Real Mary King's Close was one of the most eerie, immersive experiences I had in Edinburgh. It…read moreisn't about Scotland's royalty or power struggles. It's about survival and daily life through really dark times. I took a guided tour with Daisy, and she was absolutely incredible! So knowledgeable, genuinely funny, and her acting and storytelling took you back in time... literally. It never felt scripted or forced, just engaging and real. She was so warm and sweet, which made the experience even better. It's hard to believe she's only 25 given how much depth she brought to the tour.

Went to the Real May King's Close tour based on a recommendation and didn't really do any research…read more It turned out to be one of the best tours of our 7 day trip thru Dublin, Edinburgh, and Glasgow. In case you don't already know, the current Edinburgh city center is built on top of the old city that is several hundred years old. This tour takes you beneath the streets to the old city. You will see the original close with houses and workshops. You will learn how they lived, "meet" other prominent people of that time, and learn about the black plagues. Really cool tour, very informative, and sometimes funny. Please note this tour is NOT for people with mobility issues or concerns. Tours leave on time from the street front store. So, be on time. They can't easily add you to your group if they have already left and gone underground. Highly recommended that you buy your tickets in advance. P.S. Photos are prohibited, and they try to sell you a picture of yourself in the old close on the way out. Tacky, I know, but still worth it.

It's just one of many interesting closes along the Royal Mile. This one is named after the Lord…read moreAdvocate's House. The house of Sir James Stewart used to be at the lower end the stairs near Cockburn St. It's literally steps away from the Supreme Courts building in Parliament Square. Well, about 70 steps up. Today, it's more of a shortcut between Market Street and the Royal Mile. The best feature of Advocate's Close is actually the perfectly framed view of the Scott Monument through the archway. You'll also see how high you are on the hill when walking up or down this steep & worn set of stairs. Hopefully they will add handrails to it one day like others that we've seen throughout the city. I mean, they don't call them "Death Stairs" for nothing. Oh, and theres's a very popular gastropub called the Devil's Advocate near the bottom of the steps. We didn't get to visit it, but it came highly recommended. It's just another reason to visit it.

Edinburgh is riddled with closes and Advocate's Close is a fine example of these narrow lanes that…read moreconnect streets throughout and behind the Royal Mile. The tall buildings that line the path give many closes a canyon-like feel with many of them sloping steeply down from the Royal Mile. It's like walking into the underground! Advocate's Close is particularly popular with tourists and I can see why. At the top, it offers a beautiful peek-a-boo view of the Sir Walter Scott Monument in the distance and some of Edinburgh's central buildings. Walk all the way down and it connects you to Cockburn Street below. Definitely try walking through a close or two as they are great shortcuts to get from one street to another along the Royal Mile.

Greyfriars Bobby is one of Edinburgh's most popular tourist attractions. Located just in front of…read morethe entrance to the Greyfriars Kirk can be found the bronze statue of Bobby. Hundreds of fans flock here every day to pay their respects, all eager to get a closer look at their doggy hero. History and why it is famous- and trust me guys, he is inthe same league as Hachi- Bobby, born in 1856, was a Terrier who spent over 14 years guarding the grave of his beloved owner. John - a dedicated nightwatchman for the Edinburgh City Police Force - carried out his duties with his trusty companion night after night. After John's untimely death in 1858, Bobby refused to leave his master's grave until the day he died himself. The rumours about this little dog began to spread far and wide, and Bobby soon had quite the fan base. In 1867, the Lord Provost of Edinburgh presented him with his very own collar. This gesture signified that Bobby was a licensed dog, meaning that he was protected against the new law that had recently been enforced, which stated that all unlicensed dogs would be destroyed. Bobby passed away in January 1872, and as a final token of his loyalty, was buried close to his master in the Kirkyard. A granite fountain with a statue can be found opposite Greyfriars Kirkyard - a permanent memorial to this faithful pup. Bobby's grave can be found immediately inside the gate of Greyfriars Kirkyard. He was buried close to his much-loved John, ensuring that the pair's astonishing bond would never be broken. It is not uncommon for doting visitors to leave sticks, dog toys, and flowers on his grave.

It's the statue of a cute Skye Terrier named Bobby. A loyal dog who is said to have stayed at…read moreGreyfriars Kirkyard near his master's grave for 14 years until his death in 1872. He lived to be 16 years old with the help of the community who knew his master, John Gray. Bobby was buried in the courtyard entrance of the kirkyard near his grave. This statue is on Candlemaker Row across the street from Greyfriars Bobby Bar (named after this special little doggie). People continue to rub his nose for good luck. As you can see, the paint has rubbed off his nose. It's still a nice statue and tribute. We just happened to see it on our way to the National Museum of Scotland. It was a great little discovery.

From all the social media post I've seen, this was on my list for places to check out in Edinburgh…read more First visit, we actually went to the wrong location...lol.... Made up for the next time. It's a good 15 min or so in the car from downtown Edinburgh or you could walk. We ended walking as it gave us a chance to see things that we've missed from all the other time we've visited. It was probably a half hour walk just taking our time. Faster if we didn't stop to look at things and take pictures. Right when you get to the location, there's Dean Bridge that crosses over. If you reached it, the village is right below. There's a little cobble stone street that literally takes you to the Instagram spot where I've seen. It's another little bridge that looks down to the town. A river below which was somewhat frozen. Of course everyone is there for the same reason, to get the perfect shot. The cute painted homes and rustic architecture gives it a gothic vibe. Walking along the cobble stone streets and checking out the little village was pretty calm. There's even a path that runs along the river you can walk along. The village itself isn't that big. Even though it was winter, the place was still beautiful. Imagine the warmer season when everyone is walking around, it'll get crowded but beautiful. If you walk under Dean Bridge, there's a main path that will take you back to the city. It's wider and below the homes but a really nice walk. People out for their jog or casually strolling. This place was very cute. Nothing big but something worth checking out. The power of social media know what it's doing.

