The capital of Scotland, Edinburgh, is a delightful city to visit at any time of year. However, if you really want to treat yourself then visit this beautiful city during August in order to see it spring to life when its annual arts festival is taking place. Internationally known, the Edinburgh Festival Fringe is a three-week long extravaganza of theatre, music, dance, street performances and comedy which draws millions of people from all over the world every year. The biggest festival of its type, the Edinburgh Festival Fringe has to be experienced to be understood, which is exactly why you should plan to visit the Scottish capital while it’s running.

When you arrive in Edinburgh, you’ll immediately be struck by the atmosphere of celebration. With countless talented acts taking up residence in Edinburgh’s venues, as well as on the streets and some locations that become venues just for the festival, you’ll never have to look too far to find something entertaining. One of the best things about the Fringe, of course, is the multitude of free performances that take place every day. With careful planning, you can easily head to as many as five or six (or even more) free performances of shows created by highly talented individuals who are simply there for the love of performing. This includes comedy stand up acts, sketch shows, dance performances, theatrical performances, street acts such as stunt shows, magic acts and dancing, and much more. There are plenty of paid shows too, many of which are created by top artists of worldwide renown.

Even just taking a walk up the Royal Mile, Edinburgh’s ancient high street, is an artistic force to be reckoned with hundreds of eager performers attempting to encourage people to come to their shows and plenty of free acts can be enjoyed. At night, you’ll be able to drop into many local bars and pubs to see stand-up comedy and much more.

Just be sure to book you and your travel companions into Edinburgh hotels as early as possible because, thanks to the enormous popularity of the Edinburgh International Festival Fringe, hotels do tend to book up fast. But once that’s out of the way, you’re free to browse the festival programme, book a few tickets to the shows you want to see the most, and get ready to enjoy the delights of an incredible city at its most vibrant time of the year.

Clint Starr writes for a digital marketing agency. This article has been commissioned by a client of said agency. This article is not designed to promote, but should be considered professional content.