Has anyone got any tips for us? We are flying up for a long weekend in August when the festival is on and have never been before (to the festival, not Edinburgh) wanted to for ages. Staying in an apartment right in the centre for three nights. Looking at the program I'm getting a bit confused by the amount that is going on. I don't want to book shows and then find better stuff to do, and I don't want to not book and miss out. I like the idea of just going with the flow but don't know how that might work. Have any of you good people got experiences that might help
Just remember some of the "big" shows book out very quickly, so if there is something you really want to see best to book early. It is a fabulous time, we enjoyed it when we lived there. If The Scottish Falsetto Sock Puppet Theatre is on, then they would be a certainty for me. Life On Mars - Scottish Falsetto Sock Puppet Theatre
I'm driving up in the van and camping in Edinburgh. Will see the first few days. No plan, just see what happens on the day. Looking forward to it.
Take some Airedale terriers with you and hang out on the main drag - you and your dogs will be far more popular than any of the braying and hooting drama students 8)
If I were you I'd avoid it completely. But then, I'm a traditional Edinburgher and we're trained from birth to hate the festival. As Terrordales says, big shows book out early so if there are any big names you fancy seeing book your tickets now or you'll be disappointed come August. Free shows might seem like a good idea but mates of mine did a day of just free shows and concluded that they'd been ripped off. Also, don't presume that because two venues share the same name that they're in the same building/on the same site. Pleasance is a good example. There's Pleasance Courtyard, which has 16 different spaces dotted around it but then there's Pleasance Dome, which is actually a five or ten minute walk up a big bleeding hill. I think Assembly is a similar story. Oh, and prepare to leave very poor. 5am closing and Dick Turpin pricing at every bar will empty your wallet before you can say "which way to the Penny Black?".
Thanks for the tips folks. Actually got my program in the post yesterday - nearly 400 pages of it - but I think we'll book a few things and see what comes up for the rest. I'm going to avoid the mainstream comedians, because we can see them anytime in Manchester, and look for a bit more unusual stuff. I'm not sure dogs are allowed in the apartment Paley - I'll have to check
