Great tour led by Mark! We did the underground ghosts tour and it was perfect. I appreciated how they gave us headphones to keep the outside noise down and the underground vaults were fascinating. I loved the mix of history and spookiness. Sadly we did not see any ghosts this time, but Mark was the best tour guide and I would recommend him to anyone! The tour was also the perfect length, about an hour and 15 minutes, so not too long but just enough time to get some history and not get overwhelmed or tired, which tends to happen once a tour hits hour two for me. Would definitely recommend to anyone traveling to Edinburgh! read more

Mercat Tours - Mark in the vaults - Tours Near Me - Edinburgh, EDH

We took a 'haunted' tour of the vaults below the city. Our guide Jade was fun and took time to make the tour more personalized. It was paced well, I just wish we would have been able to see more of the vaults. We spent more time walking around the actual streets than in the vaults. read more

It wasn't exactly what we expected. We signed up to do both the historical and the ghost tours back to back and I would not recommend that. You cover a lot of the same area but with just different stories. One is more historical and one is the haunted stories. I would say if you were to only do one, the ghost tour was slightly more entertaining but many of the stories did not align with where we were actually standing. It did afford us to leave the underground area and walk to a cemetery at least. The historical tour was interesting but since there is only like 3-4 rooms you visit, it felt very long and since it was later in the day, we could not keep from yawning. That said, our tour hosts (Linda, Marina, and Jared) were all really good and full of knowledge and kept things moving. read more

This place was absolutely rude and unprofessional. They get business frequently yet do not accommodate to tourists who have issues with wifi. We book an 2000hr tour but when we arrived, we were told it was a tour at 1830hrs. The confirmation email came through blank because of the lack of internet and so we had nothing to back our claims. The worker offered a tour for the following day but we would be leaving too early for any of tgeir tours and requested a refund. Their policies as they stated allowed refunds within 24hrs yet the manager, Jonathan, was very rude and unprofessional in denying us one. I am absolutely disappointed and would NEVER recommend anyone to this company ever again. Despicable! read more

My husband and I did a Ghost Tour in October with Mercat & I'm so glad we chose them for our tour! We had an excellent tour guide that was super knowledgeable & a great story teller. We loved learning the history and spooky tales. It was also very cool to see the underground and learn about them. Highly suggest this company for your ghost tour in Edinburgh! read more

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We went on the Evening of Ghosts and Ghouls tour. On the positive side, the headphone system worked well. I am not sure who this tour is supposed to appeal to. The stories were all pretty lame and not scary. The audience participation was fine for some people. However, not everyone wants to participate so minus one for that since some people are voluntold. The real negative is the part in the catacombs. There is a strong moldy smell and the floor is uneven and slippery in areas. I don't have the best vision and it was difficult to see well enough for my own safety. read more

We went on the Secrets of The Royal Mile tour, and our guide was Nicky. I loved how small and intimate the tour was, as this allowed us the opportunity to ask questions vs just being shuffled along. There were many points of interest along the way...be prepared to walk A LOT on cobblestone streets, and streets at a steep angle. We also toured the Castle, which was just okay. read more

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Our tour guide Linda was fantastic. She was very knowledgeable and engaging. The tour we attended covered the underground vaults and covered the geography of the area and its effect on the founding of the city. The vaults are very interesting and the tour covered all of the various uses for them during their lifespan. Highly recommend! read more

We very much enjoyed our time with Linda as our tour guide for the Secrets of the Royal Mile tour in Edinburgh. Linda was informative, clever, and extremely knowledgeable. She kept us engaged the entire time - not an easy task on Hogmanay and freezing cold temps. She expertly handled all questions and provided a unique and fascinating experience with her depth of knowledge. We will definitely be back for any tour she leads. Exceptional. read more

Marina excellent. Good on history- patient with slower people. much better than my last tour. Laughter and occasional references to creepiness read more

We did this tour in Edinburgh and it was so informative and fun. Ask for Margaret Ann was the best! She really kept us all engaged! Thanks so much for the experience! read more

Mercat Tours - Tours Near Me - Edinburgh, EDH

We had Michael as a tour guide. He was an absolute joy. He was funny, engaging and spooky at the same time. We only arrived in Edinburgh a few hours earlier from the US and didn't want to get out of kilter with jet lag so we chose this tour to keep us awake. It did. Michael was knowledgeable and so entertaining. The younger fellow doing the check in and handing out headphones was so pleasant and knowledgeable. Thanks. read more

