My breakdown of our experience at The Leith Snug, a gorgeous apartment in a quiet but vibrant area of Edinburgh which we stayed at on our honeymoon at the end of April, 2019.
THE APARTMENT
My wife and I agreed that it's at the top of our list of favourite Airbnb apartments we've ever stayed in. The apartment was way bigger than we expected, which was a lovely surprise, and super clean. It had all the amenities we needed and, while it has an older look/ambiance to it, it's quite a modern place. The bathroom is modern and renovated and the washing machine in the apartment allowed us to do laundry. The bed and couches are comfy and the entire place is super cozy, especially after a long day of exploring Edinburgh. It was hard to leave it behind.
THE NEIGHBOURHOOD
The Leith neighbourhood is a great little area, with lots of pubs, restaurants, grocery stores, historic buildings, etc., in the area. The pub right below the apartment, The Steel Coulson, is frequented by locals young and old alike, is very friendly and serves local craft brews from right there in the neighbourhood. The pub is laid back and in the evening the street is quiet, allowing for a great night's rest. If you stay here, take the time to explore the historic church around the corner, the nearby Shore area (including a tour of the Royal Britannica yacht) and a fantastic little indie bookstore called Typewronger (like "typeWRITER," but wronger). It's a quirky, inviting little shop where the owner makes you tea for free just for visiting and gave us a little book of love poems for free after finding out it was our honeymoon. As well, the proximity to the downtown core without being right in the middle of the crowds and tourist areas is a great advantage. You can escape the madness at the end of the night but be right back in the heart of it within a 10 minute bus ride in the morning.
PROXIMITY TO DOWNTOWN
This was our only issue with the Snug, and it's a very minor issue at that. The Airbnb description says it's a 20 minute walk to the downtown area but my wife and I (avid, fast walkers) found it to be closer to 30-35 minutes to the edge of the main downtown area, and about a 40 minute walk to the Royal Mile. That said, the bus that stops every 10 minutes or so right outside of the Snug's front door and brings you straight downtown is an incredibly convenient and cheap option for getting to the heart of Edinburgh in just a few minutes or, likewise, getting home after a night of drinks. The bus also drops you right in front of Waverley train station downtown, perfect for any day trips you have planned.
THE HOSTS
Ashlie and Grant are fantastic hosts, offering lots of advice for things to do and restaurants to try in Edinburgh and in the local Leith neighbourhood. They were in touch whenever we needed them to be and, while we never met them in person, the keys and everything else we needed was where they said they'd be and they were always very quick to reply to any questions we had. They are definitely super hosts.
WOULD WE STAY HERE AGAIN
Absolutely. In a heartbeat. My wife and I joked that if we ever got jobs in Edinburgh we'd inquire about renting the Leith Snug indefinitely. We loved it.