Getting around Edinburgh

[cruisegal415]

We are doing our own thing in Edinburgh on an upcoming British Isles cruise the end of May/beginning of June.  We're docking at South Queensferry at 7, need to tender over to Edinburgh, our first outing is to the Yacht Britannia, which is in Ocean Terminal in Leith.  Next we will be going to Edinburgh Castle, then in the mid-afternoon, we are taking a "Harry Potter" tour of the city, where we need to meet our tour on High Street.  We will need to taxi over to these places, due to time constraints (we have tickets between 12 and 1:30 for the castle, so we are planning on getting to the Yacht Britannia when it opens at 9:30 in order to have time to see that then get to the castle by noon) and our Harry Potter tour is at 3 pm.

 

Will we have difficulty finding a taxi when we get off the tender? DO they have Uber or Lyft in Scotland? Will we be able to get a taxi from Ocean Terminal or should we plan on having the number of a taxi service and calling them? Can we walk from the castle to High Street? Will we be able to find a taxi back to the tender?

 

Any suggestions would be appreciated.  Thank you.

[princeton123211]

2 hours ago, cruisegal415 said:

Will we have difficulty finding a taxi when we get off the tender? DO they have Uber or Lyft in Scotland? Will we be able to get a taxi from Ocean Terminal or should we plan on having the number of a taxi service and calling them?

They do have Uber in Edinburgh but I'm not sure, but don't think, they have Lyft. You have a very tight day planned-- I would have built in a little bit more wiggle time.

 

2 hours ago, cruisegal415 said:

Can we walk from the castle to High Street?

It depends where on High Street. But it isn't far to get close to it-- just really depends on where you need to meet. 

 

2 hours ago, cruisegal415 said:

Will we be able to find a taxi back to the tender?

Will most likely be able to Uber back. 

[tartanexile81]

13 hours ago, cruisegal415 said:

We are doing our own thing in Edinburgh on an upcoming British Isles cruise the end of May/beginning of June.  We're docking at South Queensferry at 7, need to tender over to Edinburgh, our first outing is to the Yacht Britannia, which is in Ocean Terminal in Leith.  Next we will be going to Edinburgh Castle, then in the mid-afternoon, we are taking a "Harry Potter" tour of the city, where we need to meet our tour on High Street.  We will need to taxi over to these places, due to time constraints (we have tickets between 12 and 1:30 for the castle, so we are planning on getting to the Yacht Britannia when it opens at 9:30 in order to have time to see that then get to the castle by noon) and our Harry Potter tour is at 3 pm.

 

13 hours ago, cruisegal415 said:

Will we have difficulty finding a taxi when we get off the tender? DO they have Uber or Lyft in Scotland? Will we be able to get a taxi from Ocean Terminal or should we plan on having the number of a taxi service and calling them? Can we walk from the castle to High Street? Will we be able to find a taxi back to the tender?

 

Any suggestions would be appreciated.  Thank you.

 

There are usually taxis there first thing. The taxi rank is to the right, about 50 yards past the lifeboat station after  the pier gates. The village is called South Queensferry and Edinburgh is about 9-10 miles away. 

 

Uber is available in Edinburgh and may be useful for your return journey probably but not from South Queensferry. 

 

The High Street is part of the Royal Mile so 5-10 minutes walk downhill from the Castle.  

 

There is a taxi rank at Ocean Terminal where The Royal Yacht Britannia is situated. If there isn't one there when you need it, the website says Customer Services will phone one for you  or you could get the phone number for the company which takes you into Edinburgh. It will almost certainly be one of the two large companies with hundreds of taxis each. 

 

Sounds like you're going to have a VERY busy day 

[cruisegal415]

Very helpful suggestions.  Thank you.  We like to keep busy on days in port.  Which of these would you recommend eliminating if this is too much for one day? I guess we could skip the Britannia, I thought it might be interesting, though, and just go to Edinburgh Castle in the morning and then do the walking tour in the afternoon.  

 

I had thought, Britannia opens at 9:30, go there by 9:30, then allow two hours, then get to the Castle (we have a 12-1:30 time slot so we can get there any time between those times), so maybe be at the Castle from 12-2 (is that not enough time?) then meet the walking tour at 3.  Am I not leaving enough travel time?

[cruisegal415]

 

   18 hours ago,  cruisegal415 said: 

Can we walk from the castle to High Street?

