Edinburgh Taxi Outing 2025: Everything you need to know about this year's annual children's event

What is this event?

This is a colourful annual outing organised and funded by Edinburgh taxi drivers to provide a fun day out for children with additional needs, life-limiting conditions and terminal illnesses.

The taxis are all decorated with balloons or as floats, gathering at the car park at Edinburgh Zoo, behind the Holiday Inn, for 9am where judging and presentation of prizes by the Lord Provost of Edinburgh takes place for best float taxi, best balloon taxi, best fancy dressed driver and best fancy dressed child.

The parade of taxis will then leave Edinburgh Zoo Car Park at 10am, heading under police escort through the city and along the coast to Archerfield Walled Garden, with a stop outside Luca's in Musselburgh to refill the water tanks and to eat as much ice cream as possible.

Once the parade of taxis reaches Archerfield it's a fun-filled afternoon for all the kids before heading home at about 4pm.

The colourful annual parade in Edinburgh last year.

How can I take part this year?

Locals are encouraged to line the route to cheer on the kids, and take a soaking from their water pistols, as they head down to Archerfield.

Edinburgh Taxi Outing route 2025: Edinburgh Zoo 10am; Corstorphine Road 10:05am; Roseburn 10:10am; Haymarket 10:15am; Princes Street 10:20am; Mound/ High Street 10:25am; Canongate 10:35am; Abbeyhill 10:40am; London Road 10:43am; Portobello Road 10:46am; Portobello High Street 10:50am; Joppa 10:55am; Musselbugh 11.10am.

The outing will then stop at Lucas before heading down the coast at 11.40am, reaching Prestonpans at 11.50am, Cockenzie at 12pm, Port Seton at 12.10pm, Aberlady at 12.25pm, Gullane at 12.35pm and Dirleton at 12.45pm.

This taxi was one of several football-themed cars in the parade last year.

History

Thousands of children have enjoyed a fun day out on the Edinburgh Taxi Outing over the years, armed with water pistols as they are driven down the coast for a day they will never forget.

The first event took place in 1948, organised by the Edinburgh Licensed Hackney Carriage Association, with 20 cabs taking 40 children on a day out to the beach at Gullane.

The destination was changed to Yellowcraigs in the 1970s, with the event growing to 100 cabs taking 250 children and helpers by then.

The outing originally set off from Drummond Place, but was moved to Murrayfield Ice Rink in 1978, before later being relocated to Edinburgh Zoo.

The annual fun event has been delighting local kids for years, here in 1979, with the first event held in 1948. | TSPL

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Weather

The sun is currently forecast to shine down on this year’s Edinburgh Taxi Outing. The Met Office says that Edinburgh will enjoy sunny intervals when the outing sets off at 10am, when the temperature will be 14C, but feel more like 11C due to winds of 14mph and gusts of up to 28mph.

Sunshine is then expected from 11am for the rest of the day, with the temperature rising to 15C feels 12C by noon. As the outing heads from Musselburgh down the coast, the weather there is still expected to be sunny in Gullane at 1pm, and 17C, feels 13C.

While the children are at Archerfiled, sunny intervals are currently forecast by the Met Office from 2pm until 4pm, with the temperature rising slightly from 17C to 18C.