The Real Mary King's Close Underground Tour And Walking Tour Of Edinburgh
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Tour Information
Key Details
- Mobile Voucher Accepted
- Free Cancellation
- Duration: 2 Hrs
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Language:
English
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Departure Time :
Select morning or afternoon; local operator will confirm your exact departure time after booking.
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Departure Details :
The Real Mary King's Close, Royal Mile, Edinburgh
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Return Details :
Returns to original departure point
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Cancellation Policy :
- If you cancel within 3 calendar days (72 hours) of the scheduled departure time, the cancellation charge will be 100% of the undiscounted tour price.
- If you cancel between 4 to 7 Calendar days before scheduled tour departure,the cancellation charge will be 50% of the undiscounted tour price.
- If you cancel at least 8 calendar days in advance of the scheduled departure time, there is no cancellation fee. You will receive Full Refund for the paid amount.
- Please note that in case of No show, the cancellation charge will be 100% of the listed tour fare.
- Please note tours booked using discount coupon codes will be non refundable.
Overview
Discover Edinburgh's hidden history with The Real Mary King's Close. Join this 2 hour tour and see and hear how Edinburgh's Old Town developed into the vibrant and modern city it is today. This extended tour experience runs daily in the afternoons. Your character tour guide will take you underground for 1 hour to see the buried 17th Century streets and homes beneath Edinburgh's Royal Mile. You will then emerge for a 1 hour overground tour of Edinburgh's most significant closes and buildings.Highlights
- Step back in time on a history tour
- Informative, friendly and professional guide
- Multiple times offered throughout the day
- Fully narrated tour
- Perfect introduction for first-time visitors
- Great overview and orientation of the city
Know More about this tour
Discover Edinburgh's hidden history with The Real Mary King's Close. Join us over 2 hours to see and hear for yourself how Edinburgh's Old Town developed into the vibrant and modern city it is today.
Your character tour guide will first take you underground for 1 hour to see the buried 17th Century streets and homes, a network of Old Town closes beneath Edinburgh's Royal Mile. You will then emerge for a 1 hour overground tour of Edinburgh's most significant closes and buildings, hearing the architectural significance of why Mary King's Close was buried beneath these new iconic structures.
Mary King's Close was once one of the busiest, liveliest streets in 17th-Century Edinburgh. So how did such an important thoroughfare end up sealed off from the world for nearly 400 years?
With your character guide, explore the warren of now underground streets and houses. See for yourself what daily life was like, for both rich and poor. What's the truth behind the myths and legends surrounding Mary King's Close and its residents? Discover how disease and the demands of a growing city conspired to seal the Close's fate forever. Starting in the exhibition space your tour guide will welcome you to Mary King's Close. You will then spend 1 hour exploring the now underground streets and rooms and hear the stories of the people who lived, worked and died here.
You will then emerge into the daylight to continue your journey through Edinburgh's history. This 1 hour overground tour will regale you with stories of murder and execution, not forgetting tales of raucous Coffee Houses and the lives of the poor and the wealthy. Just what would Mary Kings Close have looked like if its fate hadnt been sealed by the Royal Exchange? All will be revealed.
End your visit with a stop in the shop and cafe. The cafe, The Royal Exchange Coffee House, is open daily from 9am and offers authentic Scottish produce for all the family. Warm up with a hearty soup or relax and enjoy a tea and scone in the unique setting of the Burgh Courtroom (own expense). The shop offers all things Mary King's, from plague and pestilence souvenirs to high quality authentic Scottish gifts, there will be something memorable to take home (own expense).
This 2-hour extended tour experience runs daily in the afternoons. A top quality visitor attraction, allowing you to see for yourself what daily life was like in the 17th Century for both rich and poor. Tour capacity is maximum 20 people, offering an intimate and personal experience.
Inclusions
Professional guide
Admission ticket
Walking tour
Exclusions
Food and drinks
Souvenir photos (available to purchase)
Hotel pickup and drop-off
Additional Info
Confirmation will be received within 48 hours of booking, subject to availability
Tour departure times are allocated according to availability
Your allocated time of departure for your tour will be confirmed by the local operator after booking
Due to uneven surfaces, steep inclines and low level lighting, this tour is not recommended for those with walking disabilities
A moderate amount of walking is involved
Not wheelchair accessible
Children aged 4 and under are not permitted on the tour
No photography is permitted during the tour
Traveler Reviews
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Location is right on High Street attached is a café and gift shop but you must go through the lobby ticket area to get to it just ask to go through if you haven't bought a ticket yet. The close was not always underground - what remains is very interesting and they do a great job of presenting it so that you get a feel of what it was like to live so long ago. I added a walking tour of Edinburgh which started 1/2 hour after my underground tour which gave me time for a bathroom break and drink. The guide, Steven, didn't mind going off-subject and stopping at places not usually on the itinerary because I was the only person on the walking tour. I would definitely recommend.
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Its an informative tour. Touring around certain landmarks that you wouldnt even pay attention to. Both tour guides were informative. They were also very helpful and flexible when changing the date and time if one part of the tour.
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This tour was well worth every pound. Tour commentators were extremely knowledgeable and made the tour a real joy. I'd recommend this to anyone visiting Edinburgh.
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First off, it was great to find out what a close actually was! And the tour guide sorry - I can't remember the name! was great. It's surprisingly touching finding out how people lived back then. I'd definitely recommend this tour to anyone else.
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We took this tour along with the above ground tour. Both guides were quite knowledgeable and friendly. Learning about how life was back in those days both below and above the streets was very interesting. I highly recommend this tour!
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I wish I could give two different ratings. The Underground Tour was great. Katie, I think, was her name. She was blond and very informative and enthusiastic. The Overground Tour was awful. The guide didnt seem to know where she was going or what she was doing. We were terribly disappointed and really just wanted to leave. We were very happy when the Overground Tour was over. I would recommend the Underground Tour only.
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Very well run and very informative. Would highly recommend for anyone coming to Edinburgh.
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Wonderful tour! Very informative! Would highly recommend to anyone wanting to hear a bit of the history of Edinburgh.
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This was excellent value for money, no hold ups and VERY interesting throughout giving us a good insight of things we would never have known had it not been given us on the tour. we were extremely lucky to have toh overground tour to our selves, probably due to the rain, but it still went ahead under umbrellas and with a very inform,ative guide
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Interesting but corny! Really not worth the money. Wouldn't recommend.
