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Edinburgh Question


molymoo
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Actually Gnoelj - no-one advised anyone NOT to go into Edinburgh. I always find a careful reading of posts is always useful before commenting. In fact I stated several times that if this is your only chance to go, you must go.

 

I and others were also simply making people aware that it is very very busy at this time of year in Edinburgh - as some people may seriously not like crowds whilst others are happy to be part of the madding crowd. And qualifying it with the fact that all tourist destinations in Scotland are seriously busy right now - thanks to shows like Outlander etc.

 

I was offering up alternative suggestions to someone who may have been to Edinburgh before and would like an alternative (eg from the comments that excursions are "sold out"). This is the situation we found ourselves in when we called at Rosyth last year - what to do, we live in Scotland, been to Edinburgh many many times and other than having a day on the ship, which in itself would not have been a hardship :D, I researched what else we could do within a reasonable distance from Rosyth. So simply passing that information on. In fact we enjoyed the area so much, we returned recently for a short break and still didn't get to everywhere we wanted to visit. So little time ...... anyway off to sit in the garden we are having a heatwave this week - its a rare occurrence here so to everyone visiting Scotland this week, enjoy our beautiful country, whichever part you are visiting.:D

 

But I leave you with this little story - many, many years ago I was returning from Edinburgh to Glasgow after attending a high level tourist body lunch and sitting next to me on the way back was the then Provost of Glasgow who asked me in all seriousness "what my dear is the best thing to come out of Edinburgh?" I replied "no idea, please tell me". "The Glasgow Train" was the reply with a twinkle in the eye and I swear a wee wink too! ;):D

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When would that be? I'm going nowhere this summer - knee replacement op in 3 days! :-(

 

Oooh ouch - well look after yourself, and if this weather continues you'll be able to recover from your op doing your physio outside! Hope all goes well for you - please come back and tell us how you're doing. :)

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Actually Gnoelj - no-one advised anyone NOT to go into Edinburgh. I always find a careful reading of posts is always useful before commenting. In fact I stated several times that if this is your only chance to go, you must go.

 

 

 

I and others were also simply making people aware that it is very very busy at this time of year in Edinburgh - as some people may seriously not like crowds whilst others are happy to be part of the madding crowd. And qualifying it with the fact that all tourist destinations in Scotland are seriously busy right now - thanks to shows like Outlander etc.

 

 

 

I was offering up alternative suggestions to someone who may have been to Edinburgh before and would like an alternative (eg from the comments that excursions are "sold out"). This is the situation we found ourselves in when we called at Rosyth last year - what to do, we live in Scotland, been to Edinburgh many many times and other than having a day on the ship, which in itself would not have been a hardship :D, I researched what else we could do within a reasonable distance from Rosyth. So simply passing that information on. In fact we enjoyed the area so much, we returned recently for a short break and still didn't get to everywhere we wanted to visit. So little time ...... anyway off to sit in the garden we are having a heatwave this week - its a rare occurrence here so to everyone visiting Scotland this week, enjoy our beautiful country, whichever part you are visiting.:D

 

 

 

But I leave you with this little story - many, many years ago I was returning from Edinburgh to Glasgow after attending a high level tourist body lunch and sitting next to me on the way back was the then Provost of Glasgow who asked me in all seriousness "what my dear is the best thing to come out of Edinburgh?" I replied "no idea, please tell me". "The Glasgow Train" was the reply with a twinkle in the eye and I swear a wee wink too! ;):D

 

 

 

I did see you suggested going if we’d never been and we definitely took that into consideration when deciding we would venture forth into the city. Thank you so much for all your input. It’s always great to have the opinion of a local! We can’t wait to see Edinburgh.

 

 

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There's a Viking ship in the Firth of Forth right now. Passengers are tendering to the little harbour at Granton. I wonder why the ship hasn't docked at Ocean Terminal in Leith. Nothing very interesting at Granton.

 

Yes, it was Viking Sea anchored in the Firth of Forth on that date. She tendered into Newhaven Harbour.

 

All Viking fleet are too large to transit the lock gates in Leith.

 

OP - if you are due in Edinburgh aboard Viking Sky on the 14th August, you are also tendering into Newhaven Harbour. If you need any information on getting around Edinburgh (or wish to travel to Rosslyn Chapel), please come see myself and my colleagues when you get off the tender. We are local voluntary guides who attend every cruise ship that arrives in the Firth of Forth to help the cruise passengers make the most of their day in and around our city. We are all friendly and approachable

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showingdiva – I'm on Viking SUN arriving in Edinburgh on August 15. Do you know where we will be tendering?

