The Real Mary King's Close

Traveler reviews

• Jolene Gan

  ★★★★★4 months ago

  Came a day prior to the tour to check out the prices and got a brief, friendly introduction to what I can expect to see, as well as expected availability. I said I would come back and was back the day after with my partner to celebrate his birthday. As the other comments suggest, this is quite a profit-driven tour - they appear to have overlapping tour groups that suggest they never really stop these tours, or that they were smaller, more intimate groups, yet the tickets and souvenirs are priced as if these were 1.5-2 hour tours without group overlap. It felt rushed and there were so many instances where I wanted to stop and take it in for a little bit but we had to rush along for the next section. There were a few stops where I didn’t get to see the entirety as the group was crowding the displays, so some bits were obstructed from view. There were also moments where I couldn’t hear the full spiel of my guide because of the volume of the other group behind ours. The souvenirs are quality and inventive, but leaving with something from the store, on top of the price of the two tickets we’d purchased, would’ve broken the bank a bit. Affordability aside, this was a beautifully dark historical story of Edinburgh that tugged at my heartstrings. Our tour guide was a gorgeous and funny Katie A., and she spoke with an American accent that was easier to follow than a deeply Scottish one, which I appreciated. She highlighted the estimated number of years left we had to see some of the imprints on the walls, and it was surreal to be present during the slow fade of a moment in time that was lived by people centuries ago. There was so much more to her tour that I won’t spoil here, but I did also get the feeling that there was far more to the history that she wanted to share, but couldn’t fit into the 1-hour frame. They do have different tour types, so perhaps each one covers its own theme and the guided tour was a brief overview. Most peculiarly, I walked out feeling like I didn’t or wasn’t supposed to leave. There was a growing, positively palpable sensation of sadness and something akin to longing as I went further and further from the tour site. There was a moment in which I’d stopped abruptly in my tracks, saying firmly, "I want to go back," quite nearly breaking into tears right then. I thought it to be burdensome but my partner walked me back while I was distracted and I decided it wouldn’t hurt to go back in just to explore this odd emotion. Katie A. was still in the shop, and I went up to speak to her, quite promptly breaking into tears and probably scaring her. She reassured me that she’s never had a visitor leave with an emotional reaction like this before, and I concluded that perhaps it was simply her great storytelling that enchanted me. It’s a much more soothing explanation than one of paranormality. Whether it was Katie or other, the energy was powerful and lasting. My 5 stars are wholly credited to the waves of emotion that gripped me during and after the tour. While I doubt I’ll come back again, I might consider one of the different tour options for the future, to see the other areas that weren’t included in the main tour. Their Signature Guided Tour has driven me to go in search of the extended history of Edinburgh, Mary King’s Close, and the plague, which hopefully is their main motivation for this tour besides profit.

• Brittany Waag

  ★★★★★a week ago

  I had seen a little about this online when I was planning our trip to Edinburgh (we are from the USA), but I really wasn’t sure what to expect. It was extremely interesting and gave a new perspective of the city’s history. Our tour guide, Mickey, was full of energy and her delivery of the information added to the tour. Great experience for sure and would highly recommend!

Selected reviews sourced from Google Maps.