It depends where on High Street. But it isn't far to get close to it-- just really depends on where you need to meet. 

 

We are to meet the walking tour by the Tron Kirk, in front of Frankie & Benny's on 130 High Street. 

[princeton123211]

1 hour ago, cruisegal415 said:

Am I not leaving enough travel time?

You're leaving JUST enough travel time but not accounting in case you get slowed down or something you aren't anticipating happens. You'll just need to tour at a decent clip to get it all in.  

[Thejuggler]

Its a balance between seeing something and getting best value from what you are seeing.  I'm sure you can see Britannia and the Castle in 2 hour visits each, but we were on Britannia for almost four hours.
 

It's not large, but when it opened it was quiet and we took our time to take it in as it is so interesting.  I could happily go back and do it again for as long.
 

Despite lots of visits to Edinburgh I haven't done the castle for over 30 years.  However that is large and I'm sure a couple of hours wouldn't do it justice.

 

 

[tartanexile81]

3 hours ago, cruisegal415 said:

Very helpful suggestions.  Thank you.  We like to keep busy on days in port.  Which of these would you recommend eliminating if this is too much for one day? I guess we could skip the Britannia, I thought it might be interesting, though, and just go to Edinburgh Castle in the morning and then do the walking tour in the afternoon.  

 

I had thought, Britannia opens at 9:30, go there by 9:30, then allow two hours, then get to the Castle (we have a 12-1:30 time slot so we can get there any time between those times), so maybe be at the Castle from 12-2 (is that not enough time?) then meet the walking tour at 3.  Am I not leaving enough travel time?

 

The Royal Yacht is out of the centre and is quite small and I'd say 2 hours would be long enough. I've been a few times and always enjoy it.  It's not at all regal - more English Country house at sea! You will just about get to the Castle in 30 minutes but there are lots of roadworks in that part of town at present so I'm avoiding it. The Castle is vast but at least at that time of year the queues won't be too long for the Crown jewels etc. I'd give it at least 2.5 hours and then it's just a short walk down the hill to the start of your walk. 

 

The Harry Potter Tour is quite interesting, maybe not something that would be a must-do for me, but each to their own.  You see the inspiration for Hogwarts - (George Heriot's School) Diagon Alley (Victoria Street), the coffee shop where she allegedly wrote the first book and Greyfriars Kirkyard which provided the inspiration for the characters. I'm just a bit worried that you'll be rushing around and not really have a relaxed view of anything.  

 

The quickest way to get back to South Queensferry in the rush hour (which it will be!) would be to take the train from Edinburgh Waverley to Dalmeny (South Queensferry's station). It's about 10 minutes walk down hill from there to the pier. 

[cruise kitty]

9 hours ago, cruisegal415 said:

Very helpful suggestions.  Thank you.  We like to keep busy on days in port.  Which of these would you recommend eliminating if this is too much for one day? I guess we could skip the Britannia, I thought it might be interesting, though, and just go to Edinburgh Castle in the morning and then do the walking tour in the afternoon.  

 

I had thought, Britannia opens at 9:30, go there by 9:30, then allow two hours, then get to the Castle (we have a 12-1:30 time slot so we can get there any time between those times), so maybe be at the Castle from 12-2 (is that not enough time?) then meet the walking tour at 3.  Am I not leaving enough travel time?

 I would personally skip the Britannia, once you're in Edinburgh proper, there's so much to see & do that it's a really full day (we had almost a week there,  it was not enough)   another nice thing is that it's all completely walkable.  (a long as you're reasonably fit, of course)

[cruisegal415]

15 hours ago, cruise kitty said:

 I would personally skip the Britannia, once you're in Edinburgh proper, there's so much to see & do that it's a really full day (we had almost a week there,  it was not enough)   another nice thing is that it's all completely walkable.  (a long as you're reasonably fit, of course)

Maybe then we should eliminate the Britannia and move our time slot for the Castle up a couple of hours, if possible.

[princeton123211]

16 hours ago, cruise kitty said:

I would personally skip the Britannia, once you're in Edinburgh proper, there's so much to see & do that it's a really full day (we had almost a week there,  it was not enough)   another nice thing is that it's all completely walkable.  (a long as you're reasonably fit, of course)

I personally don't agree here at all-- Britannia is a great couple hours. If you want to see something connected to the Royal family and you are interested in Britains maritime heritage I think the yacht is more interesting than say the Palace of Holyroodhouse. 