 

We want to get to Edinburgh Castle, then do some DIY walking tours from the Rick Steves book, and then get back to the ship [from Georgian House, or maybe walk through the Princes Street Gardens to the Floral Clock and the Scottish National Gallery].

 

Will Viking provide shuttles to the downtown area, and does anyone know where they drop off, pick up?

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showingdiva – I'm on Viking SUN arriving in Edinburgh on August 15. Do you know where we will be tendering?

 

We want to get to Edinburgh Castle, then do some DIY walking tours from the Rick Steves book, and then get back to the ship [from Georgian House, or maybe walk through the Princes Street Gardens to the Floral Clock and the Scottish National Gallery].

 

Will Viking provide shuttles to the downtown area, and does anyone know where they drop off, pick up?

 

Viking Sun will also be tendering into Newhaven Harbour on the 15th August.

 

Your proposed schedule sounds perfectly achievable. I would, however, suggest that you look at pre-booking your visit to Edinburgh Castle. Along with the Palace of Holyroodhouse, both venues can be extremely busy, especially late morning / early afternoon, and as such, the Castle have introduced a timed ticket scheme - although you can still just turn up.

 

 

 

https://www.edinburghcastle.scot/visit/tickets-prices

 

 

The Rick Steves recommendations seem to focus on the Royal Mile area, with the Castle at the top end and the Palace of Holyroodhouse / Scottish Parliament at the bottom end. My colleagues and I will happily provide you with maps and attraction information details to help you navigate your way. The city centre is approximately 4 miles from the harbour, but please bear in mind that Edinburgh has quite a lot of steep streets if you're planning doing any significant amount of walking. As an alternative, it may be of interest, that the hop on / off bus giving a good insight of Edinburgh stops right outside the harbour too, and actually covers most of the itinerary you are hoping to do.

 

 

As for shuttle buses into Edinburgh .. we have had a couple of Viking ships already this year, and it appears to be a bit hit / miss whether they provide shuttle buses. The one that did (Viking Sea) provided them to Charlotte Square, which is close to the west end of Princes Street (the main shopping area in the centre of the city) and a short (uphill) walk to the Castle. However, if your particular ship doesn't, don't worry, we can help you get to the Castle area either by one of the local buses or by taxi, both of which will be available from the harbour.

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Thanks showingdiva and Nippy Sweetie. We plan to buy the Historic Scotland Explorer Pass at Urquhart Castle. My understanding is that we therefore skip the line at Edinburgh Castle and don't need a timed ticket.

 

As to the over-planning of activities: DW calls my DIY shore excursions 'Bataan death marches' but she loves me anyway... What I try to do is pack in everything we want to see, arranged roughly in priority order – then when we run out of steam, I just cross off the last things on the list.

 

In this case, it probably makes sense to take a taxi from the ship to Edinburgh Castle, when walk downhill along the Royal Mile about halfway [to St. Giles Cathedral], then have lunch, then cut across Advocates Close to the Waverley Bridge and head up to Georgian House. All that seems doable. The walk through Princes Street Gardens and the Scottish National Gallery are the optional parts that may or may not happen – especially if the Viking shuttle bus stop is at Charlotte Square right near Georgian House.

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Thanks showingdiva and Nippy Sweetie. We plan to buy the Historic Scotland Explorer Pass at Urquhart Castle. My understanding is that we therefore skip the line at Edinburgh Castle and don't need a timed ticket.

 

Jazz, I purchased our Explorer Pass today online. We went with the 5 day pass and already have it printed and ready to go.

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Thanks showingdiva and Nippy Sweetie. We plan to buy the Historic Scotland Explorer Pass at Urquhart Castle. My understanding is that we therefore skip the line at Edinburgh Castle and don't need a timed ticket.

 

As to the over-planning of activities: DW calls my DIY shore excursions 'Bataan death marches' but she loves me anyway... What I try to do is pack in everything we want to see, arranged roughly in priority order – then when we run out of steam, I just cross off the last things on the list.

