Edinburgh walking tour & game plan

Does anybody have any experience with either Little Fish walking tours or Mercat walking tours?

We are considering two game-plans for our day in Edinburgh, both based on the expectation that there's a shuttle into town but don't know to/from where:

Plan 1:

• 9:30 - 11:00 Castle on own
  
• 11:30 - 2:00 Little Fish walking tour
  
• 2:00 -- Lunch (or may have eaten it on break during walking tour)
  
• After late lunch: Scottish National Gallery (major art lover) and back to shuttle
  

Plan 2:

• 10:00 - 12:00 Scottish National Gallery on own
  
• Lunch
  
• 1:30 - 4:00 Mercat walking tour which includes 45 min to castle
  
• After 4:00 finish what we have time for in castle and back to shuttle
  

Any thoughts on either tour company or on which plan makes more sense?

Maybe lunch at the National Gallery. http://www.contini.com/scottish-cafe-and-restaurant

You can book a table.

Based on the fact that you are a major art lover that is where I would begin.

Does anybody have any experience with either Little Fish walking tours or Mercat walking tours?

 

We are considering two game-plans for our day in Edinburgh, both based on the expectation that there's a shuttle into town but don't know to/from where:

 

Plan 1:

• 9:30 - 11:00 Castle on own
  
• 11:30 - 2:00 Little Fish walking tour
  
• 2:00 -- Lunch (or may have eaten it on break during walking tour)
  
• After late lunch: Scottish National Gallery (major art lover) and back to shuttle
  

 

Plan 2:

• 10:00 - 12:00 Scottish National Gallery on own
  
• Lunch
  
• 1:30 - 4:00 Mercat walking tour which includes 45 min to castle
  
• After 4:00 finish what we have time for in castle and back to shuttle
  

 

Any thoughts on either tour company or on which plan makes more sense?

I'd be happy to help if you tell me which ship you are on and what time of year you will be here because this will make a difference to what you can achieve

I'd be happy to help if you tell me which ship you are on and what time of year you will be here because this will make a difference to what you can achieve

We're on Viking Sea, which comes in to Rosyth, on July 6 from 8 - 6. I heard from my TA that Viking will provide a shuttle from the port to downtown Edinburgh but I haven't seen this any place in writing; I'm taking it on faith.

Based on "new" information, I'm now thinking of swapping Holyrood Palace & the Queen's Gallery for the Castle. (It will depend on whether the Queen is in residence and I don't see a schedule for 2017 yet on that front.)

Our aim would be to be on the earliest shuttle into town that we can get.

Assuming the Palace is open, the opening time is 9:30 (vs the museum's 10) so that's why we'd start at the Palace/Gallery. Depending on timing, hunger, location and timing of the last shuttle, we'd also visit the (1) National Gallery and (2) walk around Edinburgh on our own or using a Rick Steves' walking tour for additional info. I see that there's a RS guide to Scotland that I'm going to borrow from the library to see if I like it. There's also an audio walking tour that I'll take a listen to and check it out. Not quite as much fun as a real, live tour guide but more flexible for us in terms of timing.

That's the new plan!

Does anybody have any experience with either Little Fish walking tours or Mercat walking tours?

 

We are considering two game-plans for our day in Edinburgh, both based on the expectation that there's a shuttle into town but don't know to/from where:

 

Plan 1:

• 9:30 - 11:00 Castle on own
  
• 11:30 - 2:00 Little Fish walking tour
  
• 2:00 -- Lunch (or may have eaten it on break during walking tour)
  
• After late lunch: Scottish National Gallery (major art lover) and back to shuttle
  

 

Plan 2:

• 10:00 - 12:00 Scottish National Gallery on own
  
• Lunch
  
• 1:30 - 4:00 Mercat walking tour which includes 45 min to castle
  
• After 4:00 finish what we have time for in castle and back to shuttle
  

 

Any thoughts on either tour company or on which plan makes more sense?

This one below is FREE..

http://www.neweuropetours.eu/edinburgh/en/home

This one below is FREE..

 

http://www.neweuropetours.eu/edinburgh/en/home

Well it's free only to the extent that you pay what you think it's worth so this can be nothing but of course that's not how it works as everybody usually pays generously!

It is unlikely Holyrood will be open to visitors on July 6th as that is USUALLY when the Queen is in Residence.

Most cruise lines offer a tour to Edinburgh called Edinburgh on Your Own or similar, rather than calling it a shuttle but I cannot remember specifically about Viking from this year. I know for sure though that on other lines they tend to leave the ship at around 8:30 - 9:00. Tide fluctuations at Rosyth often result in it taking a while yo secure the lines.