[cruise kitty]

15 minutes ago, princeton123211 said:

I personally don't agree here at all-- Britannia is a great couple hours. If you want to see something connected to the Royal family and you are interested in Britains maritime heritage I think the yacht is more interesting than say the Palace of Holyroodhouse. 

it's not that it's not interesting it's that they are on a super limited time frame.   I think scrambling to try and fit in too much is never a good plan....  & personally I skipped Holyroodhouse as well ;)

[tartanexile81]

I'd keep Britannia and The Castle but skip the Harry Potter if I had just one short day, but it all depends on your personal interests. As a cruiser I love Britannia and can appreciate why the Queen enjoyed it so much. 

[cruisegal415]

Two years later and I'm back again with the same question!  Obviously our 2020 cruise was cancelled, so we did not get to Edinburgh then. Have now booked the exact same itinerary for this August and again am debating, is this too ambitious? Arrive Queensferry 7 am, will have to wait for the tender and tender off.  In my experience, this can take awhile, and I don't believe they start allowing pax to actually get off at 7.  So figure, we may get off the tender by 8:30 or 8:45, taxi to the Ocean Terminal and tour the Royal Yacht, allow two hours, so at 11, taxi to the Edinburgh Castle, tour times in the afternoon are all available, if we take the tour at 12, we could still make our Harry Potter walking tour at 3:30, right?

 

Is this too ambitious?

[edinburgher]

Just a thought butone which might take some of your timing pressure away but still allow you to fit in everything you planned.

 

You could drop the organised Harry Potter tour at 330, and if you internet search "self guided Harry Potter Tour Edinburgh" you should get results for a few (with info on what you are seeing and maps).

 

None of the Harry Potter locations are very far from each other, in fact several are barely 5 minutes walk from the castle, on or around George IV Bridge. The City Chambers (for JKs handprints) is opposite St Giles Cathedral on the High St/Royal mIle.. 

 

We passed the Elephant House Cafe(George IV Bridge)  last week and it still appears to be closed following a huge fire in the immediate area which damaged it, but you could check closer to your arrival.  Victoris Street is first on the right when you turn onto George IV Bridge coming from the castle. Greyfriars Kirk and Graveyard is less than 100 yards from it and  and there should be online info about which headstones you could look for. although the free tours mentioned above should also have the same  info. You might spot them anyway, as there are usually so many HP  tours around you will see where the groups have stopped and photos are  being taken. "Hogwarts"  (side/back) can be seen through a gate in the graveyard, or by walking around the corner onto Lauriston Place for the  beautiful frontage.

Most out of the way is the Balmoral Hotel, next to Waverly station on Princes St .

 

Doing a self-guided tour should mean more flexibility as you would not have a fixed time to meet, and although you don't say how long your booked tour is, you could probably cut that time by half if you self guide and move fairly quickly as the tour groupswe have seen over the years tend to  move at quite a slow pace.

 

And depending on your "back on board" time,  you might even be able to squeeze in a few of the Outlander city  locations too, although the very  best ones are out of the city.😀

 

Just a thought, but worth consideration...........

Edited May 1, 2022 by edinburgher

[cruisegal415]

Thanks Edinburgher! Hubby said he isn't interested in the Britiannia so I guess we'll skip that one instead.  Another question--I went to book tickets to Edinburgh Castle and there seems to be a wide array of itineraries you can follow if you do an audio or even self-tour of the castle.  I am overwhelmed trying to figure that out.  Seems like it would be easier (albeit more $$) to do one of those skip-the-line-guided tours that many companies offer.  Is that crazy? Edited to add: I just saw that the tour guides are only allowed outside, not inside the castle.  That may be a deal breaker.

 

Also, any tips on getting to the castle from the South Queensferry port?

Edited May 1, 2022 by cruisegal415

[ihopfar]

2 hours ago, cruisegal415 said:

Also, any tips on getting to the castle from the South Queensferry port?

 

I just saw this site has been updated.   It is our first time (so I am not speaking from experience), but this seems like the easiest way to get back and forth from the port to Edinburgh.

 

https://www.lothianbuses.com/cruiselink-x99/

[Wendy-Europe]

At the moment not all entered informations at lothianbuses are reliable (at July 04 it is the Nieuw Statendam and not the Nieuw Amsterdam - and the port times are also wrong ) - but overall it is a great service we will use.

