VENUE ADDRESS:

George Watson’s College
Colinton Road
Edinburgh EH10 5EG

George Watson’s College is conveniently located in Edinburgh, just south of the city centre, near Bruntsfield. 

Easily accessible by public and personal transport, it is set within a generous campus, with plentiful options for accommodation nearby.

BY CAR:

For sat nav purposes the school’s address is

George Watson’s College
69 Colinton Road
Edinburgh
EH10 5EG

There is free parking on site for festival visitors. 

BY BUS:

Lothian bus numbers 10, 11, 16, 23, 27, 36, 38 and 45 all pass near George Watson’s College.

For more information visit lothianbuses.com or download the free Transport for Edinburgh app.

BY TRAIN:

Edinburgh’s main railway terminal is Waverley Station. From here you can take a taxi or bus to George Watson’s College. 

Travel time is approximately 30 minutes. 

BY AIR 

Edinburgh International Airport is a 20-minute taxi ride from George Watson’s, while Airlink 100 express bus service and the tram service offer frequent and reliable transport links to the city centre. 

For more details or assistance please contact us in advance of the Festival on: +44 (0) 131 554 0212 and leave a message. We will respond as quickly as possible.

PARKING:

Parking is widely available in the East and West quads (behind the main building frontage), in front of the school and in the car park just inside the main gate, on the left hand side. 

HARP DROP OFF:

There will be harp drop off points either side of the main door of the school.

VENUE ACCESSIBILITY:

There is wheelchair access (with ramp) and accessible parking in the West quad. On entering the school grounds, drive down the short driveway, turn right, and drive past the main entrance. Turn left at the end of the building, and left again to enter the West quad. The accessible parking is clearly marked in yellow and situated by the ramp.

Please note the front of school main door of the school has steps.

Inside the venue there are steps between the ground and first floor but there is a lift available for use beside the Festival Cafe.

For any questions regarding accessibility, including any personal requirements, please contact the office at office@harpfestival.co.uk and we will be happy to assist.

CARER TICKETS:

We are able to offer a free ticket to events for accompanying carers. Please contact us here.

We won’t be having a formal course registration at this year’s festival, but you can be sure of a warm welcome in the Festival Foyer on your arrival and we’ll let you know which room your course is in.

Course handouts/sheet music will be given out during the course by the tutor.

Workshop locations will be posted in the Festival Foyer and our friendly stewards will scan your tickets on arrival at the room.

Workshop handouts/sheet music will be given out at the workshop by the tutor.

Our system will automatically email you your course pack (with sheet music and zoom codes) 24 hours before your course begins. If you experience problems with this please email office@harpfestival.co.uk. Please remember that Edinburgh is currently on British Summer Time/BST (1 hour behind central Europe and 5 hours ahead of Eastern Time).

For further information on attending a zoom online course see out FAQs page.

FESTIVAL CAFE:

Open Sat – Tue 8.30am – 7.00pm

• Hot meal items for lunch and dinner
• Sandwiches
• Soup
• Paninis
• Jacket Potatoes
• Cakes
• Hot drinks
• Soft drinks

FESTIVAL BAR:

The festival bar in the Gathering Space is open from 5pm – midnight. It will close during concert performances but will open for interval drinks.

Cash and card are accepted.

A selection of merchandise will available to purchase in the Festival Foyer. We will be also selling CDs and books by the EIHF artists and tutors.

We strongly encourage you to visit our Harpmakers’ Exhibition as many exhibitors will have sheet music, CD’s and gifts available to purchase… as well as that harp you just REALLY need to buy!

LUNCHTIME SLOW SESSIONS
Join us for a relaxed, slow-paced session in the Gathering Space, Saturday and Monday, 12noon – 1.00pm.

LATE NIGHT SESSIONS
We are delighted to announce that the EIHF Late Night Sessions are back for 2025. Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Tuesday after the evening concerts in the Gathering Space.

To download our session tunebook click HERE.

We are very excited that we will once again have an acoustic open platform each lunchtime. This is a wonderful supportive environment to play in so do consider signing up to perform!

• lasts from 12 noon – 1pm, Sunday and Tuesday
• taking place in the Gathering Space
• spots tend to start every 15mins
• play any length of time from 2minutes – 12minutes!
• play as a soloist, or with friends
• Amplification supplied by Accusound – thank you to them

Please email outreach@harpfestival.co.uk if you’d like to play. 

Harps may be stored, at the owner’s risk, in assigned rooms at the school. 

Information will be provided at the festival about access arrangements. All instruments and cases must be clearly named and insured by the owners.

EIHF and The Clarsach Society do not accept any responsibility for loss or damage to any personal effects sustained during the festival. 

Please visit this page to read more about harp hire.

Edinburgh is a popular tourist destination, and as such offers a wealth of accommodation options to suit every budget.

Below is a list of options within reasonable walking or public transport distance of George Watson’s College.

Please note: these are not recommendations, and EIHF takes no responsibility for the quality, location or affordability of any of the establishments mentioned.

For a more comprehensive selection of options

• www.edinburgh.org/hotels
• www.visitscotland.com