In line with their river cruises, Viking usually offer one free tour at each port. At Rosyth it is a 4½ hour tour - NATIONAL MUSEUM & THE ROYAL MILE

A FREE ORIENTATION OF EDINBURGH

 

Enjoy a leisurely overview of Edinburgh, an elegant capital alive with Scottish culture and history. You will begin with a city drive through its charming streets that seamlessly blend medieval architecture and modern buildings. Classic beauty is on display around every corner. At the National Museum of Scotland, your guide will lead you to the highlights of the collection before you explore the rooms on your own. Continue to the medieval Old Town and the Royal Mile. One of the oldest streets in Edinburgh, the Royal Mile links Edinburgh Castle, which has loomed from its rocky perch for over a millennium, and the Palace of Holyroodhouse, the occasional royal residence. This one-mile boulevard is a fascinating parade of historic monuments, landmarks and statues of legendary distinction, such as Canongate, Lawnmarket, the statues of King Charles II and Sir Walter Scott and the stately Parliament Building.

There are other tours that you have to pay for: http://www.vikingcruises.co.uk/oceans/cruise-destinations/baltic/into-the-midnight-sun/index.html#itineraryday/12

In line with their river cruises, Viking usually offer one free tour at each port. At Rosyth it is a 4½ hour tour - NATIONAL MUSEUM & THE ROYAL MILE

 

 

 

There are other tours that you have to pay for: http://www.vikingcruises.co.uk/oceans/cruise-destinations/baltic/into-the-midnight-sun/index.html#itineraryday/12

Yes, I've looked at these closely. The National Museum is different than the Scottish National Gallery. The latter is where I am most interested in going, so the free excursion basically is not a good use of my time. Nor do any of the "at cost" excursions do what I want to do, so I'm pretty comfortable either doing it on our own or with a walking tour that we'll pick up that day.

Well it's free only to the extent that you pay what you think it's worth so this can be nothing but of course that's not how it works as everybody usually pays generously!

 

It is unlikely Holyrood will be open to visitors on July 6th as that is USUALLY when the Queen is in Residence.

 

Most cruise lines offer a tour to Edinburgh called Edinburgh on Your Own or similar, rather than calling it a shuttle but I cannot remember specifically about Viking from this year. I know for sure though that on other lines they tend to leave the ship at around 8:30 - 9:00. Tide fluctuations at Rosyth often result in it taking a while yo secure the lines.

And the "free" tours are often unmanageably large groups.

Bummer about Holyrood; I guess that will have to wait for our next visit to Edinburgh. I was mentally planning one. . .

It's hard to say about Viking and the shuttle this past year; they were at a tender port (can't remember the name) not Rosyth. But my TA called Viking and they said there'd be a shuttle. So we'll see. I'd take a shuttle, or an "on your own" option, but we'll also bring train info just in case.

Thanks everyone.:)

And the "free" tours are often unmanageably large groups.

 

.:)

not ours

this is part of my receipt

this what it covers

"Edinburgh Castle

St Giles’ Cathedral

Heart of Midlothian

The real Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde

William Wallace and the Stone of Destiny

Greyfriars Kirkyard (cemetery) and Greyfriars Bobby

The Royal Mile

Edinburgh’s Old Town

Mercat Cross

National Museum

Covenanters’ Prison

Martyrs’ Memorial

The Scottish Writers Museum

Grassmarket

The original ‘Hogwarts’

The Hub

...and much more!

In the narrow streets of Edinburgh you were as likely to meet a murderer as a man of genius. Body-snatchers, witch hunters, firebrand priests and philosophers all living on the side of a dead volcano. Guides will take you down narrow alleyways, tell you the stories behind the history, and show you views which will define your trip to Scotland’s capital!

This 2.5-hour walking tour covers all the main sights of the Old Town. The guides we work with have a unique style of combining history with pure showmanship and this has made us one of the most popular walking tour companies in all of Europe."

What Viking may do could be totally different from this. However, we anchored in South Queensferry (kind of across the river from Rosyth) a few years ago on another cruise line. There was a shuttle bus there offering a ride for 10 euros to Charlotte Square, which is near Princes Street, not terribly far from Edinburgh Castle. That doesn't mean Viking will arrange a shuttle to that location, but maybe it's a little bit of help, as often the shuttles that cruise ships arrange use the same drop and pickup spots. That location is convenient if you want to stroll down Princes Street.

What Viking may do could be totally different from this. However, we anchored in South Queensferry (kind of across the river from Rosyth) a few years ago on another cruise line. There was a shuttle bus there offering a ride for 10 euros to Charlotte Square, which is near Princes Street, not terribly far from Edinburgh Castle. That doesn't mean Viking will arrange a shuttle to that location, but maybe it's a little bit of help, as often the shuttles that cruise ships arrange use the same drop and pickup spots. That location is convenient if you want to stroll down Princes Street.

Only the independent coach operator uses Charlotte Square. Most cruise line excursions drop off and pick up in Waterloo Place, which is an equally convenient location but at the East end (opposite end) of Princes Street.

We have been on two Viking Ocean cruises and they do have shuttles back and forth into the center of town and they run frequently. We often would sign up for their early included tour and then stay in town and roam on our own and then take the shuttle back. There is no charge at all for the shuttle. The free tours which they offer usually give you an easy way to get your bearings and then you can do your own thing.