Secrets of the Royal Mile - Outstanding! This was honestly one of the best tours my wife and I have ever taken. Charles was extremely knowledgeable about Edinburgh and the Royal Mile. The history and fun facts about the area were all super interesting and communicated in a way that was very entertaining and memorable. Would highly recommend this tour to anyone visiting Edinburgh for the first time. read more

Mercat Tours - Tours Near Me - Edinburgh, EDH

We did the Hidden and Haunted tour and really enjoyed it. Is it creepy/scary? Yes - but just a little. There are moments of cheesiness to it but overall it is fun, educational, and interesting. I've got to hand it to the Mercat folks, they know their history and tell great stories. Or - they've lied to us and I've been spouting off unsubstantiated rumors to my friends and family since I got back home. But I'm going to believe it's the former. We'd definitely take one of their tours again someday - should we find ourselves back in Edinburgh. read more

I was trying to book a tour on a Saturday evening for the following day. Unfortunately, there was a little issue with booking on the website, so I sent a note through the "Contact Us" feature, not really expecting to hear back due to the time. My expectations were incorrect, and within an hour or so Lara had me all set for the tour the next morning. When I showed up, the rep I spoke with quickly got me sorted and provided some helpful info as to where I could go for a quick coffee. On to the tour! I had booked Secrets of the Royal Mile w/ entrance to the castle. The guide, Alexander, was fantastic. He has incredible knowledge of Scottish history, and was able to mix humor and intrigue in with all the important names and dates. If you book this tour, expect to learn a lot, as well as be taken down several of the closes you would not be likely to see otherwise. I absolutely recommend Mercat, and plan to take at least one more tour with them while I'm in Edinburgh. Cheers, Lara and Alex! read more

I cannot say enough good things about the Edinburgh vaults history tour. Charles, our tour guide, was extremely knowledgable and recounted the city's history with both enthusiasm and humor that kept the group engaged. I walked away learning so much more than I had anticipated and having had a great time - thank you to Charles for my favorite part of visiting Edinburgh! read more

I really loved this tour! We were a small group and Lauren, our guide kept us well engaged and managed to startle each of us. The history was well researched and it was quite chilling to go deep into the vaults, which are lit only by candle. A lovely night of spooky thrills. read more

Mercat Tours - Lauren telling us grim tales. - Tours Near Me - Edinburgh, EDH

My husband and I aim to not be too touristy, but when it comes to haunted tours, we can't help ourselves. We do one everywhere we go, and have been on several haunted tours through our travels. The catacomb haunted tour by Mercat was definitely one of the very best we've ever done! This tour is well designed, starting in an old-market square with a bit of bloody history. From there it moves along to other historical sites, mixing macabre in with substance to give you a real-life idea of the hard times once endured there. After about 45 minutes or so (I'm estimating, wasn't watching the time) you finally arrive at the main event- the catacombs! This is truly a dark experience, even for the most skeptical. It's hard to explain in writing how the catacombs were created, but they are essentially the holes created under the main bridge when buildings were butted flush up against them. Each room comes with a story or two about the discovered ghastly resident in a context that makes it seem plausible. It's for sure not for the faint of heart, as it's pitch black save for a few candles and closed in. After the tour we were deposited into an equally dark and tight pub to be served the drinks that are included with the tour. I forgot about this and it was quite a pleasant surprise! We sipped our liquid courage over more ghost stories before the tour came to a perfectly timed end. The multiple environments and the seamless transition between haunting and history made this tour great, and the drop of courage at the end certainly added to it! read more

We did the underground tour. I dragged my family along and they had to come, because it was my birthday. But it was totally worth it! Everyone had fun, including my kids. You get a bunch of Edinburgh history in addition to getting to explore the catacombs. Super memorable, and I'd highly recommend it. read more

One of the tours I did with Merkat Tours during my trip to Edinburgh was the Ghostly Underground tour. This one starts in the centre of the Royal Mile, with our energetic guide walking us through closes while telling us haunting stories about the history of the Old Town, before taking us to the old vaults under the South Bridge.  The vaults are dark, damp and very creepy, lit mostly by candles and some safety lights. Our guide told us fantastic stories about the hustle and bustle in these dark parts of town back in the day, as well as ghostly tales about the spectres commonly seen down here. With near darkness and a sinister atmosphere, the vaults were a fantatic visit and our guide really brought out the stories very well. The mould in these vaults made my asthma go nuts, but I survived and really enjoyed the tour! read more

