One of 2 self-guided walks in Edinburgh. See every walk.
In this guide
💡 The Short Version: Start at the Castle Esplanade and finish at the Palace of Holyroodhouse: 1.9 km, about 25 minutes of walking, a full day with the tickets. Walk it Thursday to Monday: the Palace is shut on Tuesdays and Wednesdays from 17 September to 20 May, St Giles’ opens at 13.00 on Sundays, and the One O’Clock Gun is not fired on Sundays. Book a timed ticket for the castle and the Real Mary King’s Close first. St Giles’ has charged £12 since 5 October 2026. The Writers’ Museum and the street itself are free. Or book a tour: Little Fish Tours’ Old Town walkad (from £18, 2 hours) covers the street with a guide but goes into nothing.
The route
Map of the walk numbered stops in walking order
Open the whole route in Google Maps - all the stops in walking order, set to walking directions, which is the version to put on your phone.
The Royal Mile is four streets in a line: Castlehill, the Lawnmarket, the High Street and the Canongate. The route runs downhill, which is easier than climbing it, and the stops are the ones with something to book or a time to catch. Prices are the adult rate in pounds from each operator.
The Royal Mile looking down towards St Giles’ Cathedral and its crown spire. Photo: Andraszy, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.
| Stop | Entry (adult) | Open |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Edinburgh Castle | £23.50 online, £26 at the gate | 9.30 to 18.00 (last entry 17.00) to 30 September; 9.30 to 17.00 (last entry 16.00) from 1 October. Closed 25 and 26 December |
| 2. Camera Obscura and Castlehill | £24.95 in 2026; Scotch Whisky Experience from £25 | Camera Obscura daily, 9.00 to 21.30 to 23 October; the whisky tours 10.00 to 19.00 |
| 3. The Writers’ Museum | Free | Daily 10.00 to 17.00, last entry 16.30 |
| 4. St Giles’ Cathedral | £12 | Monday to Friday 10.00 to 18.00; Saturday 9.00 to 17.00; Sunday 13.00 to 17.00 |
| 5. The Real Mary King’s Close | From £28.50 | Daily 9.00 to 22.30, last entry 21.00, in October 2026 |
| 6. The Canongate | Free | Always |
| 7. The Palace of Holyroodhouse | £22 booked, £26 on the day | Thursday to Monday 17 September to 20 May; daily 21 May to 14 September. Closed 24 to 26 December 2026 |
Walk it with a guide
A guide gives the stories and finds the route. Only the castle tour includes an entry ticket. Prices are GetYourGuide’s lowest “from” prices, per person.
- Edinburgh: Old Town History and Tales Walking Tourad, by Little Fish Tours: from £18, 4.8 stars from 2,864 reviews, 2 hours. It starts at 192 High Street and takes in the Mercat Cross, St Giles’ Cathedral and the Grassmarket.
- Edinburgh: Old Town History Walking Tourad: from £16, 4.8 stars from 929 reviews, 2 hours.
- Edinburgh Castle & Royal Mile Walking Tour - Ticket Includedad, by Clan Pascual Tours: from £53, 4.8 stars from 1,216 reviews, 135 minutes. It meets at 180 High Street, walks the Royal Mile past St Giles’, Victoria Street and the Grassmarket, and guides you into the castle with the entry ticket included.
1. Edinburgh Castle
£23.50 online, £26 at the gate · daily from 9.30 · closed 25 and 26 December
The walk starts on the Castle Esplanade, where the Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo is staged each August. Book a timed ticket first: once online tickets sell out, nothing is sold at the castle. Be at the Argyle Battery before 1pm for the One O’Clock Gun, fired every day except Sundays, Good Friday and Christmas Day, and look for the Honours of Scotland in the Crown Room. Edinburgh Castle tickets has the Flexi ticket, the tours and the route round.
2. Camera Obscura and Castlehill
Camera Obscura £24.95 · Scotch Whisky Experience Silver tour £25 · both daily
Castlehill is the stretch just below the castle gate. The Camera Obscura has five floors of illusions and a rooftop terrace; book a timed slot, because it sells out in holidays and at weekends. The Scotch Whisky Experience at 354 Castlehill runs a 50-minute Silver tour with a tasting, for over-18s, with tours from 10am and the last at 7pm. Bring photo ID. Its Amber restaurant and whisky bar is open from noon to 9pm without a tour.
