Tours of the City
Walking Tours
The Cadies-Witchery Tours, 84 West Bow (tel: (0131) 225 6745; fax: (0131) 220 2086; e-mail: info@witcherytours.com; website: www.witcherytours.com ), organises walking tours of the Old Town, mixing history with humour and ghosts with gore. The adult price of 7 includes a book of witchery tales. The tour leaves from The Witchery restaurant, near the Castle, and lasts 90 minutes.
Mercat Walking Tours, Mercat House, Niddry Street South (tel/fax: (0131) 557 6464; e-mail: info@mercattours.com; website: www.mercattours.com ), operates a ‘Ghosts and Ghouls’ tour daily at 1900 and 2000. The tour costs 7.50 for adults, lasts two hours and includes a visit to haunted 18th-century underground vaults. The tour sets off from the Mercat Cross by St Giles Cathedral.
The two-hour Edinburgh Literary Pub Tour, 97b West Bow (tel/fax: (0131) 226 6665; e-mail: info@scot-lit-tour.co.uk; website: www.scot-lit-tour.co.uk ) has actors guiding walkers through historic taverns where famous writers used to meet. The evening tour sets off from the Beehive Inn, in the Grassmarket, and costs 7 for adults (concessions available). Tours start at 1930 and run daily from June to September (less frequently in winter).
Bus Tours
All tour buses are run by Edinburgh Bus Tours (tel: (0131) 220 0770; e-mail: edinburghtours@fsmail.net; website: www.edinburghtour.com ) Tours depart every 10/15 minutes from Waverley Bridge (every 30 minutes in winter). The city sightseeing circuit takes approximately one hour and covers all the major sites, such as Edinburgh Castle and the Palace of Holyroodhouse. A day ticket costs 8.50.
Helicopter Tours
Lothian Helicopters (tel: (01875) 320032; e-mail: iain@lothianhelicopters.co.uk; website: www.lothianhelicopters.co.uk ) runs helicopter tours of the city, costing from 39.90 per person for 10 minutes to 180 for 45 minutes. Tours take off from Edinburgh Airport and take sightseers over the Forth Road and Rail Bridges, as well as the Forth Estuary. Ten minutes of helicopter travel covers 12 miles, while the 45-minute tour, covers 95 miles of Edinburgh and the surrounds. Most popular is a 20 minute tour of the city and bridge costing 79.90.
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Tours of the City