How difficult is the walk to the Royal Tatoo

[hunt182644]

After looking at my previous post I decided to be more specific. If you have walked the royal mile and attended the Military Tatoo I am looking for information. Is it a difficult walk for older people, is it very steep, is there any kind of transport available or allowed? Would you recommend certain seats, have heard there is not a bad seat anywhere. Has anyone attended any of the exclusive dinners held before the event?

[dogs4fun]

34 minutes ago, hunt182644 said:

After looking at my previous post I decided to be more specific. If you have walked the royal mile and attended the Military Tatoo I am looking for information. Is it a difficult walk for older people, is it very steep, is there any kind of transport available or allowed? Would you recommend certain seats, have heard there is not a bad seat anywhere. Has anyone attended any of the exclusive dinners held before the event?

Please define "older" as the term has very different meanings to many people. Do you have any mobility limitations? Are you relatively fit?

Did you check the incline on Google Maps  (it is a rather steep incline from Princes street up the Mound but only you can decide if you can manage walking the incline)?

We have attended the tattoo several times and each time we have walked. We shared our route in our previous response.

We prefer the seating in sections 3 or 14 (about a third of the way up from the bottom). Since many of the performances take place in the center field we feel that this viewpoint affords the best view and also good photo opportunities.

There is information available on the Tattoo website here: https://www.edintattoo.co.uk/the-venue

You can avoid most of the steep walk if you take a taxi or bus up to the Royal Mile - from here it is a very gentle incline to the castle.

We have not attended any of the exclusive dinners prior to the event so hopefully, someone with that particular experience will chime in.

Edited October 31, 2019 by dogs4fun

[tartanexile81]

I've been to the Tattoo quite a few times and on the night of the performances, no transport can get any closer than George IV Bridge Bridge. The Royal Mile is closed to all traffic from late afternoon.  It is quite a steep walk up from there for anybody with mobility issues but it's not that far and you can go very slowly.  The Witchery https://www.thewitchery.com is close to the castle and it is VERY popular for people attending the Tattoo. You could walk to there and after dinner it would be a very  short distance indeed. Book as early as possible for that. I have  read lots and lots of good reviews about it

 

The most expensive seats and the ones special guests are allocated are the ones facing the castle  so they are considered to have the best view. They're at the bottom end of the U shaped arena if you're looking at the seating plan.  Yes you have a good view from wherever you are but I would never go more than half way between the entrance and the Castle. You will also have to consider how high up your seats are, as it is a steep walk up through the tiered seating (think sports arena). However don't opt for one too low down either as the formations taken up by the bands, dancers etc need to be seen from above rather than having a level view.  Any more questions? Getting back to the ship afterwards? 

[Cotswold Eagle]

1 hour ago, tartanexile81 said:

You will also have to consider how high up your seats are, as it is a steep walk up through the tiered seating (think sports arena).

 

Here’s a photo illustrating this point taken this year just after the season had finished. 

 

 

[Bob++]

This is one venue where you really don't want a ringside seat.

[High C's]

On 10/31/2019 at 2:52 PM, hunt182644 said:

 Has anyone attended any of the exclusive dinners held before the event?

 

I hope someone is able to provide some context.  We are waiting anxiously to book for next August, and are very interested in the different dinner packages.  

[dkata]

We did the Jacobite Dinner package in August and recommend it. Pricey but a great experience.  The price also varies depending on which section you want to sit in for the show. We were in Section 13, on the side in the middle about 10 rows up . Wherever you sit will be a great view.

For our Saturday 7:15 performance, we met at 4 pm at the entrance of the esplanade (yes, you have to walk up to it). You are given a wrist band. From there you are escorted (walk) up to the top of the castle to the Queen Anne room where the dinner is, and that is a steep walk. (They may have had a golf cart for those who needed assistance. You'll have to check.) You sit in tables of 8. I think there were pre-assigned seats, so if you want to sit with other people you know, you book at the same time. After dinner, they escort and walk the group down from the Queen Anne room through the gauntlet of bagpiper groups playing Scotland the Brave, to your seats. A really memorable experience!  You can rent seat cushions, and I think blankets were available to rent.

When the performance is over, you exit towards the Royal Mile (you have to walk downhill) and the area is crowded with fringe festival tourists and a line of people waiting for the 10:30 show.