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Edinburgh Hop-On Hop-Off Bus Tours

Enjoy an open top bus ride around the beautiful and popular historic Scottish capital city of Edinburgh

Standout list

Free cancellation

Cancel up to 48 hours in advance to receive a full refund.

Save money

This experience is ideal for all travel budgets.

Family-friendly

This experience will delight the whole family, especially the City Sightseeing Edinburgh Tour.

Buy with confidence

We are the official shop of the British Tourist Authority, VisitBritain.

Highlights

Choose from three different tickets and three different routes, all offering you the chance to hop-on and hop-off at your selected destinations and travel for 24 hours or 48 hours: 

  • The Edinburgh Tour explores Edinburgh’s city centre and its fantastic historical buildings with a live English speaking tour expert guide: Edinburgh Castle, the Scottish Parliament, the Royal Mile, the architecture of the Georgian New Town and much more
  • The Regal Tour takes you to the quieter north of Edinburgh’s city centre towards the port of Leith, passing by the picturesque Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh, The Royal Yacht Britannia, the Palace of Holyroodhouse and the Scottish Parliament building
  • The City Sightseeing Edinburgh focuses on the main tourist attractions - National Museum of Scotland, Greyfriars Bobby and locations mentioned in Harry Potter’s series - giving the kids in your group the special Horrible Histories commentary, narrated by Terry Deary

What's included

  • 24 or 48 Hours Hop-on Hop-off pass
  • Live expert guide on the Edinburgh Tour
  • Mulltimedia guide in 10 languages
  • Food and drinks
  • Gratuities

Prepare for the experience

Children information

  • Children under 4 years old can access free of charge
  • Children under 16 years old must be accompanied by a paying adult over 16 years old

Accessibility information

  • Only folding wheelchairs are allowed on board the coaches
  • You will also be required to climb the stairs on and off the coach with assistance from your helper. Buses staff are not able to assist due to Health and Safety reasons
  • Please contact our team before booking should you require further accessibility information regarding the experience

Additional information

  • Commentary through headphones in English, French, German, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, Japanese, Mandarin Chinese and Russian

Guests can use their Edinburgh Hop on Hop off Bus Tours tickets at any time during opening hours.

  • Duration: the full tour lasts around 60 - 70 minutes
  • Please check in 15 minutes before your planned departure 
  • Note that the Palace of Holyroodhouse is closed on Tuesdays and Wednesdays each week except July, August, and September when it is open daily

The regular operating times of the tours are the following: 

  • Edinburgh Tour 
    • 6 April - 29 June: 8:51 am - 5:51 pm (every 12 minutes)
    • 30 June - 7 September: 8:50 am - 6:00 pm (every 10 minutes)
    • 8 September - 2 November: 8:51 am - 5:51 (every 12 minutes)
    • 3 November - 5 April: 9:10 am - 3:40 pm (every 30 minutes)
  • Regal Tour 
    • 6 April - 2 November: 8:40 am - 5:25 (every 15 minutes)
    • 3 November - 5 April: 9:20 am - 3:50 pm (every 30 minutes)
  • City Sightseeing Edinburgh
    • 6 April - 29 June: 8:45 am - 5:57 pm (every 12 minutes)
    • 30 June - 7 September: 8:45 am - 6:05 pm (every 10 minutes)
    • 8 September - 2 November: 8:45 am - 5:57 (every 12 minutes)
    • 3 November - 5 April: 9:00 am - 4:00 pm (every 30 minutes)

Due to emergency gas works, the Lawnmarket stop for Edinburgh Castle is temporarily closed. The stop for the Castle will be Grassmarket.

Departure point

  • Meeting point: Tour buses depart from St Andrew Square bus stop, North Side, Edinburgh EH2 1AF, Scotland. 
  • Nearest station: Edinburgh Waverley.

Supplier information

This product is sold by VisitBritain Shop and provided by Golden Tours.

Upon booking you will receive an instant order confirmation from VisitBritain and a second email including a QR code. You can download it to your mobile phone or print it out to show when attending the tour.