Multi-Sensory Witches Trials & Truth Tour in Edinburgh
Overview
Available languages
1 hour 30 minutes
Mobile ticket
The witching hour has come — it’s time for a reckoning. Follow in the tortured footsteps of real people who suffered in Scotland’s witch trials. Bear witness to the accusations, the trials and finally, the truth.
You’ll be transported back to a dark time ruled by a crazed king and his obsession with ‘otherworldly phenomenon’. Under the spell of a master storyteller you’re invited to listen carefully and perhaps think again...
Persecution of the weak, the wise and skilled? Roused by fear and envy? Inflamed by religious zeal?
There was no justice in court, nor truth in tribunals for accused ‘witches’. On this tour, our award-winning master Storytellers shine a light on the truth behind the trials and the real reasons behind the witch crazes that swept like a plague for centuries, across Scotland and beyond.
The past is calling. Will you bear witness?
Additional Info
Wheelchair accessible
Service animals allowed
Public transportation options are available nearby
Transportation options are wheelchair accessible
All areas and surfaces are wheelchair accessible
Travelers should have at least a moderate level of physical fitness
Cancellation Policy
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
What‘s Included
Exclusive multi-sensory tours; with master Storyteller guides
Visit the locations where Scotland’s witches were once executed, and are now remembered
Small-Group tour
Enhanced with hand-picked sounds of Edinburgh and delivered through TourTalk audio devices
This tour is not suitable for those under the age of 18
What To Expect
Royal Mile
You’re invited to listen carefully and perhaps think again... You’ll be transported back to a dark time ruled by a crazed king and his obsession with the dark arts, ‘otherworldly phenomenon’. Join us to walk the cobbled paths of Edinburgh’s Old Town and its centuries-old closes.
St Giles' Cathedral
Hear stories about the persecution of the weak, the wise and skilled, inflamed by religious zeal.
Options
Multi-Sensory Witches Trials & Truth Tour in Edinburgh
Reviews
13 reviews
Total reviews and rating from Viator & Tripadvisor
Witches tour, utterly engrossing
Edingooner,
Oct 7, 2025
- Tripadvisor
5.00Fantastic Witches tour with Linda our guide. Very well researched, especially talking about specific Scottish women who had been accused of witchcraft. Engrossing storytelling, the time flew. An essential tour to go on for anyone visiting or living here.
Linda was great
richardlM6612RO,
Jul 11, 2025
- Tripadvisor
5.00We had a great time on our walking tour of Edinburgh with Linda from Mercat Tours. She was fun, friendly and a good storyteller, the way she engaged us and brought history to life was professional. You could tell she really knows her stuff and loves sharing it. We learned loads, had a laugh and saw parts of the city we’d probably have walked straight past otherwise. Linda made the whole experience feel personal and really entertaining from start to finish. Highly recommend booking a tour with her if you get the chance — it was a real highlight of our trip!
Exceeded expectations
G1075LKsamh,
Nov 4, 2024
- Tripadvisor
5.00I was really looking forward to this tour because I'd been listening to the Witches of Scotland podcast and wanted to learn more. My expectations were exceeded, this was an amazing historical tour and Linda was very passionate and knowledgeable. My partner, who I dragged along, really enjoyed this too. 10/10 😊
Brilliant tour in the heart of Edinburgh.
jeffjR9879KH,
Oct 12, 2024
- Tripadvisor
5.00Fantastic tour, really enjoyed learning about the history and persecution of the witches in Edinburgh. Very well presented, very knowledgeable guide too. Not alot of walking neither, so if your interested in learning about some little unknown history of the Scottish witches, I really recommend this tour.
Why are the Scottish witch trials less known about than those in Salem?
JCF49,
Sep 1, 2024
- Tripadvisor
5.00This tour is fantastic. It throws light on a subject which has been previously largely ignored: the high numbers of people in Scotland (particularly women) who were not only accused of, but found guilty of and put to death for, suspected witchcraft in the past. Our guide (Linda) is clearly incredibly knowledgeable about the subject, and brought this knowledge to life. I was fascinated throughout. This is history we should all know about!
Insightful and informative
B1629UHmichaeld,
May 2, 2024
- Tripadvisor
5.00The tour was very informative, I hadn't known much about the subject beforehand. Our tour guide, Linda, was very insightful and her passion for the subject was obvious. The use of headsets was very useful to avoid distractions and hear our guide on the very busy streets of Edinburgh. A big bonus that the audio never cut out! Overall a great tour that sheds light on a fairly sad and unfair history that isn't widely known about and usually steeped in myths and deceit.
Fascinating and tragic. Don't miss it!
N5461ZXdeborahr,
Nov 12, 2023
- Tripadvisor
5.00Fascinating, by turns funny and tragic. Our guide Linda was very knowledgeable, personal and quite funny - the perfect guide to this dark and fascinating history of the many innocents accused of witchcraft and dispatched to their deaths. We viewed many gorgeous and intriguing areas that I never would have found on my own and wound up the tour on the site of many of the executions we learned about. I highly recommend!
Really good tour! Enjoyed...
Alexander K,
Sep 18, 2023
- Viator
5.00Really good tour! Enjoyed it greatly! Not too graphic and really educational. The tour is outdoors, so do consider your outfit and/or weather.
Witches, trials and truth
586katec,
Sep 4, 2023
- Tripadvisor
5.00This was an excellent tour. I live in Edinburgh and know something of this subject, but I learned a lot on Linda's terrific presentation of this shocking, generally inaccurately represented aspect of Scottish history. Powerful, thought-provoking and timely! If you want to know what really happened to Scottish witches - and why - take this tour!
a journey back in time to discover the sad end for innocent women
dibek71,
Jul 21, 2023
- Tripadvisor
5.00Really interesting stories about innocent people mainly women caught in the witch hunt in Scotland. Linda is a wonderful story teller that takes you back in time and feel for all the victims of this terrible part of our history
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Operated by Mercat Tours