• Private Tour
• Instantly Confirmed
• Carbon Neutral

Did you know that the Edinburgh tour of your dreams exists? Yes, and it’s 100% personalized and created by your local host around your interests. Customize and see only the places that spark your interest. From classic landmarks to neighborhood walks - your wishes are our command!

Destination

Edinburgh, Scotland

Category

City Highlight Tours

Duration

3 hours

Transport mode

Walking tour

Available languages

English, Dansk, Svenska

Included

• Private guide
• All Withlocals tours are carbon neutral

Excluded

• Entrance tickets
• Tastings
• Transport
• All of the above can be arranged with your local host through a personalized offer

What you can expect

Choose your local

Get to know these 13 passionate locals, each bringing unique perspectives and talents. Choose your favorite, check their availability, and book to create an unforgettable adventure tailored to you.

This is the plan

Check out the plan below to see what you'll get up to with your local host. Feel free to personalize this offer with the host of your choice.

1. Meeting point

   Meet at In front of Paolozzi Restaurant & Bar - Edinburgh to start your journey

   View on Maps

2. Itinerary

   This is what our experience could look like, but it’s not set in stone! Once you book, you can chat directly with your host to make small tweaks to suit your preferences.

3. This Experience is YOURS!

   See the landmarks and places in Edinburgh that you pick on a 100% personalized tour. Make this a one-of-a-kind experience that will satisfy your curiosity with the help of a local. All you have to do is tell them your preferences and interests

4. See THE Main Attractions

   What’s on your bucket list? Hop from landmark to landmark admiring them from the outside, and get recommendations from your local host on what’s the best way to enjoy them to the fullest

5. Off the Beaten Path

   What if there’s a way to see the city’s main attraction from a different angle? All of this while avoiding the touristy crowds? It’s possible with a local by your side!

6. Neighborhood Exploring

   Spend some time deep-diving into the neighborhoods of Edinburgh; there’s plenty of treasures to discover! From history, architecture, and local hangout spots, what area would you like to visit?

7. Amazing City Views

   Find the best lookout places in the city where you can spot your favorite landmarks as well as enjoy breathtaking views of the city - a picture-perfect personalized tour

8. All of Edinburgh

   Go on a full-day tour to see the highlights of the city. Pick the places, duration and let a local take you on a journey where you’ll cross the must-sees from Edinburgh off your list

9. Make it yours

   Want to tweak the itinerary? Book directly & chat afterwards with your host to adjust highlights, skip stops, or make small changes to fit your preferences.

   Book risk-free: Cancel within 24 hours for a full refund.

   Need something special? Personalize your experience for more time, alternative locations or a completely tailored plan.

Flexible cancellation policy

• Feel confident booking

  Cancel within 24 hours for a full refund. Even up to 7 days before your experience, you’ll receive a refund, minus the service fee.

• Change of plans?

  Reschedule your experience to a date and time that works best for you.

• Loved by travelers worldwide

  Simple and flexible – your plans, your way.

Reviews from guests

Saskia

(About local Gains)

5 March 2025

Gains waited for us at the hotel lobby in the new city and took us for a two hour walk, through the new city to the old city and the castle for another hour. We experienced an outstanding three hours of historic lecture, learned a lot and heard a lot of fun facts too. Gains knows a great deal about the city and it's history and we probably could have spent another three hours to learn even more about the city. Highly recommended! Very knowledgable sympathetic guide

Jessica

(About local GJ)

27 February 2025

Edinburgh Food Tour with a Local Foodie Custom & Private " GJ did such an amazing job showing us around Edinburgh on our walking food tour. Even with the rain, it was such a lovely afternoon exploring the Old Town. During the tour G was often asking us questions about our interests and adapting the tour as we went to make it more customized. The food was delicious and we got to taste all of the local dishes we were hoping to try out. Despite Mother Nature’s best efforts, it was a perfect first day in Scotland with the friendliest guide. " Review by J B, September 27th, 2024Tastings of Edinburgh

miranda

(About local Monica)

24 February 2025

Elspeth

(About local Nichola )

17 February 2025

I cant copy and pasteWalking food tour

Konrad

(About local Alec)

16 February 2025

We definitely recommend a private tour with Alec for the first moment you arrive in Edinburgh. We enjoyed the whole tour from the first moment and it was a great start to our long weekend. It was very informative and interesting. It was lovely to hear all the stories from Alec. Awesome way to know the city

andrewmackay48

(About local Monica)