3. The Writers’ Museum
Free · daily 10.00 to 17.00, last entry 16.30 · Lady Stair’s Close, off the Lawnmarket
A 17th-century townhouse, Lady Stair’s House, holds portraits, rare books and personal objects of Robert Burns, Sir Walter Scott and Robert Louis Stevenson. Burns’s writing desk, Scott’s rocking horse and Stevenson’s riding boots are among them. It is free, and it is the one indoor stop on this stretch that needs no booking.
Lady Stair’s Close, off the Lawnmarket, with Lady Stair’s House at left. Photo: Enric, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.
Detour: Victoria Street and the Grassmarket
Free · always
Turn down West Bow, which becomes Victoria Street, off the Lawnmarket. It is a curved, colourful street running down to the Grassmarket, which Forever Edinburgh calls one of the most photographed streets in the city. Harry Potter fans link it to Diagon Alley; Harry Potter in Edinburgh says what is a fan’s theory and what is documented. The Grassmarket is about 250 m down; walk back up the same way.
Victoria Street, curving down from the Royal Mile. Photo: Gary Campbell-Hall, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0.
4. St Giles’ Cathedral
£12 for visitors aged 16 and over who do not live in Scotland · Monday to Friday 10.00 to 18.00
St Giles’ stopped being free on Monday 5 October 2026. The ticket covers the cathedral, the Thistle Chapel and the guided tours, and is valid for 12 months. Residents of Scotland and children under 16 enter free. On Sundays it opens at 13.00, after the 9.30 and 11.00 services. St Giles’ Cathedral tickets has the hours and the Quiet Hour.
5. The Real Mary King’s Close
From £28.50 Standard, £25 Essential · daily 9.00 to 22.30 in October 2026 · 58 steps
Across the High Street from St Giles’ and beside the City Chambers, the entrance is at 2 Warriston’s Close. The one-hour tour goes through preserved 17th-century streets under the Mile. It frequently sells out, so book a time, and note that there is no photography, it is cashless and children under 5 are not admitted. It is not the same as the South Bridge Vaults or the Edinburgh Dungeon. Real Mary King’s Close tickets has the tour options.
6. The Canongate
Free · always
Below the Netherbow the High Street becomes the Canongate. It takes its name from the burgh that grew up when David I, who founded Holyrood Abbey, let the abbot build houses up the ridge towards St Giles’. Canongate Kirk is at number 153, and the Scottish Parliament stands at the foot of the street, opposite the Palace. There is nothing to book here: it is the stretch to walk without a ticket in your hand.
The Canongate Tolbooth on the Canongate, with its projecting clock. Photo: Allie Caulfield, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0.
7. The Palace of Holyroodhouse
£22 booked, £26 on the day · Thursday to Monday from 17 September to 20 May
The King’s official residence in Scotland and the end of the Mile. It is shut on Tuesdays and Wednesdays from 17 September to 20 May and closed from 24 to 26 December 2026. Book in advance and arrive after 11.00 for a quieter visit. Mary, Queen of Scots’ chambers, the Great Gallery and the ruins of Holyrood Abbey are on the route; there is no photography in the State Apartments. Palace of Holyroodhouse tickets has the hours and the 1-Year Pass.
Where to eat
The Witchery by the Castle
352 Castlehill · afternoon tea £60, Monday to Friday 14.30 to 15.30
A restaurant at the top of Castlehill that several Edinburgh food guides name, among them Time Out and Condé Nast Traveller. Its afternoon tea is £60, or £75 with a glass of Champagne, and is not served in August or from 23 December to 4 January.
Amber at the Scotch Whisky Experience
354 Castlehill · open daily from noon to 21.00
A restaurant and whisky bar next to the castle gate, serving Scottish tapas, platters and whisky flights, with more than 550 Scotch whiskies and cocktails. You do not need a tour ticket to eat here.
