Edinburgh Festival Voluntary Guides Association
Edinburgh Festival Voluntary Guides Association
Edinburgh Festival Voluntary Guides Association
5
10:30 AM - 12:00 PM, 2:00 PM - 3:30 PM
Monday
10:30 AM - 12:00 PM
2:00 PM - 3:30 PM
Tuesday
10:30 AM - 12:00 PM
2:00 PM - 3:30 PM
Wednesday
10:30 AM - 12:00 PM
2:00 PM - 3:30 PM
Thursday
10:30 AM - 12:00 PM
2:00 PM - 3:30 PM
Friday
10:30 AM - 12:00 PM
2:00 PM - 3:30 PM
Saturday
10:30 AM - 12:00 PM
2:00 PM - 3:30 PM
Sunday
10:30 AM - 12:00 PM
2:00 PM - 3:30 PM
Full view
About
Walking tours of Edinburgh's historic Royal Mile run by expert local guides. During the Edinburgh International Festival and Fringe, tours run twice per day and are completely free with no need to book in advance. The times given for tours relate to this period, in 2024 Sunday 4 August- Sunday 25 August inclusive. Tours can also be arranged at other times of the year for a small fee. Small groups (typically 6 - 8 people per tour).
Edinburgh, Scotland
Awards
Travelers' Choice
2024
Suggest edits to improve what we show.
Improve this listingSimilar Experiences
Edinburgh Festival Voluntary Guides Association
Booking unavailable on Tripadvisor
Want other options you can book now?
Show optionsTravelers talk about
Contribute
Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.
Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as wait time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.
Popular mentions
5.0
172 reviews
Excellent
166
Very good
5
Average
1
Poor
0
Terrible
0
jec5
180 contributions
Aug 2020 • Couples
Before we started the tour we had our details taken and questions asked re covid as it's 2020 and we are all having to be careful. I was impressed with the care the guides took over this from the start, and it is more than some cafes are doing.The guides also wore face shields.
Our guide Victor was an excellent and knowledgeable tour guide. Before we even started the tour he asked our group, which was a group of 5 from 2 households, what we were most interested in and if there was anything in particular we wanted him to talk about. He took us up to Edinburgh Castle and we started the tour from there. He was very knowledgeable and I got the impression the tour could have lasted far longer as he knew so much about Edinburgh. He welcomed questions and kept checking if we wanted anything answering and if we wanted to talk about anything/building in particular.
I would recommend these tours for anyone who wants the solid historical days and stories behind Edinburgh, and best of all they are free with no expectation at all of any tips etc.
Our guide Victor was an excellent and knowledgeable tour guide. Before we even started the tour he asked our group, which was a group of 5 from 2 households, what we were most interested in and if there was anything in particular we wanted him to talk about. He took us up to Edinburgh Castle and we started the tour from there. He was very knowledgeable and I got the impression the tour could have lasted far longer as he knew so much about Edinburgh. He welcomed questions and kept checking if we wanted anything answering and if we wanted to talk about anything/building in particular.
I would recommend these tours for anyone who wants the solid historical days and stories behind Edinburgh, and best of all they are free with no expectation at all of any tips etc.
Written August 15, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Many thansk for taking the time to submit a detailed review and we are glad you enjoyed the tour
Written August 21, 2020
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
Arielle L
297 contributions
Aug 2022 • Family
The rich past of Edinburgh came to life through the stories of Fiona. We discovered a lot of hidden corners and intersting details on and off the busy High Street. Edinburgh is a magnificent city and Fiona generously shared her knowledge during a 2 hour walk in a most pleasant sunny day. One little comment - I recommend using a madonna speaker as it was sometimes harder to hear the stories on the crowded main street.
Written August 13, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Many thanks for your review, audibility can be an issue in such a crowded environment and thank you for your suggestion. I am glad you enjoyed the tour.
Written August 14, 2022
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
Teresa O
Edinburgh, UK2 contributions
Aug 2020
I enjoyed an excellent tour with Elspeth McLean from EFVGA this afternoon. I leant an enormous amount about the history of the city I've lived in for 15 years. Elspeth is very knowledgeable and brought the tour to life with engaging stories and illustrations. I'll definitely do this again and recommend it to friends.
Written August 22, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Many thanks to you for submitting this review, we are very glad you enjoyed it.
Written August 23, 2020
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
Pattone
Gillingham, UK11 contributions
Mar 2022
An amazing and inciteful morning spent in Victor's company. Having never been to Edinburgh before, we wanted to explore and discover some of the social history of this amazing city. Victor provided this in spades and tailored it to our needs completely! Our leisurely 3 hour walk, not only took in the major sights (Castle etc) but more importantly took us off the beaten track down small alleyways to areas of the city that we would never have found. One of the highlights was the interior of the Bank of Scotland - amazing! Victor's never ending wealth of stories about the luminaries of the city had us in fits of laughter and provided a even deeper insight into Edinburgh's historical city life.
