Edinburgh born and resident here, our city centre has become a tourist only zone with tartan tat shops, overpriced restaurants and during August (The Fringe) it

Edinburgh born and resident here, our city centre has become a tourist only zone with tartan tat shops, overpriced restaurants and during August (The Fringe) it’s pretty much impossible to move through town due to the amount of people in this small city. There aren’t really any “locals” in the centre any more as most of the flats have been bought up for AirBnB or student flats. AirBnB flats are notorious as “stag party flats” here, their landlords regularly receive complaints from the few who still live in town. The AirBnB landlords are now expanding into traditionally working class areas, as available housing stock in the centre is astronomically expensive...so it’s hard for young people without a deposit to get on the housing ladder. Our rent market is already through the roof due to the popularity of Edinburgh as a place to live now, so it has driven families out. From a city we used to describe as more like a “village” it’s become a depressingly alien place with transient residents.