Witches of Edinburgh: Trial and Truth, Small-Group Tour

About this experience

Witches of Edinburgh: Trial and Truth is a small-group walking tour in Edinburgh covering the real history of Scotland's witch trials across 90 minutes. Starting at Mercat Cross on the Royal Mile, the tour moves through the Old Town's closes and alleyways, visiting sites directly connected to accusations, confessions, and executions. A Master Storyteller leads the group using TourTalk audio devices and headphones, ensuring clear narration while moving through Edinburgh's historic streets. Scotland prosecuted more people for witchcraft per capita than almost any other European country, and the tour draws on documented cases rather than invented legend. The route takes in the Castle Esplanade beside Edinburgh Castle, one of the principal execution sites, as well as hidden closes where fear and suspicion shaped daily life for centuries. Narration is supported by atmospheric audio including crackling fire sounds, grounding the historical accounts in their physical settings. This is a history-led tour, not a ghost walk, and the stories cover the social and political forces that drove the trials alongside the individuals caught up in them. Tickets cover the guided 90-minute tour, use of TourTalk audio equipment, and access to all stops on the route. Group sizes are kept small to allow the storytelling format to work effectively at each location.

Highlights

• Walk Edinburgh’s steep cobbled streets to historic execution sites where accused witches once suffered, and are now quietly remembered with dignity today.
• Your Master Storyteller’s voice streams directly through headphones, making dramatic trial stories feel personal while wandering Edinburgh’s narrow medieval lanes.
• This adults only experience allows the guide to explore Scotland’s witch trial history honestly, without softening the darker realities behind the accusations.
• The small group setting creates a more intimate atmosphere, making Edinburgh’s haunting witch trial stories feel personal rather than rushed or overcrowded.
• Lighting the Remembrance Candle transforms the tour’s ending into a thoughtful tribute, honouring real people wrongly accused and executed for witchcraft centuries ago.

What is included

• English-speaking Master Storyteller guide
• 1.5 hours of walking tour
• TourTalk audio devices to hear the guide clearly
• 18+ guests only
• Small-group tour
• Remembrance Candle

Before you go

Arrival and timing Make your way to Mercat Cross on the Royal Mile and check in with your ticket before the tour begins. Arrive a few minutes early so the group can set off together on time. The tour runs for 90 minutes and covers several locations on foot through Edinburgh's Old Town, so wear comfortable, weather-appropriate clothing and sturdy shoes suited to cobbled streets. During the tour TourTalk audio devices and headphones are provided at the start, allowing you to hear your guide clearly as the group moves through busy streets and narrow closes. Keep your audio device with you throughout and follow your guide's instructions when moving between locations. The tour ends with a Remembrance Candle ceremony, and you are welcome to take your candle home afterwards. Out of respect for the historical themes and other participants, keep phone use to a minimum and avoid disruptive behaviour during storytelling moments.

Cancellation terms

Free cancellation up to 24 hours before the start time.