Mercat Ghostly Underground Tour was a very interesting experience. Our tour guide Fred, amusingly a French Lady and not a Scottish local, was wonderfully entertaining. She told us of Edinburgh's history, tales of royalty, treason, murder, body snatchers, torture, intrigue, medieval living and plentiful ghost stories. The tour started above ground at Mercat Cross on High Street then progressed to Blair Street's atmospheric underground vaults, all illuminated by candle light. It lasted about 1 hour 15 minutes and cost £12 per adult ticket (Nov 2016). You can hold onto your ticket for a £2 discount off any other Mercat Tour and there are concessions for students and pensioners. Informative, fascinating and fantastically enjoyable we all had a really great time on this tour and thought it wonderfully theatrical. read more

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Did the Underground Tour. Very interesting. Got the layout of Edinburgh Old Town and Closes, then went underground. Very knowledgeable and engaging guide, Margaret Ann. Would recommend read more

Our guide for the Ghosts and Ghouls walking tour was Fred, who was a lot of fun, very engaging, and quite theatrical. Though I think in a way I would've preferred someone who was actually from Scotland to make the tour just *that* much better. Also there wasn't really that much walking on this walking tour. It was more of walking to a couple locations above ground and hearing the interesting history before finally heading underground. I enjoyed how she had volunteers to act out a few parts to help explain the tortures and hangings. I greatly enjoyed the underground portion of the tour and the histories that went along with it. Hubby even thinks he saw a glimpse of a ghostly child down there while he was off taking pictures away from the group! There were more stories in the final room where we got our whisky and all in all it was a most enjoyable 2 hours. read more

I went on several of these "ghost" and "haunted" tours in Edinburgh. Mercat Tours ranks up there as one of the best. But keep in mind, as it goes with all of these tours, if you aren't willing to give in to this "play" of sorts, don't waste your time and money. The entire audience needs to be "in" on the experience for it to work. Getting back to the tour, Mercat's no frills attitude and casual pace actually strengthen the tension one feels in these vaults. While nothing "other-worldly" occurs of course, the atmosphere is authentic, the air heavy, the people anxious, and the guide a truly entertaining caricature of the fireplace storyteller. One of my most memorable experiences in quite some time. read more

Hidden and Haunted Tour I was traveling on my own for work (as usual) and was looking for something fun to do in the evening that wasn't just sitting in a bar. not that there is anything wrong with sitting in a bar, but it was Valentine's Day, and my boy is several thousand miles away, plus, ugh, Valentines day! Tour guide was great - it's all a bit hokey, as these things tend to be, but it was enjoyable. Good stories, their script was well done, reasonably paced, we moved around enough but we weren't racing all over. The vaults are cool - definitely get into them somehow. I also did the Real Mary King's Close during this trip. The ghost tour was better for adults, the Mary King's Close would be good for adults or families with mid-age kids. The two tours are very different takes on the whole underground spaces thing. One focuses more on the dark side, the other more on the reality of life in the closes. read more

