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By VoiceMap Audio Tours
Free cancellation available
Price is £11 per adult
See tickets

Features

  • Free cancellation available
  • 5h
  • Mobile voucher
  • Instant confirmation

Overview

  • This self-guided audio tour uncovers Edinburgh's darkest history, narrated by a former Detective Sergeant with 27 years of policing experience.

    Starting where Cockburn Street meets the Royal Mile, you'll trace centuries of crime and punishment through the Old Town. You'll walk past the feared Calton Jail and Greyfriars Kirkyard, once stalked by grave robbers who supplied Burke and Hare's victims to the city's anatomy schools.

    In the Grassmarket, where public executions once drew crowds, you'll hear how Half-Hangit Maggie survived her own hanging, and the true storey of Deacon Brodie, the respectable tradesman turned burglar who inspired Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde. You'll also learn how the 1977 World's End Murders were solved decades later by DNA evidence, before ending on the Castle Esplanade, once used for witch burnings.

    This tour is perfect for true crime fans and history buffs.

    After booking, install the VoiceMap app and enter your ticket code to download and start touring.

Activity location

  • Tron Kirk Market
    • 122 High Street
    • EH1 1SG, Edinburgh, Scotland, United Kingdom

Meeting/Redemption Point

  • Tron Kirk Market
    • 122 High Street
    • EH1 1SG, Edinburgh, Scotland, United Kingdom

Check availability

Edinburgh's True Crime: An Audio Tour with A Former Detective in English

  • Activity duration is 5 hours5h
    5h
  • Opening hours: Mon 00:00-23:59
  • English
Language options: English
Price details
£11.08 x 1 Adult£11.08
Total
Price is £11.08

What's included, what's not

  • Inclusions
    Directions to the starting point so that when you're in the right place, the tour will start
  • Inclusions
    Lifetime access to this tour in English before your booking date and after it
  • Inclusions
    Offline access to audio, maps, and geodata
  • Inclusions
    App for Android and iOS
  • Inclusions
    Flexibility to explore at your own pace with a self-guided GPS tour
  • Exclusions
    Smartphone and headphones
  • Exclusions
    An in-person guide
  • Exclusions
    Transport
  • Exclusions
    Food and drink
  • Exclusions
    Personal expenses for admission fees not included during the tour

Know before you book

    • Suitable for all physical fitness levels
    • In accordance with EU regulations about consumer rights, activities services are not subject to the right of withdrawal. Supplier cancellation policy will apply.
    • This activity is provided by a professional trader (a party acting within their trade, business or profession).

Activity itinerary

The Edinburgh Woollen Mill (Pass by)

On this audio tour, you’ll uncover the city’s shadowy history through real murder cases, infamous criminals, and the evolution of Scottish law enforcement - all guided by a former Detective Sergeant with 27 years of frontline experience.

Calton Hill (Pass by)

You'll have a chance to view the locations of the once-feared Calton Jail, the Canongate Tolbooth where prisoners awaited their fate, and pass the Heart of Midlothian mosaic, marking the previous entrance to the city’s most notorious prison.

Tolbooth Tavern (Pass by)

You'll pass by Tolbooth Tavern and learn how its connected to Edinburgh's history of crime.

Bakehouse Close (Pass by)

You'll visit Bakehouse Close—featured in Outlander—with views of Arthur’s Seat, linked to a recent murder case.

St Giles' Cathedral (Pass by)

You'll see St Giles' Cathedral and learn how its connnected to Edinburgh's darker history.

Scott Monument (Pass by)

You'll pass by the Scott Monument and learn about Scott while you walk.

Greyfriars Kirkyard Cemetery Edinburgh (Pass by)

You'll learn about the Scottish courts of law and from there, venture into the eerie Greyfriars Kirkyard - once stalked by grave robbers supplying bodies to anatomy schools—and continue to the Grassmarket, where public executions once drew huge crowds.

The Vennel Viewpoint Edinburgh Castle (Pass by)

The Vennel Viewpoint Edinburgh Castle

Brodie's Close- Edinburgh (Pass by)

At Brodie's Close, you’ll hear the storey of William “Deacon” Brodie - respected tradesman by day, burglar by night - whose double life inspired Robert Louis Stevenson’s Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde.

Edinburgh Castle (Pass by)

The tour concludes on the Castle Esplanade, a place once used for military executions and witch burnings, offering sweeping views across the city.

Location

Activity location

  • LOB_ACTIVITIESLOB_ACTIVITIES
    Tron Kirk Market
    • 122 High Street
    • EH1 1SG, Edinburgh, Scotland, United Kingdom

Meeting/Redemption Point

  • PEOPLEPEOPLE
    Tron Kirk Market
    • 122 High Street
    • EH1 1SG, Edinburgh, Scotland, United Kingdom

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