France visit Murrayfield eight days later and England travel to take on Scotland on 24 February.
Away matches against Ireland (10 March) and Italy (17 March) complete Scotland's campaign.
Former Glasgow Warriors boss Townsend, who won 82 Scotland caps as a player, has replaced Vern Cotter and takes charge of next month's summer tour.
The Scots face Italy in Singapore on 10 June then take on Australia in Sydney a week later before a final Test against hosts Fiji on 24 June.
And Townsend's side will face the Wallabies again in their autumn series, after Tests against Samoa and New Zealand.
In this year's Six Nations, Cotter's third in charge, Scotland recorded wins over Ireland, Wales and Italy - their best championship since 2006.
Click here to see the full sets of 2018 & 2019 Six Nations fixtures
Gregor Townsend's first Six Nations match as Scotland head coach will be away to Wales on 3 February 2018.