Written March 20, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
slongorb
11 contributions
Jul 2023 • Family
We hired Mr. Victor Aitken to walk us around Edinburgh on the 4th of July. The very instructive Mr. Aitken was incredibly kind and considerate, always asking if we liked the way the tour was going and if we had any questions or requests. Despite our short time together, Mr. Aitken gave us a wonderful introduction to the Scottish capital and to the city's historic lore, and if we were to recommend a tour in Edinburgh to loved ones, the Voluntary Guides Association is our top pick.
Tapadh leibh (thank you) Mr. Aitken!
Tapadh leibh (thank you) Mr. Aitken!
Written July 25, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Thank you for taking the time to review Vic's tour, and I am very glad you enjoyed it.
Written August 6, 2023
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
Seaside03502152818
2 contributions
Mar 2024 • Family
This is the best way to begin a trip to Edinburgh and we had a top-notch experience from start to end. Elspeth was so welcoming in helping us to arrange a private tour. Our tour guide, Ken, was knowledgeable, engaging, and very generous to meet us on a holiday. Ken’s done lots of research, with supplemental visuals to help you contextualize. He really tailored our walk for time and distance considerations we had and was conscientious about time. As a lifelong Edinburgher, he could speak not only on history, but lots of contemporary social and cultural issues we were interested in. We all felt like he paced things very well and included the ideal amount of information to keep our group of children and adults engaged. This is such a bargain for what you get and to see people volunteer their time to teach us about the city they feel such pride in speaks volumes of the hospitality here. Thank you!
Written March 31, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Many thanks for taking the trouble to leave such a detailed revew of your tour with Ken, arranged by Elspeth, very glad you enjoyed it.
Written April 23, 2024
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
Philomena C
Edinburgh, UK1 contribution
Jul 2022 • Friends
The knowledge, history and storytelling of our humorous guide Victor Aitken was spellbinding!! Vic has a wealth of historical insight about Scotland generally, linking it to our walk in Edinburgh.
We covered an extensive area, although tired by the end, felt it was worth every step.
Thank you Victor Aitken.
We covered an extensive area, although tired by the end, felt it was worth every step.
Thank you Victor Aitken.
Written August 21, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Thank you for submitting your review of Vic's tour, very glad that you enjoyed it.
Written August 22, 2022
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
Coastal52724749411
1 contribution
Sep 2023 • Friends
As my friend was totally blind, we were desperate to find a custom walking tour that can tend to our needs with reasonable price. We were so thrilled that we found Edinburgh Festival Voluntary Guides Association.
Elspeth McLean responded to us quickly when we got in touch and kindly arranged a tour for us even with a very short notice in such a busy time in Edinburgh. We incredibly appreciate the effort as my friend was gonna fly out back to our home country in Vietnam later that month. It might be a very long time before he would have another chance to visit the UK.
Victor was our guide and he was amazing! We appreciate his caring for details like making sure my friend always stood in a place that could avoid any eager tourists accidentally touching him, which makes a huge different for his experience as a blind person. Victor's true stories about Edinburgh were above an beyond. They hooked us in and helped us to truly relive the stunning history of Edinburgh. We couldn't expect better.
Overall, we highly recommend the tour and association. Truly amazing.
Elspeth McLean responded to us quickly when we got in touch and kindly arranged a tour for us even with a very short notice in such a busy time in Edinburgh. We incredibly appreciate the effort as my friend was gonna fly out back to our home country in Vietnam later that month. It might be a very long time before he would have another chance to visit the UK.
Victor was our guide and he was amazing! We appreciate his caring for details like making sure my friend always stood in a place that could avoid any eager tourists accidentally touching him, which makes a huge different for his experience as a blind person. Victor's true stories about Edinburgh were above an beyond. They hooked us in and helped us to truly relive the stunning history of Edinburgh. We couldn't expect better.
Overall, we highly recommend the tour and association. Truly amazing.
Written September 18, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Thank you very much for your review of the tour arranged for your blind friend. We are very glad that you appreciated Vic's tour.
Written September 25, 2023
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
Karen S
Manchester, UK8 contributions
Aug 2022
we visited Edinburgh as a small group and had a free private tour with Kenny on a busy Saturday during the Fringe which was awesome! we hadn't pre-booked but turned up at the right time. Kenny was a fountain of knowledge about the city, led us to some places we would have never thought to visit and educated us on many things including lots of history about Edinburgh. we thoroughly enjoyed our tour. thank you again Kenny.
my favourite things were standing in front of Edinburgh Castle beside the Tattoo seating and the 14th century wall down one of the alleys.
my favourite things were standing in front of Edinburgh Castle beside the Tattoo seating and the 14th century wall down one of the alleys.
Written August 31, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Many thanks for your review and we are very glad you enjoyed Kenny's tour.
Written September 2, 2022
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
Jane J
2 contributions
Aug 2023
I thoroughly enjoyed this free tour. They split us into smaller groups which was great in terms of being able to keep together in a busy city and being able to hear all the guide had to say. My guide was Richard who gave much more of his time than billed and took us into places off the beaten track only a local would know about. Highly recommended!
Written August 15, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Thank you for taking the time to leave this review and I am glad that you enjoyed Richard's tour.
Written August 15, 2023
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
No questions have been asked about this experience