Agree with all the other reviews! Dean Village was such a charming walk during our time in…read moreEdinburgh. On a rainy day, it wasn't too crowded, and the views are beautiful, especially considering how close it is to the city center.

This close was named after the Lady Stair's House which is now the Writers' Museum. The house dates…read moreback to 1622. It currently is a museum celebrating Scottish Poets. The large courtyard in Lady Stair's Close is called Makar's (or Poets) Court. It's very recognizable with the historical gas lamp in the middle of it. You'll also see that the stones in the court are inscribed with quotes from Scottish poets and writers. It can be a pleasant atmosphere in the day, or a creepy one at night. I believe the ghost tours do pass through here at night. I can see why a scene from Guillermo del Toro's "Frankenstein" was filmed here (the execution scene). This area can easily be adapted into a 17th century setting. It's another hidden close that shouldn't be missed while heading up to the castle.

A great place of history with points of interest dotted around from the walls to the ground, its…read morelike going back in time and I love it.

As a sucker for a pun-laden name, I'm going to have to let my heart rule my head on this one. Deep…read moredown I know that this shop shovels all the same shite (try saying that quickly) as every other ruthless, penny grabbing enterprise along The Royal Mile. But I also know that whoever the owner is, they've got a sharper wit than most, so that extra star is well deserved.

Apart from the, quite frankly, awesome name, Thistle do nicely is rather samey to the other tourist…read moretat shops that line the Royal Mile. It has an abundance of shortbread, Scottish themed jewellery, tartan teddies, See-You-Jimmy hats, fridge magnets, Scottish flags and pretty much items you'd only ever buy if you were a tourist. Which means my dealings with this shop are seldom, apart from when I went to teach English in a high school in Germany and literally had to take a suitcase full of tat. The prices in Thistle Do Nicely are quite reasonable and the hilarious name deserves a star alone.

Like Julia, I tend not to tire of referring to Cock-Burn street by it's phonetic pronunciation,…read morewhich sounds slightly like the kind of ailment you'd find after getting a bit carried away down Lothian Road. It's one of the streets I know best in Edinburgh but a trip here is always tinged with sadness as I remember Fopp and Uber-Disko, which have sadly now made way for a drugs information clinic and whatever is currently a couple of doors down from Avalanche. I forget. Retail has to move with the times however and while I do miss my old favourites, I'm glad to see that quirky and oddball stores such as Cutie House and Supa Kuru have come in to brighten up the place rather than the usual soulless dross. Fantastic ice-cream at Toddle Inn as well, and in Underground Solu'shn, at least one store is keeping the "crisp biscuits" alive.

Ahh, Cockburn Street, my picturesquely twisting friend, what delights you hold!…read more Cockburn Street is pretty much top of my list for present shopping, due to its abundance of cute'n'kooky little shops. It's just the right side of sketchy - some of its establishments look a little seedy but in a colourful and good-natured manner, while others are cute and bubbly. As a street, it's a real picture. Old, cobbled, and winding in a tight curl from High Street to Market Street, walking down it feels like scooting down a shop-lined version of Moonface's Slippery Slip in the Magic Faraway Tree books. Dark closes challenge you with endless steps to left and right, where if you just pick one randomly, you might find a shortcut, or you might add several minutes and a potential cardiac arrest to your journey. It's also one of the streets that gets gritted in snowy conditions so it's among the less perilous of the Old Town's winter attractions.

We came to Edinburgh for the Taylor swift concert and wanted to do some exploring. My 13 year old…read moredaughter and her friend made it clear they didn't want to do any sightseeing so we looked for fun activities that appealed to teens...and came across this. We found this to be a fun way to kill 90 minutes in this cool city. There's all sorts of rooms with optical illusions, but you also get to enjoy amazing views of Edinburgh on the rooftops. The girls seemed to enjoy, although the favorite part was probably the last room which included some a mirror maze and something that made me super dizzy. Recommended for kid/teen fun!

Pretty cool with or without kids, stunning views from atop. Multilevel, nice gift shop and opens up…read morenext to the Edinburgh Castle. Book ahead, we had to purchase tickets and wait another two hours to get in.

I thoroughly enjoyed my tour with The Cadies & Witchery Tours. I was looking for an intimate…read moreexperience where I felt comfortable asking questions and this was it!!! From the moment I walked into their storefront to inquire about the tour options... I met with Robin and felt right at home. She mentioned that this was a newer tour that Robert researched and put together in 2020. It was rich in history, unique stories, and we had the ability to ask questions along the way (while exploring Greyfriars Kirkyard). If you are looking for a tour that gives you a genuine feel for the souls that have been laid to rest in Greyfriars, this is it.

We had fun on this tour and for us that is what matters. The tour guides were fun, they dressed up…read moreas characters, got into it and were fun. One person did the tour as one character and the other came in as a character and surprised us coming in as different characters every so often. This was about the tour guides being fun and the story told around different streets. If you are wanting serious ghostly locations and happenings this maybe is not for you. It may also good for older children. We had good fun and for £10 per person was good value.