Delve into Edinburgh’s ghoulish side with an 80 minute early evening walking tour of the city’s eeriest sites! As you venture down the historic Royal Mile you will hear tales of torture, witchcraft, plague and mayhem from your local ghoslty guide – Mr Alexander Clapperton (deceased) – a former Edinburgh cemetery director. Learn about and meet infamous apparitions such as the Mad Monk of Cowgate, the witch Agnes Fynnie, and the wild and bloody Higlander Rhuari McLeod. Prepare yourself for a night of good fun in the shadows!

80 min light hearted evening walking tour of Edinburgh’s historic Old Town
Explore the Royal Mile with your guide, the long-dead Mr Alexander Clapperton
Shudder at lively encounters with the ghosts of Edinburgh’s past: a bad tempered witch, an energetic grave-digger and a wild Highlander as well as others!
Your tour includes a copy of 'The Witchery Tales', a best-selling book by Adam Lyal (deceased)

What's Included

Our famous 'Jumper-ooters'

Gratuities
Hotel pickup and drop off
Food and drink, unless specified

Meeting And Pickup

Meeting point

The Witchery by the Castle
352 Castlehill, Edinburgh EH1 2NF, UK
Meet outside the Witchery Restaurant, 5-10 minutes before the start of the tour.

Start time

07:00 PM

End point

Lawnmarket
Lawnmarket, Edinburgh EH1, UK

What To Expect

As the evening sun begins to set, your tour of Edinburgh’s spirited sites and horrific history begins. Meet your guide – Edinburgh’s infamous (and dead!) 19th-century cemetery director, Mr Clapperton – on the Royal Mile and brace yourself for a fiendishly funny walk through the dimly-lit cobbled streets and courtyards of old town Edinburgh.

As you admire the nocturnal nature of the capital city, listen to Mr Clapperton’s spooky tales of witchcraft, torture, plague and invasions. You will meet some colourful characters from the city’s past in the form of ‘jumper-ooters’ such as the Mad Monk of the Cowgate, a monk badly burned in a 17th century monastery fire, and Agnes Fynnie, a witch burned at the stake in 1641. You will also learn about invasions to Edinburgh coutsey of Rhuari McLeod, a wild and bloody Highlander, and Jimmy Tamson, a young man known for burying lots of dead bodies during the 17th-century Black Plague.

As well as meeting a lively array of ghoulish characters from Edinburgh’s past, you will once again witness public demonstrations of spine-tingling torture devices that ‘enjoyed’ centuries of common use. A few ‘volunteers’ will be required! By the end of this light-hearted 80 minutes, you’ll look at Edinburgh’s darker history in a very different way!

To remember your experience, you will take home a complementary copy of the fascinating ‘Witchery Tales’ book by Adam Lyal (deceased).

Cadies & Witchery Tours (Pass By)

Additional Info

Confirmation will be received at time of booking
Wheelchair accessible
Stroller accessible
Service animals allowed
Near public transportation

Surfaces are wheelchair accessible
No heart problems or other serious medical conditions
Most travelers can participate
Children must always be accompanied by at least one adult.
This tour/activity will have a maximum of 25 travelers

Cancellation Policy

You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.

For a full refund, you must cancel at least 24 hours before the experience’s start time.
If you cancel less than 24 hours before the experience’s start time, the amount you paid will not be refunded.

Any changes made less than 24 hours before the experience’s start time will not be accepted.
Cut-off times are based on the experience’s local time.

Traveler Photos

Reviews

5.0

472 reviews

Total review count and overall rating based on Viator and Tripadvisor reviews

Reviews by Viator travelers.

Showing 1-10 of 472 reviews

Best 90 minutes in Edinburgh!

Melissa_L, Jul 2023

Interesting and historical with a solid helping of gore and surprises! Our guides were knowledgeable and added a lot of laughs to dark subjects. A must if you enjoy history and want to learn about the darker side of Edinburgh with light walking. Alexander and his helpers were a delight and brought stories to life! My 15 yr old son said “it made the saddest parts of history hilarious!”

