Dialysis in Edinburgh, United Kingdom

Edinburgh is Scotland's capital, a city of medieval closes, Georgian terraces and hills you can climb before lunch. It draws visitors all year for its castle, its history and its food, and every August it hosts its famous summer festivals. With your sessions arranged before you go, you can build a trip around the city and still keep your treatment schedule.

Reni coordinates your dialysis while you travel. We list the dialysis centres we can find in Edinburgh. Tell us where and when, and we contact the centres for you, follow up until one confirms your sessions, and help you plan the rest of the trip. The centre provides your treatment, and you book your travel directly with each provider. Finding a centre and arranging your sessions with it is free, and we share your details with a centre only with your consent.

Getting your sessions sorted comes down to five steps:

1. Find the unit. The holiday dialysis unit in our directory appears below, with its location in Little France.
2. Send your inquiry. Include your current dialysis schedule, prescription details and travel dates. We contact the unit for you and follow up until it answers, only with your consent.
3. Confirm dates, times and what to bring. The unit replies with available slots. Get your sessions confirmed in writing before you do anything else.
4. Gather your paperwork early. Ask your nephrologist or dialysis nurse for everything the unit needs, and get it sent in good time. In Edinburgh, the deadline is strict (see below).
5. Travel. With your slots confirmed and your documents received, you can enjoy the city with your schedule sorted.

When we last reviewed this guide, our directory listed one centre in Edinburgh: the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh Dialysis Unit, at the Little France hospital campus in the south-east of the city. The list further down this page comes straight from the directory, so check it for the current details.

When we contacted the unit, it told us how its holiday service works. These are the unit's own policies, and they can change, so confirm them when you get in touch:

• Patients from all over the world are welcome. The unit offers holiday dialysis to visitors from the UK and abroad.
• It is the only holiday dialysis unit in Edinburgh. That means demand is high and places fill up fast. Ask as early as you possibly can.
• Your documents must arrive at least one week before your first session. All your paperwork and test results from your home unit need to reach the unit at least a week before you start. If they don't, the booking is cancelled.
• Bring your own dialysis medication. Plan your supply for the whole stay before you leave home.
• Help with where to stay. The holiday coordinator can suggest hotels near the hospital.

Because the document deadline is firm, tell your home unit about your trip as soon as your Edinburgh dates are confirmed. That gives them time to arrange your tests and send everything well before the cut-off.

A typical routine is three sessions a week of around four hours, but your schedule is a matter for you and the unit. We don't give medical advice; our job is to help you find a centre and get in touch.

Units typically ask visiting patients for the same core set of documents. Gathering these before you leave is one of the most important things you can do, and in Edinburgh they must arrive at least a week before your first session:

• A recent letter or summary from your home unit, including your dialysis prescription and current schedule.
• Recent blood test results.
• Virology and serology results (hepatitis B, hepatitis C, HIV), routinely required.
• A full list of your medications, including doses and timing.
• Your own dialysis medication, enough for every session of your stay, as the unit asks.
• Your passport or ID, plus any cover documents that apply to you.

How recent your blood and virology results must be is set by the centre that will treat you, and it differs from one centre to another. Ask that centre what it needs, then ask your nephrologist or home unit to arrange the tests to match. Ask your home unit to send everything with time to spare.

Requirements can change, so confirm the exact list when you make contact.

Edinburgh Airport (EDI) is the city's own airport, with flights from across the UK, Europe and beyond.

• From the airport: the airport sits about 13 km west of the city centre by road. The Edinburgh Trams line runs from the terminal into the centre in roughly 30 to 35 minutes, and taxis and airport buses are also available.
• By train: Edinburgh Waverley is the main station, right in the city centre below the Old Town. Direct trains from London King's Cross take a little over four hours on the fastest services.
• To Little France: the Royal Infirmary is served by many Lothian Buses routes. Routes such as the 8 and the 49 link the city centre, including stops near Waverley, with the hospital. Check the current route and timetable before you travel.
• Within the city: the Old Town and New Town are compact and easy to explore on foot, though the streets are hilly and cobbled in places, so allow extra time to get around.
• Worth asking: when you contact the unit, ask how other visiting patients usually get there, and ask the holiday coordinator about hotels nearby so your journey to each session is short.

Edinburgh is busy all year, with a sharp peak in August. That is when the Edinburgh Festival Fringe and the Edinburgh International Festival run side by side through most of the month. Hotels fill up, prices rise and the whole city is crowded, and with a single holiday dialysis service in town, places at the unit are in very high demand.

The golden rule: get your sessions confirmed in writing before you book flights or accommodation. Changing flights is expensive and stressful; confirming dialysis first keeps you in control.

If you want to visit during the festivals, ask the unit months ahead, not weeks. Have flexible dates in mind in case your first choice is full, and leave plenty of time for your home unit to send your documents, since a late file cancels the booking. Outside August there is usually a little more room, but with only one holiday unit, it is always best to ask early.

Availability, what to bring, deadlines and any costs can all change. Always confirm the details directly with the unit before you book flights or treatment. We list centres and keep their contact details as current as we can, but we are not affiliated with them and cannot confirm availability on their behalf.