Went on the "Ghost Tour" while staying in Edinburgh over New Year's week. Eh. I dunno. I've been on other ghost tours before in other cities. The group I was with had very high expectations of a supernatural experience and some didn't even come because they thought it would be too scary. I knew it wouldn't be like that. Most of these other tours are basically just walking history tours of the city with a ghost story thrown in. They are never scary. I wasn't expecting much in the way of a scare or an encounter with another world. On the other hand though, they did say a lot about underground catacombs and a tour beneath the city. I was definitely in for that. I'm all about secret passages and hideouts! The tour began with some stories about people that had been hung in the town square for toasting the king at a local pub. I guess the Scotts don't like the British crown and they decided to string up these two gentleman for the act of the toast. The speaker asked for volunteers to recreate the scenario and he flogged them with a whip. It was good fun watching one of our guys get taken to task with the whip and noose. Of course the story wasn't scary, just historical. It was raining so the tour immediately moved underground. The underground catacombs was basically a tour of an old basement. If you've been elsewhere in Europe, you're familiar with the cobblestone basements. The tour guide said they were all linked in an extensive network running throughout the city, but were still actively used as storerooms by the businesses above and therefore we wouldn't be able to access any of them. We basically got to see 2 larger sub-basements, and 2 connecting rooms. That's it. The guide spun yarns about supposed hauntings in each room along the lines of a campfire ghost story, but none were particularly scary. It was just hanging out in a damp basement. We were soon brought upstairs to their business's dinner room and given our complimentary drink. I'm pretty sure it was a cheaper box wine. It tasted exactly like Franzia. Over our drink the guide told one last story - a true story we had actually heard earlier on our day trip from a different tour guide. He then confessed that he'd never actually seen a ghost or felt the presence of one, but assured us other people had. At least he was honest. Overall I was not impressed. The tour guide, Euan, was very enthusiastic and quite a good actor, but the above ground part was super short and the "catacombs" were not impressive at all. There was nothing scary at all, not even cheesy attempted scares by the guide (turning out the lights or shouting boo or whatever). The wine was cheap and the thing felt stretched out longer than they really had stories or content for. For almost USD$20 each, I thought it was a bit of a tourist trap. I wouldn't recommend it at all if you've done something like this before. If you've seen one ghost tour, you've seen them all. Nothing special here. read more

As with most things in life: if your heart isn't in it, it ain't gonna work. The adults-only 'Hidden & Haunted' tour is great spooky (and pretty gruesome) fun if, like us, you score a charismatic tour guide and a good (ie suggestive) group. 'Something's-watching-us-from-the-shadows' vibes are further boosted if, also like us, you have an overly vivid imagination and frequently enjoy scaring yourself silly with horror films (woops). There are no costumed extras waiting to jump out at you, so if you do see anything spooky, it's probably real (*gasp*). Wrap up warm, wear closed shoes, oh and don't be the last one in the vaults... ;-) read more

Mercat Tours offer historical and fun tours of Edinburgh. I went on the Gallows and Graveyards tour that was led by an enthusiastic and creepy guide. He selects "volunteers" from the group to demonstrate the historical stories he talks about at each stop. There were no ghostly sightings in the graveyard, but the guide did explain the grave of the alleged affair between Mary Queen of Scotts and David Rizzio and how Rizzio was murdered by the King right in front of Mary while she was pregnant... and who knows? It may have been Rizzio's child, but I have said enough! Definitely worth checking out one of the Mercat tours! read more

Did their ghost tour! It was a great time. Our guide, Edgar, was hilarious and very knowledgeable. The tour started with some stories in front of the cross post (don't exactly remember what it was called but it's a landmark where the tour meets). We then slowly walked towards the vaults and heard more stories. The vaults were the best part and the stories in the vaults were all about the ghosts who are said to haunt each room we visited. I loved everything about the vault part of the tour but was slightly overwhelmed with the pre vault part of the tour. It was more about the more disturbing (as in poor hygiene and public torture) parts of history of the area versus folklore and legends of ghosts and ghouls of the town and area around the streets. I'd definitely recommend this tour however when all is said and done as it is a great time and worth the money. read more

Just did the 9:30 tour and our guide Amandine was wonderful! She was very engaging and let the stories speak for themselves rather than get caught up in theatrics. The tour of the vaults and hearing ghost stories while down there was great. I recommend it! read more

Mercat Tours - Possibly a light reflection to the right of the candle, but can't be sure! - Tours Near Me - Edinburgh, EDH

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We had a tour with Rachel: Secrets of the Royal Mile. It was INCREDIBLE!!!!! Extremely well researched, Rachel was smart and wonderful. She gave us facts that we would have never known and everything was super interesting. Cannot say enough good things, this tour was worth the trip to scotland! read more

I was recommended these tours by my air bnb hosts. Little did they know what a creepy degenerate I was and had already planned on taking a ghost tour, so I was grateful for the recommendation to help narrow it down. Upon check in I was informed to look for Edgar, who looks like a werewolf... "no seriously." And sure enough, we were greeted by a very charming, Portuguese werewolf man who is extremely great at his job. I don't need to say anything else about the tour so as not to give anything away, except to say it was the best decision I made here on holiday. Well informed, funny, creepy. Everything I love. My only regret was not asking Edgar to have a drink with me after. read more