So very glad we took this...

Donna_C, May 2023

So very glad we took this tour! so Funny, informative and just the right amount of walking. Awesome bonus to get the book

A must-do when visiting Edinburgh

Emily_C, Apr 2023

An excellent end to a few days in Edinburgh. Mr Clappingham (deceased) was a brilliant host, and together with his helpers he really brought the stories of Edinburgh to life. Enjoyable even though it was drizzling and well worth doing.

Family Friendly Fun!

Samantha_M, Jan 2023

This tour was geared more towards the darker history of Edinburgh. I don't think it was very scary or related to ghosts very much, but it was still entertaining and educational. Definitely family friendly!

This was not very...

Sovan_B, Oct 2022

This was not very interesting.. though the guide was very cheerful and tried to make it interesting however the concept itself is not very fascinating.

Fun and informative

Dr_J, Jul 2022

Mom with 10 years old girl. My girl loves the tour. She keep laughing every minute. She wants to join again if she has a chance.

Great tour

Kathryn_F, May 2022

Fun, funny, great stories! Clapperton was a great leader and "Agnes" was a star! The kids and adults enjoyed it

Supernatural Experience

Leslie_D, May 2022

What an absolute blast! This was such a fun experience with great guides who really brought Edinburgh history to life, pun intended. While some of the stories are a little spooky it’s still pretty family friendly. My husband and I would highly recommend it and go again.

Informative and good fun

Sandra_H, Apr 2022

The guide Mr Claperton (deceased) was fun from the start and carried on throughout the tour. The visiting ghosts were hilarious kept us entertained throughout. Would thoroughly recommend. Well worth the cost!

Great way to spend a couple if hours!

Karen_A, Apr 2022

Great knowledge of local area. Really included children making it very special and memorable for them.

Fun evening.

Narinderjit_L, Dec 2021

Fun and interactive but also appropriate for all ages. Went with my wife and 10y old son. Worth every penny. Thankyou.

Excellent worthwhile tour

Mark_W, Oct 2021

The way they bring the characters you learn about to life is excellent, imaginative & fun for those of all ages whilst also being given an insight into the gorier parts of Edinburgh history through a very knowledgeable guide

Memorable

Emma_S, Sep 2021

An excellent tour. The guide (deceased) was a wonderful story teller and entertained us from beginning to end with takes of Edinburgh past. I’d recommend this tour without hesitation

Brilliant tour!

Ruth_B, Oct 2020

This was a fantastic experience! Good, entertaining fun combined with fascinating history. The guide is excellent and we met some interesting characters along the way. On an atmospheric evening this was one of the highlights of our trip! Huge thanks to Alexander Clapperton and our great “jumper-ooter “

Funny, clever and amazing value

Pamela_R, Oct 2020

What a great tour. So funny, entertaining and polished. Proper family activity and engaging all the way with several surprise appearances along the way. Amazing value for money. Thank you... and keep it up!

A very fun experience with the guides...

Kelley L, Aug 2017

A very fun experience with the guides. My daughter was thoroughly entertained. Great Job!

Guilds were amazing. Great stories...

Clint A, Aug 2017

Guilds were amazing. Great stories about death and torture mixed with lots of humor. Would recommend this to anyone. My 14 year old said this was her favorite part of the trip and my wife was laughing throughout the tour. A guilds who were friendly and went the extra mile with everything they did.

Great tour. Funny, informative and a...

Christopher R, Jul 2017

Great tour. Funny, informative and a great way to spend 90 minutes. We laughed the whole time. Andrew C was a great tour guide.

The host's are very informative and...

Martin H, Jul 2017

The host's are very informative and funny. Best tour I have been on in Edinburgh. And great cheap price.

Fun tour with two funny characters...

audjim, May 2017

Fun tour with two funny characters telling the history of Edinburgh gore.

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