16 February 2025

I visited for my first time, we took a tour of the castle, stopped in a fantastic little pub, walked through greyfriar etc. Thoroughly enjoyed my trip and Monica was supper friendly and made my trip a memorable one by making a few amendments by request. Including a picture with the grave of he who shall not be named for my daughter. Fantastic experience

Kataya

(About local Nichola )

12 February 2025

Family of 6 posted on trip advisor My guided walking tour

Melanie

(About local Russell)

11 February 2025

Wonderful experience! Russell was absolutely fantastic! His knowledge of Edunburgh, and overall Scottish, history was exactly what we were looking for. He also pointed out important architectural landmarks and had a deep knowledge of them and their eras. Plus he was an overall pleasant person. Thank you Russell for enhancing our trip!Withlocals has yet to disappoint.

sven

(About local Laura)

10 February 2025

Wir haben die Schnellstart Tour durch Edinburgh gebucht. Es war toll wie Laura uns die schöne Geschichte von Edinburgh erzählt hat und durch die Stadt geführt hat. Wir können Laura zu 100% weiterempfehlen Es war super mit Laura

Alan🇮🇪 Ireland

(About local Alec)

9 February 2025

Very informative and thought provoking tour with Alec. Lots of history (naturally) laced with plenty of good humour. Real privilege getting to see the Thistle Chapel in St Giles Cathedral.Edinburgh Old Town Tales

Charles🇳🇱 Netherlands

(About local Alec)

8 February 2025

Exploring the Edinburgh castle with Alec was a wonderful experience and was a highlight of out trip. He is super knowledgable, attentive and has a very warm personality. My wife and I are looking forward coming back to Edinburgh and have Alec show us more of the wonders of the city. The perfect guide

Tricoa

(About local Nichola )

5 February 2025

Experiencing a personal Edinburgh Family walking food tour

Jessica

(About local Russell)

4 February 2025

My family and I (6 adults) booked this tour for our first day in Edinburgh to get our bearings and to get ideas for the rest of our trip. Our tour guide, Russell, was fantastic! He was super knowledgeable and funny. He took us to all the major sites while giving us the history and answering any questions we had. His humor kept us engaged, which was necessary as we were all tired from our travels. Following the tour, he gave us recommendations for places to visit both in Edinburgh and outside of town as well as recommendations of where to eat traditional Scottish food. I would absolutely recommend booking this tour!A Fantastic Introduction to Edinburgh

Verified

(About local Russell)

3 February 2025

Great historic overview and insightful information! Love Russell pace and picks that he showed us, we extremely enjoyed the tour 🙏Great

Maria🇬🇧 United Kingdom

(About local Alec)

2 February 2025

We had an absolutely fabulous tour of Edinburgh with Alec. We saw all of the key sights in the old town which is beautiful. Alec was extremely knowledgeable and was full of stories which were enlightening and funny! Alec was a pleasure to spend our afternoon with and we would highly recommend him as a tour guide. Thank you so much.Cannot recommend Alec enough

Savanna

(About local Nichola )

2 February 2025

Nichola was absolutely amazing Walking food tour

Johanna

(About local Alec)

1 February 2025

Alec met us in front of the Royal Mile Whiskies right on time and took us on a very interesting and entertaining historic tour through Edinburgh. He was very knowledgeable and a good storyteller, with many details that only locals know. We had three lovely hours with this guide, although our expectation was that we would have a food tour with ten different samples of local food and some culinary explanation. So, a great experience, although not what we expected.History tour

Beverly

(About local Nichola )

31 January 2025

We really enjoyed our food tour with Nichola. She was a lovely Scott that really made our tour wonderful. The food was delicious and the stories and history of Scotland was great.Wonderful food tour

Laurie

(About local Nichola )

31 January 2025

Nichola was our tour guide and she did not disappoint. She was very knowledgeable about the area as well as the food we were eating. It was a rainy day, but it did not deter us from having a great time on the trip.I highly recommend this food tour.Great walking food tour - even in the rain!

