Edinburgh Old Town | Self-Guided Audio Walking Tour
1 hour and 40 minutes
About this experience
Follow Edinburgh's medieval spine downhill from the castle on its dead volcano, past the crown-steepled kirk and hidden closes of the Old Town, to the royal palace and its roofless abbey. 7 stops, about 2 km on foot, 1h40 at an easy pace. The route starts at Edinburgh Castle and the Esplanade and ends at The Palace of Holyroodhouse and Holyrood Abbey. It is fully self-guided: no group, no guide to keep up with, and no need to arrive at a set time. Start whenever you like, pause for as long as you want, and pick it up again where you left off. Narrated stop by stop in English, in your phone's browser, with a live GPS map of the route.
- Experience type
- Day tour or activity
- Duration
- 1 hour and 40 minutes
- Guide
- English
- Audio guide
- English
- Categories
- Walking tour · Cultural and theme tours · City tours
What's included
Self-guided audio tour of Edinburgh, narrated stop by stop. Narration in English. 7 stops, about 2 km, 1h40 at an easy pace. Walking directions from each stop to the next. Interactive GPS map with your live position and the route. Opens in your phone browser. No app to download. Lifetime access, so you can replay the walk whenever you like. Start any time you like. No group, no set arrival time. Free Roamer app for iPhone, if you would rather walk it offline.
What's not included
Live guide. The tour is 100% self-guided and there is no group. Entry or admission fees. Going inside is optional and paid on site. Smartphone and earphones. Bring your own, charged. Mobile data, or the tour downloaded in advance, for the audio. Food and drinks. Transport. Tip or gratuity Food and drinks Entry or admission fee
Please note
To start the tour, enter the ticket code from your confirmation on the Roamer redemption page linked there. Do this before you set off, while you still have signal. The tour then opens in your phone browser, with no app to download. Best time: Early morning is the finest time to walk the Royal Mile, before the lanyard tours, ghost groups and coach parties fill the ridge. The downhill mile catches good light on the tenement fronts in the morning, and Saint Giles' and the closes are far quieter. Spring through early autumn gives the longest daylight and the mildest weather off the Firth of Forth, though the wind can turn cold and wet in any season. Late afternoon in summer is also rewarding, when the crowds thin and the low sun catches the crown steeple, but avoid the peak of the August festival weeks if you want space to linger. The whole route runs downhill from the castle to Holyrood, so start at the top and let gravity work for you; doing it in reverse is a steady climb on cobbles. Duck into the closes rather than staying on the main street; the narrow alleys off the High Street empty of crowds within a few steps and reveal the hidden vertical city. The One O'Clock Gun fires from the castle each day except Sundays, Good Friday and Christmas; if you start near one o'clock you can hear it from the esplanade. The esplanade, Parliament Square, the Canongate kirkyard and the Parliament building are all free; you can experience the whole spine at no cost and choose which interiors are worth their ticket in pounds. Look down as often as up: the Heart of Midlothian mosaic outside Saint Giles' and the worn setts of the closes are easy to miss while watching the skyline. Give yourself far longer than the raw walking time suggests; the closes, the kirkyards and the abbey ruin all reward slow, unhurried lingering. The Old Town is paved in cobbles and setts, and the closes are steep with worn steps and uneven surfaces; wear sturdy, grippy shoes and take care in the wet, when they turn slick. The route is a continuous downhill mile on hard ground, which can be tiring on knees and ankles; pace yourself and rest on the benches in Parliament Square or the kirkyards. Weather off the Firth of Forth changes fast and the ridge is exposed to wind and rain in any season; carry a waterproof and a warm layer even on a bright morning. Keep quiet and respectful inside Saint Giles', the Canongate Kirk and the kirkyards, and keep valuables discreet in the crowds along the busy upper Royal Mile; several interiors, including the castle, Mary King's Close and the palace, charge entry in pounds. Public transportation nearby
Itinerary
- 1Day 0
Edinburgh Castle and the Esplanade: The Fortress on the Dead Volcano
Crown Square, Edinburgh
The fortress on Castle Rock where the whole city begins, guarding the crown jewels of Scotland above a sloping esplanade.
- 2Day 0
The Lawnmarket: Tall Lands and Hidden Closes
2 James' Court, Edinburgh
The upper cloth market of the High Street, where the Old Town built impossibly upward on a cramped ridge and narrow alleys vanish between the tenements.
- 3Day 0
Saint Giles' Cathedral and Parliament Square: The Crown-Steepled Kirk Where Knox Preached
High Street, Edinburgh
The High Kirk of Edinburgh, crowned by its late-medieval steeple, where John Knox led the Scottish Reformation and the old Parliament of Scotland once met.
- 4Day 0
The Closes and the Real Mary King's Close: The Buried Old Town
253 High Street, Edinburgh
The narrow alleys running off the High Street, and the seventeenth-century streets sealed and buried beneath the city that grew on top of them.
- 5Day 0
The Canongate: The Old Separate Burgh and Adam Smith's Kirkyard
153 Canongate, Edinburgh
The lower Royal Mile was a burgh in its own right for over seven hundred years. Here the father of modern economics lies buried in the kirkyard.
- 6Day 0
The Scottish Parliament: The Daring Modern Chamber Facing the Old Palace
1 Horse Wynd, Edinburgh
The radical and much-debated building where Scotland's Parliament reconvened in nineteen ninety-nine. It stands across the foot of the Royal Mile from the royal palace.
- 7Day 0
The Palace of Holyroodhouse and Holyrood Abbey: Where the Mile Ends
Abbeyhill, Edinburgh
The monarch's official residence in Scotland, home of Mary Queen of Scots, standing beside the roofless ruin of the abbey where the Royal Mile finally ends.
Meeting point
Edinburgh Castle and the Esplanade, Edinburgh Crown Square, City of Edinburgh, Alba / Scotland, GB
Pick up
Pickup is not provided.
Cancellation policy · Edinburgh Old Town | Self-Guided Audio Walking Tour
Standard Viator policy
- Cancellation 0–24 hours before departure: 100% cancellation fee.
- Cancellation 24–24000 hours before departure: 0% cancellation fee.
Good to know
Operated by Roamer and sold by AGORA. Your voucher and booking reference arrive by email straight after payment.