 

I am sure they will correct the errors

[edinburgher]

Also, any tips on getting to the castle from the South Queensferry port?

 

This question has been asked many times on cruisecritic.  You could use the SEARCH option to find all previous posts and comments or simply go to the FORTH PORTS website. where your options are explained.

 

By not going ahead with the Britannia visit, you have made things a lot simpler for yourselves as the north side of the city is currently a nightmare of road works and diversions as works for a new tramline are ongoing and it is chaos in the  north side of town and in the Ocean Terminal area where Britannia is docked.

 

So, now you only need to look at the options for travelling in to the city from SQ and make your way to the castle. You will have a lot longer to spend there now and it usually merits more, rather than less time, so that is also good.  And your meeting point for your HP walk (Tron ) is only 5-10 minutes walk downhill from the castle esplanade.  It is at the corner of High St/Royal MIle and South Bridge.You may now  even have time to explore some of the many attractions on the HighSt/Royal MIle depending on how long you spend at the caste. As for the castle visiting options , I suggest that you do not need a guided tour, but should definitely  buy your tickets online ahead of time  and at the same time  definitely pre-book an entry time slot as ticket lines can be long.  Once there you can maybe rent an audio guide (or if you can, pre-book that too)

 

One reason for suggesting no organised castle tour, is that, should it be raining that day, you may not want to be getting wet and walking slowly or standing around listening to a guide, and the views will not be there either. There is actually quite a lot to see which is indoors, but that depends on your interests. With an audio tour you can also  move at your own pace, in the same way you could follow the HP self guided walk yourselves at your own pace.  it is all a question of timing and flexibility..

 

So now you only need to plan your journey INTO the city from SQ and FROM the city back to SQ as  once up by the castle, and the High St/Royal Milearea  you will most likely be spending your time in that area until it is time to return to SQ

 

The lothianbuses websites has details of closures and diversions, with more in the "roadworks and diversions" section.  I cannot say what they will be when you visit as these change as tramworks and bridgeworks progress. 

 

Enjoy your time here, but the city really merits a stay of several days rather than a few hours.

[edinburgher]

If the X99 cruiselink bus is operating as advertised, it would be an easy option for the return trip as the train station at SQ is uphil, as is the castle from the main train station in the city. Hawes Pier is where the tenders land. On the other hand, it will be an uphill walk from St. A. Square to the castle.

 

St Andrew Square is really central and a short walk down from the High St/Royal Mile area.  It is also only steps from the Balmoral Hotel for HP fans photo ops.

Edited May 2, 2022 by edinburgher

[BuckeyeMark]

Love this Cruiselink X99 information but am wondering if ~3K people are getting off a cruise ship at approximately the same time do you end up waiting for a bus for a long time?

What about a taxi? Worth it just to get in and get to Edinburgh rather than waiting?

[cruisegal415]

2 hours ago, edinburgher said:

Enjoy your time here, but the city really merits a stay of several days rather than a few hours.

I totally agree.  I know many people who have done just that.  One of the reasons we like to cruise to places we have never been is to get a feel for where we may want to spend more time in the future.  The problem is, everywhere we have been so far, we want to come back for a longer stay!

[Wendy-Europe]

Of course, the limited time available during a shore excursion on a cruise is always too little to get to know a city in detail. But it is still a good way to get a rough impression or to rediscover already known cities. For example, we were already in Edinburgh for several days and have now picked out 2 things that we want to do this time. And I can only say - I've been to Paris about 40 times - several of them for longer stays - and I find something new every time that I've never seen before. But of course the Eiffel Tower is always there.....

 

[edinburgher]

Love this Cruiselink X99 information but am wondering if ~3K people are getting off a cruise ship at approximately the same time do you end up waiting for a bus for a long time?

 

One of the disadvantages of sailing a large ship.  Although not everyone will disembark at the same time, nor will they all be going into Edinburgh, length of waiting  time would depend on the number of buses.  If not wanting to lose time, might be best to consider a taxi share with others heading into the city.  If you go with that idea, I strongly urge you to ask to be dropped off up at the castle esplanade as that is the highest point and would save you a steepish uphill climb.

 I also should have mentioned that if anyone visiting the castle is there around 1300/1pm,  there is a cannon /gun fired and crowds gather to watch.  I think every day apart from Sundays.  Info online.