The Haggis Box
In the Scottish Storytelling Centre, on the Royal Mile
Haggis, including vegetarian and vegan versions made with gluten-free oats, in a place that Forever Edinburgh’s haggis guide lists.
Café at the Palace
At the Palace of Holyroodhouse
Seasonal, home-made dishes from locally sourced produce. It can be visited without a Palace ticket, so it is a lunch stop at the end of the walk.
The best day to go
| Day | What changes on the route |
|---|---|
| Monday | All open |
| Tuesday and Wednesday | The Palace of Holyroodhouse is shut from 17 September to 20 May. The rest is open |
| Thursday | All open |
| Friday | All open |
| Saturday | St Giles’ opens at 9.00 with a Quiet Hour to 10.00 and closes at 17.00 |
| Sunday | St Giles’ opens at 13.00, and the One O’Clock Gun is not fired |
The timing that works, Thursday to Monday: be at the castle for 9.30, watch the gun at 1pm, walk down for the Writers’ Museum and a timed slot at the Real Mary King’s Close, reach St Giles’ after 13.00 if it is a Sunday, and end at the Palace after 11.00 on a day it is open. The Close is open into the evening, so it can be the last booking of the day.
What closes:
- 24 to 26 December 2026: the Palace is closed. The castle is closed on 25 and 26 December, and Camera Obscura on 25 December.
- 1 January: the castle opens at 11.00.
What does not close: the street, the Writers’ Museum, the Canongate and the Grassmarket. A Tuesday still makes a good walk: the castle, St Giles’, the Close and Camera Obscura are open, and Holyrood Park behind the Palace is free. Only the Palace is missing.
Getting there and back
- To the start: the Castle Esplanade is about 900 m on foot from Waverley station, uphill. Edinburgh airport to the city centre covers the tram and the bus in.
- From the end: the Palace is about 1.1 km from Waverley, walking back along the Canongate. The hop-on hop-off buses stop at the Palace and Canongate Kirk. Edinburgh public transport has the tickets.
- In reverse: the Mile works uphill from the Palace, but then you reach the castle in the afternoon, when the One O’Clock Gun has already fired.
What to do with the rest of the day
- Arthur’s Seat starts behind the Palace: the Arthur’s Seat hike has the routes, and its loop starts at the Queen’s Drive car park just south of the Parliament.
- Views: the best views in Edinburgh separates the free hills from the paid towers, and Calton Hill is on the far side of Waverley station.
- Museums: the National Museum of Scotland is free, on Chambers Street, south of the Mile.
- More free sights: free things to do in Edinburgh.
- The whole trip: what to book before you go to Edinburgh has the closed days for every sight. To sleep on the Mile, hotels near the Royal Mile lists the hotels beside it.
Common questions
How long is the Royal Mile?
About 1.9 km on foot from the Castle Esplanade to the gates of the Palace of Holyroodhouse, measured along the streets: roughly 25 minutes of walking, and half a day with the castle, St Giles' and one underground tour.
Where does the Royal Mile start and finish?
It runs downhill from Edinburgh Castle, along Castlehill, the Lawnmarket, the High Street and the Canongate, to the Palace of Holyroodhouse. Walking down is easier than up.
Is the Royal Mile free to walk?
The street is. The Writers' Museum is free too. Edinburgh Castle is £23.50 online, St Giles' Cathedral £12, the Real Mary King's Close from £28.50, Camera Obscura £24.95 and the Palace of Holyroodhouse £22 booked ahead.
Which day is best for the Royal Mile?
Thursday to Monday, because the Palace of Holyroodhouse is shut on Tuesdays and Wednesdays from 17 September to 20 May. Avoid Sunday morning for St Giles' Cathedral, which opens at 13.00, and for the One O'Clock Gun, which is not fired on Sundays.
What do I need to book on the Royal Mile?
Edinburgh Castle, which sells timed tickets online and nothing at the gate once they sell out, and the Real Mary King's Close, which frequently sells out. Camera Obscura sells out in holidays and at weekends.
Is the Royal Mile walkable with a pushchair or a wheelchair?
The street is cobbled and slopes down from the castle. Camera Obscura is stairs only, the Real Mary King's Close has 58 steps, and the castle's way in is a steep cobbled route of about 350 m.