 

In this case, it probably makes sense to take a taxi from the ship to Edinburgh Castle, when walk downhill along the Royal Mile about halfway [to St. Giles Cathedral], then have lunch, then cut across Advocates Close to the Waverley Bridge and head up to Georgian House. All that seems doable. The walk through Princes Street Gardens and the Scottish National Gallery are the optional parts that may or may not happen – especially if the Viking shuttle bus stop is at Charlotte Square right near Georgian House.

 

You seem to have everything covered. Tendering has gone well so far with the Viking ships (we have Viking Sea back here today). However, if you - or any other passengers - need any help when you get to Edinburgh, please feel free to ask us.

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  • 3 weeks later...
We are on the August 4th sailing of the Sky for the British Isles cruise. I know this is a new itinerary but also know that Edinburgh has been a stop for other, older itineraries (Midnight Sun?). We are doing a pre-extension in Edinburgh so many of the shore excursions will be redundant and we had planned on trying to book the trip to Rosslyn Chapel but, alas it is already showing that it is "Sold Out".

 

We don't book excursions until the 19th so we have some time to make a decision but wonder if there is a ship-to-town shuttle at this port and would a private tour be a realistic possibility (we are in port from 7:15AM to 6:00 PM)? Or maybe we could just go into town and "do our own thing". There will certainly be things we will miss on the extension and being two females shopping is not out of the question!

 

Just wondering as the planning progresses!

 

Molymoo, I emailed Viking regarding included tours for the Edinburgh extension. Here is the reply:

 

· Your admission to the Edinburgh Castle is included in your pre-cruise extension. Here is a list of the tours included in your package:

·

· 1) City Tour with a Private Visit to the Royal Yacht Britannia

2) Visits to Edinburgh Castle and St. Giles’s Cathedral

· 3) Literary Walking Tour

· 4) Scottish Countryside Tour with a Private Visit to Glamis Castle & Whisky Distillery Visit

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Molymoo, I emailed Viking regarding included tours for the Edinburgh extension. Here is the reply:

 

·Your admission to the Edinburgh Castle is included in your pre-cruise extension. Here is a list of the tours included in your package:

·

·1) City Tour with a Private Visit to the Royal Yacht Britannia

2) Visits to Edinburgh Castle and St. Giles’s Cathedral

·3) Literary Walking Tour

·4) Scottish Countryside Tour with a Private Visit to Glamis Castle & Whisky Distillery Visit

 

Glamis Castle should be an interesting day. The childhood home of the Queen Mother is a very interesting tour, which we did last year.

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Glamis Castle should be an interesting day. The childhood home of the Queen Mother is a very interesting tour, which we did last year.

 

Glamis Castle is interesting but it is 72 miles (about 1hr 40 mins travel time each way) from Edinburgh. Not that close by. Question is, would you have enough time to go on the city tour, and go to Glamis Castle?

 

We could recommend a lot more other places to visit around Scotland too, but it is the time which would limit your visit.

 

How long is this Viking ship docking for in Edinburgh?

 

If you really want to see Edinburgh and the lovely parts of Scotland, you could do with 1-2 weeks, and you could not do it with just a part of one day !!!!

 

That is the big disadvantage about going on cruises and visiting places , you'd only get a "taste" of each place you visit, and that's just about it. Whistle stops come to mind !

 

Maybe if you like what you see when you visit Scotland on your cruise, you could plan to come back again, but this time, make it a land visit and spend quite a few more days there.

Edited by Gnoelj
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Glamis Castle is interesting but it is 72 miles (about 1hr 40 mins travel time each way) from Edinburgh. Not that close by. Question is, would you have enough time to go on the city tour, and go to Glamis Castle?

 

We could recommend a lot more other places to visit around Scotland too, but it is the time which would limit your visit.

 

How long is this Viking ship docking for in Edinburgh?

 

If you really want to see Edinburgh and the lovely parts of Scotland, you could do with 1-2 weeks, and you could not do it with just a part of one day !!!!

 

That is the big disadvantage about going on cruises and visiting places , you'd only get a "taste" of each place you visit, and that's just about it. Whistle stops come to mind !

 

Maybe if you like what you see when you visit Scotland on your cruise, you could plan to come back again, but this time, make it a land visit and spend quite a few more days there.

 

They are taking a multi-day pre-cruise excursion, with Glamis Castle being one of the attractions on one of the days.

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They are taking a multi-day pre-cruise excursion, with Glamis Castle being one of the attractions on one of the days.

 

 

I missed that they were taking a multi-day pre-cruise excursion. Thanks for pointing that out to me.

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