Tania🇨🇦 Canada

(About local Alice)

28 January 2025

We had a wonderful time on The Hidden Gems of Edinburgh Tour with Alice as a family of 4 with 2 school age kiddos. Alice told wonderful and engaging stories for everyone while taking us around to local spots! We would definitely suggest her for a tour.Fun Family Tour

Susan

(About local Nichola )

25 January 2025

Nichola was an excellent tour guide giving us an awesome eating experience as well as history about this incredible city.Don't Miss Out

Lindsay

(About local Nichola )

21 January 2025

Nichola was amazing Walking food tour

Dolly

(About local Nichola )

13 January 2025

Nichola was a fantastic food guide! I loved the personal touches and family history she shared with us. We toured wonderful restaurants and establishments in old town and learned so much along the way. Fabulous time for my fiancé, me, and our family and friends. Thank you, Nichola! :)Food tour walking

Melonie🇬🇧 United Kingdom

(About local Alec)

12 January 2025

Our time in Edinburgh was really special thanks to Alec. In our short time together, he shared many of Edinburgh’s hidden gems and interesting historical stories. We would never have learned all of the neat things he shared roaming Edinburgh on our own. We can’t say enough great things about Alec and his fun, energetic personality. We will be back to tour with Alec again!Edinburgh with a pro!

Richard

(About local Nichola )

11 January 2025

What a fantastic tour ,Nichola was wonderful. She juggled the time to fit our schedule and modified the tour to show us the sights that most interested us. It was nice not being in a big group and being guided by someone who knows the town so well. I can't recommend this tour enough.Food tour

Wendy

(About local GJ)

4 January 2025

GJ was attentive to our interest and made a great effort. We were impressed by his knowledge and how he made history come alive during the tour. Thanks to Gee’s tips , we manage to find Best Buys that are made in Scotland only and also find delicious food . He also suggested to us several attractions. These attractions were useful to our understanding of Scotland . I am also grateful for the great photo shots he took for us ! Thank you , Gee ! Keep up the good work ! Edinburgh Private Tour: Castle to Arthur’s Seat

Murron

(About local Joe)

3 January 2025

Very informative and engaging, made history funny. Joe was great. Would recommend (from a young couple)Very informative and engaging Tour Guide

cbgs2w9mpg

(About local Alice)

3 January 2025

Alice showed us all the interesting sites while weaving in Scottish history and folklore. She gave us excellent suggestions on things to see, places to eat. Her stories were so theatrical you thought you were watching a play unfold.She was also very kind and lovely.The Deacon Brodie Tour

Mary🇺🇸 United States

(About local Alec)

3 January 2025

Don’t hesitate if you are thinking of booking the city kickstarter tour. ALEC personalized our tour and it met our needs perfectly. I highly recommend both him and this tour on your arrival to Edinburgh. My granddaughter and myself are thankful to have done this. Thank you again, Alec. Local knowledge helps to plan your trip

JILL

(About local Alice)

2 January 2025

Jill

(About local Nichola )

1 January 2025

Feb 2025 • Couples What a fabulous tour. Nichola was so friendly and was so knowledgeable about Edinburgh. Lovely to have a local guide. The food was amazing and we enjoyed everything on offer.3hr local guided tour

Janie

(About local Nichola )

27 December 2024

Nichola was absolutely amazing on our tour! Not only was she knowledgeable on food, she stopped a few times to give us some extra info on things around Edinburgh. It was very fun walking around the city and trying all the amazing food! She gave us recommendations on things as well. Highly recommend!Nichola was Amazing

Kristen

(About local Nichola )

26 December 2024

Our tour was amazing. The food and the locations were all just wonderful. They were probably not places we would have gone on our own so it really is "secret" But the best part about our tour was our guide Nichola. She was so knowledgeable & such an entertaining guide. She made the whole tour just that much better.Great tour with a wonderful Guide

Judith

(About local GJ)

25 December 2024

Scotch Tour Edinburgh with a Local Expert: Private & 100% Personalized Partner or CU Website Guest Review " Gee was great! He crafted the tour to what we had specifically wanted. The pace. The opportunity to learn about whiskey. He had good stories. Helped us learn about some Scottish history. And he was just a delight to spend the afternoon with. " Edinburgh: Walking and Whisky Tour

Stuart🇺🇸 United States

(About local Alec)

25 December 2024

The tour with Alec was great. In addition to a cutting witty humor, Alec was full of interesting facts only a local would know. His intimate connection and love for his city was evident and made for a lovely tour experience. Absolutely worth it. Excellent Experience

Renata

(About local Joe)

22 December 2024

Fantastic. Very knowledgeable, polite, funny. Joe made all experience very interesting and prompted me to explore more. Highly recommend.Fantastic

Pooja🇬🇧 United Kingdom

(About local Russell)

21 December 2024

My husband and I had a great time exploring Edinburgh with Russell and hearing all about the key landmarks and history of the city - Russell was very knowledgeable and was able to answer all of our questions. We even stopped off at a local pub and enjoyed a drink together 🍻 I would recommend booking with Russell if you want to have a great time while learning all about this beautiful city!Brilliant tour with Russell!

