduces speed to make the tight curves.
Inside the trams, there are digital displays which show the name of the next stop. This is accompanied by pre-recorded announcements of the stop as the tram approaches the platform. Above the doors are line diagrams showing the route. The seating, as previously mentioned, is somewhat limited; and I stood up for most of my journey down to Newhaven. Understandably, the luggage storage areas take up significant space. The seats opposite these racks have a lateral configuration, which means that you don’t get much of a view from these positions. But obviously, you need the space in front of the racks to be able to lift cases on and off the shelving.
Famous Grouse tram at the Newhaven terminus
It was unfortunate that I chose to travel on the tram on the hottest day in May. There is no air-conditioning on these trams (other in the driver cabs) and ventilation is provided by the open windows. From Haymarket to Newhaven the tram, which is by now very busy, becomes rather warm, as the pace of the tram is not sufficient for cooler air to circulate through the open windows. With 22 stops along the whole route and a journey time of 60 minutes, there is roughly three minutes between each stop, when the doors open. I guess that with such frequent stops, air-conditioning doesn’t make much sense for the few days in summer when we have very hot weather in Scotland.
“Glide to the Airport by Tram” is the message on display at the city centre tram stops. That is one way to get to the Airport and overall, in my case, the return journey from the Airport to Newhaven was an interesting experience.
The photographs are all my own.
Steven Ardron
26 May 2026
