Address: 28 Blair St, Edinburgh, EH1 1QR, United Kingdom
Phone: +441312255445
Rating: 4.6
based on 517 reviews.
Tour Guides
Pros:
"It was well worth it though made extra special by the tour guide."
"Our tour guide Margaret Ann mixed things up to give us a bit of everything to suit our interests."
"Stefanie was an excellent guide and could tell a good story with plenty of humor and wit."
"She was a fabulous tour guide and had endless interesting stories about the area."
"Anastasia was an amazing guide, she was kind, a good storyteller and made sure we safely navigated the vaults."
"Our tour guide was an incredible story teller, so funny, entertaining, and knowledgeable."
"Linda was a great tour guide."
Cons:
"One thing that threw me off was the loud muffled sound of the pub above us during the tour."
"It all just felt a bit gimmicky, and left me wondering if anything we were told was true, or just made up for tourists unfortunately."
"The acting we saw from the guides and on the website videos are a bit much(hammy,overreacting,loud startling yelling) Less is more guys."
"I did enjoy the ghost tour but felt That too much time wasted listening to the guide outside."
"However our vaults ‘ghost’ tour was very disappointing. Way too long with stories of other tours instead of actual historical relevance of the place and the spirits."
"However we left a bit bored from the stories as it was not chilling or scary."
"Wouldn't recommend this tour for kids just because of the subject matter may be a little too gruesome for them."
Value for Money
Pros:
"May feel the price a bit high, but worth every penny of it."
"Would 100% recommend you use these guys above the others."
"I also think it's really refreshing how great value for money the experience is - especially considering how expensive other Edinburgh attractions are now!"
"It's a well priced experience and Edinburgh is the perfect spooky city for such true and terrifying tales."
"The experience was worth every penny and I would definitely recommend it when you visit Edinburgh!!!"
"Highly recommended!! Thanks so much Mercat tours!!"
"The vaults themselves are well worth admission price."
Cons:
"Only downside was it felt a bit rushed and we didn't get a chance to see or visit all the rooms in the vault to have photos etc which would have been nice."
"Cons: value for price. The hour goes by quick, so I’d maybe opt for a longer tour."
"Never got to go on a tour booked tickets and showed up and they did not have our booking... Be very careful when booking your tickets and be wary as you may not get on your tour."
"I will add they have refunded me but that does not make up for the loss of the experience and chance to visit the underground vaults."
"not much to see in here, you meet a guy and he talks for about half a hour about Edinburgh history at the meet up point and then he takes you to the vaults where you see about 3 rooms in total."
"It's a little disappointing as the rooms didn't feel like they had any history at all, even if they may not have history, I feel a lot could be improved."
"More time in the underground bit would be more interesting, there were rooms that we weren't allowed in."
Atmosphere & Experience
Pros:
"These vaults are definitely atmospheric!"
"The secrets of the royal mile is a great way to get a feel of the history of Edinburgh."
"The unground vaults shows you a hidden but large aspect of Edinburgh's history which was great to be able to see."
"The information was very interesting and the vaults are as eerie as you want them to be."
"It was super informative and we had lots of fun with are tourguide Steve :) Steve was really cool and we had some scary moments too."
"The atmosphere was haunting, dimly lit by candles, setting the perfect stage for the tales of Edinburgh's underbelly during the 16th and 17th centuries."
"The vaults were very creepy, we could almost see the ghosts due to the chilling atmosphere that was enhanced by our professional ghost-guide."
Cons:
"The vaults are essentially just the vaulted basement rooms of the tour companies offices, which are all mostly empty and have lights wired in so they’re not completely dark."
"It all just felt a bit gimmicky, and left me wondering if anything we were told was true, or just made up for tourists unfortunately."
"The tour felt underwhelming as the 'spookiest' tour that they offer. Could have a little more history and conversation on the way to the vaults."
"From other reviewers I was hoping for something more in-depth or scarier."
"Besides the one or two candles here and there it was not very eventful or noteworthy visually."
"However our vaults ‘ghost’ tour was very disappointing. Way too long with stories of other tours instead of actual historical relevance of the place and the spirits."
"An interesting bit of history surrounding Mercat Cross and the closes. Would have liked a bit more fright to the experience."