Book it online. We did the Hidden & Haunted walking tour (£13 per adult). This is a 1-hour nighttime tour that is adults only. You meet near St. Giles Cathedral in the evening and get a really interesting history lesson of the area. Even though some of it is cheesy, the majority of the history lesson was non-fiction and actually quite informative. It was fun and unique way to learn Edinburgh's history. Part of the tour involves going down into underground tunnels and even turning all the lights off. Our guide was enthusiastic and it made it a memorable experience. I would definitely recommend this as a unique way to spend an evening in Edinburgh. read more

Did the Vaults tour today and it was pretty good. After seeing Edinburgh on Travel Channel TV shows I really wanted the visit. I opted for the vaults your because of it's haunted and creepy past. Tour guide Alex was very informative and enthusiastic. I wish it had gone gone more into the dark past to be honest, but I really did enjoy. For the hour or so I think it should have been cheaper..paying around £9 is a lot when you are converting to dollars and I think it would have been better if it was cheaper. I wanted to do the haunted tour but after being charged £9 for this one, I wanted to also eat dinner that night :) read more

Had the good fortune of having Andrew as our guide on an evening tour of the underground vaults. He was very entertaining, and made an extra effort to get to know everybody on the tour. While the sites were interesting, some of the info got a little long-winded. The tour was scheduled for an hour, but last 1:15. Wish it was longer so we could've seen/heard more! read more

My family was in Edinburgh this week, and we did the Ghostly Underground Tour with our guide, Alun. He was the PERFECT guide for this tour! He put on a creepy performance that really added to the eerie atmosphere. I personally screamed my head off three times while we were underground. He was extremely knowledgeable about the history of the town and underground and did a great job keeping us on schedule. (Note: Tour may not be suitable for young children) read more

We went on the underground tour which was really informative and fun! Our tour guide, Amandine, was very entertaining, knowledgeable, and personable. If we were staying in Edinburgh longer we would probably take another tour....probably the ghost one! read more

I really enjoyed our Mercat tour, whle learning something about the people who lived in the city and the heritage it was also a great deal of fun. The vaults beneath South Bridge were the highlight, a small entrance leads you down into the depths. I was with someone who was a non believer but even he felt as if something was around us. I was convinced there was someone behind me even though I was stood up against a wall! The guides were great and the drinks afterwards was certainly welcome although I would have loved a longer question and answer session. A must, especially on a very dark cold night! read more

We also picked a Mercat Tour, on the hunt for Ghosts & Gauls, which started on street level and ending going through the vaults. The nice part of the tour is that we all ended up in a tavern in the vaults and a drink having a very good laugh. You needn't believe in anything that is being said it's all about having some fun and a little bit of history thrown in for extra. I think the group was a little on the big side, controlling a group of 25/30 must distract from the overall fun of the tour. Very enjoyable and very silly. read more

Great fun! I went on the daytime Ghost Tour with my daughter in June 2017. You have to be at least 5 to do the tour, so leave the smallest ones at home and judge for yourself whether your kids can handle it. I honestly wasn't too sure but my daughter was game, so we went. In terms of walking, it's not that much, but there are a lot of stairs and narrow spaces. My kiddo was the only one on the tour, but the guide made her feel welcome and told us that at any part of the tour if we felt uncomfortable or scared, to let him know and he'd get us out. That went for everyone on the tour, not just my daughter. The underground vaults were the scariest bit, but also the most fun. It's done by candlelight with lots of fun stories about the entities that reside down there (and not all of them are scary, some are very kind). No ghosts were spotted, but one weird thing did happen. We were all gathered in a circle around the guide and he was in the middle of telling us a story. There's no breeze down in the vaults since it's underground. The flame on his candle suddenly went horizontal and sputtered, as if someone had blown on it...but no one had. I was literally right in front of him when this happened. The guide paused in his story, looked at the candle flame and then at me in the eyes with an "Oh crap!" expression, then recovered and kept going with his tale. He was genuinely startled! This tour was definitely worth the money and you won't be disappointed. My daughter did ok, but she was happy to get back up into the sunlight. The story of Mr. Boots scared her a little and she didn't want to talk about him for a few days, but is otherwise ok. Oh yes, watch out for Mr. Boots while you're down there. He's quite nasty. read more