A beautiful UK city has been revealed to now be 'more expensive than London' for tourists as a £600 alert is issued. Edinburgh has emerged as the most expensive major city break destination in western Europe, according to analysis by Post Office Travel Money.

It looked at the total average price of accommodation and other typical tourist expenses to rank cities across the continent. It found prices in Edinburgh were higher than other cities in the region, with two nights in three-star city accommodation typically setting visitors back £399. The figure was based on the average price of the 10 cheapest ensuite rooms for stays from June 6 to 8 available on booking website Hotels.com. Accommodation in Edinburgh is even more expensive during the school summer holidays and the August festivals.

The extortionate prices have been blamed in part on the SNP government's short-term accommodation licensing scheme, which came into force in October 2023.

Other items that are more expensive in Edinburgh than most other tourist destinations are a 48-hour public transport pass (£22), entry to its "top tourist heritage attraction" – Edinburgh Castle (£19.50) – and a cup of filter coffee in a cafe or bar (£3.50)

Ironically, Edinburgh's "top museum" and "top art gallery" – the National Museum of Scotland and National Galleries of Scotland respectively – are both free.

The overall basket of goods in Edinburgh, which has recently imposed a 5% tourist tax, was found to cost £601.50, more than double the cost of Lisbon, which was the cheapest western city analysed. The same trip would cost £523.40 in London and £374.90 in Cardiff.

The Scottish Conservatives said the research showed "the chickens coming home to roost after the SNP/Green government’s disastrous attack on tourism and hospitality, which is a crucial sector of Scotland’s economy".

Economy and tourism spokesman Murdo Fraser added: "The Scottish Conservatives warned them that their short-term lets legislation, their higher taxes and their failure to pass on business rates relief would close businesses, driving up prices for visitors and locals alike, but they ignored the warnings.

"Now that the UK Labour government’s jobs tax on National Insurance has come in, things are even worse – and that’s before the council’s punitive visitor levy comes into force next year.

“Scotland’s capital city has become the most expensive place in Europe, thanks to the disastrous policies of two out-of-touch left-wing parties."

Travel costs to reach destinations such as flight tickets were not taken into account. The report looked at prices in 38 cities across the whole of the continent, and found eastern European cities have the best value.

Latvia’s Riga was ranked number one with a total cost of £252.63, followed by Lithuania’s Vilnius (£254.32). The most expensive was Norway’s Oslo (£636.20).