Simon🇬🇧 United Kingdom

(About local Alec)

15 December 2024

We took a 90 minute tour with Alec which was a great introduction to the city Alec has an amazing depth of knowledge relating to the history of the city and he was happy to share this with us. I would highly recommend him and will certainly book him again on my return.Wonderful Edinburgh

Evelina

(About local Joe)

14 December 2024

Huge thanks to Joe! Great vibes, lots of laughter and memorable experience!Huge Thanks to Joe

Pascal🇳🇱 Netherlands

(About local Alec)

14 December 2024

Starting off, Alec is simply amazing and a well of information! We had a blast walking the Royal Mile, looking at lots of details and getting funny and interesting insights into things to see in Edinburgh. Would not have wanted to miss it for the world and would him straight away for next time. As a matter of fact - we will for when we get back to visit the Highlands 🤩Alex is a MUST-BOOK when in Edinburgh!!!

Robin🇺🇸 United States

(About local Monica)

12 December 2024

Monica was a fantastic tour guide! Very accommodating to customize our tour so that we could see everything we wanted on our day. I will definitely use her again when I return to the area. Wonderful Tour!

Sonja🇨🇭 Switzerland

(About local Alice)

9 December 2024

Our tour with Alice was fantastic, she explained us the most intresting storys about the history of Edinburgh, all by heart. It was easy to follow her because she has'nt got a strong accent. We totally forgot to freeze in the cold wind, because her speech was so thrilling and it was like a dive into Edinburgh history. I can totally recommend this tour and would definetely book her again. A dive into the history of Edinburgh!

Justin

(About local Nichola )

5 December 2024

Great small group food tourWalking Food tour

Linda

(About local GJ)

26 November 2024

We got to spend 3 hours walking the city, seeing and hearing amazing things and tasting really great local Scottish food. My husband and I did a tour with Gee for 3 hours incorporating our personal interests in sites in Edinburgh and including a stop at a local pub for lunch in which we were invited to try some local food. We were traveling with another couple who are very good friends of ours and were able to walk the city and see Dean Village, Grassmarket, a quick peak at the Royal Mile (we didn't want to spend tons of time there since it is so busy with tourists), both Old Town and New Town, Outlander site, Calton Hill and points of interest along the way between these spots. G was a wonderful guide and made the whole experience a high point of our time in Edinburgh. He shared many interesting and fun stories full of the history of Edinburgh. At the pub, we enjoyed (even though we doubted we would) Cullen Skink, Boiled Scottish eggs, Haggis Spring Rolls, and Smoked Salmon. Thanks to G’s gentle nudge we tried them all and loved them. We highly recommend G as this was one of the most fun things we did while there and we loved it that he tailored it specifically to what we had expressed we were interested in through a questionnaire provided prior to our arrival. We felt he went above and beyond our expectations for this tour. Take the tour with GJ and you wont be sorry you did!! Your Way: Edinburgh City Tour

Nati

(About local Joe)

25 November 2024

I feel so lucky that I had the chance to walk with Joe. 100% recommend! <3 Thank you, Joe, the memorable walk, all the info, I will win if the final question will be about Edinburgh in 'Do You Want To Be a Millionaire?' And the tip for the fish'n'chips place also, it turned out that I like chippy sauce. :-D100% Recommend

Kara

(About local Russell)

12 November 2024

We had a great tour of the Old Town with Russell. He was extremely knowledgeable and very pleasant. He contacted us before the tour to ask what we were most interested in seeing, and he catered the tour to us. In addition to seeing many of the standard sites, he recommended other museums and locations that we could stop in to visit on our own time, which was great. Highly recommend!A great Private Tour

Unknown

(About local Laura)

5 November 2024

Our tour with Laura was wonderful! She was so kind and had a lot of wonderful things to show us. We loved the historical context she added to our tour as well! Wonderful tour with Laura!

Craig

(About local Nichola )

2 November 2024

Nichola was one of the best tour guides! Our small group really enjoyed her excitement and knowledge of Edinburgh and its history. Thank you for a great afternoonNichola made the Tour Great

Margaret

(About local Alice)

30 October 2024

Alice was a fun, informative guide. We thoroughly enjoyed our time with her and would definitely choose her again.Fabulous experience

Audra

(About local Nichola )

29 October 2024

The True Scot delivers a tasty Tour Walking food tour