SCOTLAND
Scotland's standouts.
The 10 most-booked old town & royal mile walks tours in Scotland. What each day actually includes, who runs it, and what you can expect to pay.
Walk Edinburgh’s Old Town to hidden underground vaults under South Bridge, hearing grisly 18th-century stories in about an hour.
“James was a great guide and had lots of interesting facts about Edinburgh. Meeting point was easy to find. I would highly recommend this tour.”
Edinburgh Castle guided walking tour with entry ticket: royal palace stories, Great Hall history, photo stops, and time to explore.
“Had our review with Jen and she was as mad as bag of cats , made our tour experience for sure. I’m not sure our tour would have been as interesting with a different guide , she had a great insight on the castle and Edinburgh and seemed very knowledgeable as a whole. Would recommend.”
Edinburgh Castle skip-the-line walk on the Royal Mile with a local guide, then time to explore on your own after 90 minutes.
“What a fascinating tour of the castle! Our guide Steph is the best ever…she told us so much about Scottish history, and she made it alive with her story telling skills and passion about for her land and people.”
A 2-hour evening walk on Edinburgh’s Royal Mile, with murder, witch trials, and cemetery stops plus Calton Hill views.
“Probably the most professional tour I’ve ever been on. I love doing historical ghost tours when I travel and this was one of the best. Logistics were handled flawlessly and I even made a friend, as a solo traveler. The storytelling was fun, witty and entertaining!”
1-hour Haunted Vaults tour in Edinburgh: guided underground history, a torture exhibit, and paranormal stories, starting from $33.29.
“This was a very disappointing experience. We showed up at the designated location and were unable to locate the tour. There were multiple other tours but none that was ours. After 15 minutes of asking multiple groups, we gave up and decided it was a lost cause and we would have to acknowledge we would…”
2-hour guided Old Town walk in Edinburgh with stories and sights like St Giles and Mercat Cross. Mobile ticket; $24.96.
“I took my 16 year old to Edinburgh for a birthday weekend and we loved this tour when we went in January despite the weather. Not much walking really and the guide was great.”
Edinburgh at night: Greyfriars graveyard and underground vaults with a live guide. Spooky, story-driven, great value.
“Did tour in the dark, only light used was a flashlight and your own phone light. Great stories, no jump scares, and our tour guide, Darren, was kind and funny. This tour was not theatrical but it would’ve been cool to see the guide dressed in something other than regular clothes to set the tone.…”
Royal Mile and Old Town walking tour in Edinburgh with a small-group guide, 3-hour route from Usher Hall to Scott Monument.
“Fiona was fantastic! She gave a great tour and appropriate amounts of history without it being too overwhelming. She asked what our interests were at the start of the tour and tailored the conversation to that. The tour packs a lot in to 3 hours and the time flew because she was so engaging!”
A 90-minute Old Town walk with exclusive vault access, Tron Kirk and Canongate Kirkyard, led by top storytellers.
“Great tour, full of very interesting history of old Edinburgh. Lovely guide, clear, packed a lot in, gave us information that we hadn’t known before, despite being relatively local. Vaults fascinating - who lived in them, drinking dens etc. Also city walls, how Edinburgh grew and evolved as a city. Highly recommend!”
Small-group Royal Mile walk with skip-the-line Edinburgh Castle, guided stories in closes and wynds, plus big views from Castlehill.
“The tour was phenomenal. This is through Mercat Tours, and our guide, Linda, was excellent. So much history and incredible information. The listing when we booked through Viator said 1 hour 15 minutes, but this is a 2.5 hour tour. Keep in mind for planning your day!”
