The Edinburgh Literary Pub Tour: A Dramatic Romp through Old and New Town's Historic Pubs

Join the Edinburgh Literary Pub Tour for a hilarious and engaging romp through the historic pubs of Edinburgh’s Old and New Town. Experience a dramatic script performed by professional actors and discover the lesser-known literary characters that have shaped the city’s tavern life. A must-see cultural attraction since 1996!

Duration: 2 hours
Cancellation: 24 hours
Highlights
  • Edinburgh Old Town - The Edinburgh Literary Pub Tour is is a brilliant and witty dramatic romp through the wynds, courtyards and pubs of Edinburgh’s Old and new Town.
What's Included
  • Professional actors
What's Not Included
  • Alcoholic Beverages
Additional Information

Join the adventurous pair, Clart (synonym for dirt!) and our polished-intellectual Mcbrain, as they guide you on an amusing and smart theatrical journey through the back alleys, squares, and pubs of historical and modern Edinburgh. A hilarious battle of brains featuring three centuries of excellent literature and vibrant personalities.
The Edinburgh…

Location
Beehive Inn
Grassmarket
Look out for our Ticketing person wearing bright vest. The tour starts up the stairs at The Beehive on the top floor. Feel free to purchase a drink at the bar beforehand and bring it upstairs with you to enjoy the first scene!
Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Customer Ratings
4.5
(436 Ratings)
5 stars
4 stars
3 stars
2 stars
1 star
497trevorj
Dec 18, 2024
Good times - It was everything you would expect from a literary tour. A very good show between the tour guides. A very enjoyable time.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
U125fcpaulf
Dec 9, 2024
Great night out. - Brilliant tour. Coped with all the rain Edinburgh could throw at us by varied use of alleyways and pubs. Highly recommended.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Alansi3974fo
Nov 26, 2024
Splendid performers, fascinating storytelling, great fun - An excellent double act and a fun, fascinating journey through history. Blair and Dougal have great chemistry, superb comedy and a highly gripping storytelling style that has you engaged right from the start. I cannot recommend this tour highly enough.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Onair44539507381
Nov 3, 2024
10/10 Excellent 👍 - The tour was absolutely amazing. 10/10 very entertaining and intellectual. Loved the banter between the guides. Definitely recommend to anyone looking for a unique history of Edinburgh.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Kkathein
Oct 27, 2024
Great Experience - This tour was amazing! It's put on by actors who play different roles throughout the tour, we stopped at two or three pubs, it was funny and educational. It was also less mainstream and much more interesting than most Edinburgh tours. I didn't feel like I'd heard all the stories before and they were told really in-depth.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
335berte
Oct 22, 2024
Must do in Edinburgh!! - Great tour!!! We were not very knowledgeable about literature prior to the tour. The actors did a wonderful job of keeping us engaged. It's cool how they incorporated pubs into the tour. We understand now why this tour gets such high ratings. Definitely recommending this tour!!!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Celinan406
Oct 20, 2024
Scottish poems in the rain - a must! - For the literary pub tour we met on a rainy Sunday evening in the function room of a quaint pub. The duo Clart and McBrain (Mike and Hazel) filled the entire evening with a unique charm with their outstanding renditions of Scottish poems and acting extracts, letting the 2.5h of the tour fly by as well as forgetting the bad weather. Hazel portrayed a wonderful Jekyll/Hyde in a one-man show, while Mike impressed us especially with the recitation of Scottish poems in the Scottish dialect. The interaction of the two was to the point and the opportunity for a drink in the authentic pubs should have been taken by everyone once.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Narveltuffnts
Oct 9, 2024
Edinburgh famous authors or depraved scribblers you decide - What a great tour. Learned a ton about the authors who lived and wrote about and in Edinburgh. The friendly debate about the "virtues" of famous writers was hilarious. If you want to learn about Edinburgh's famous authors while having a wee dram or pint, you can't go wrong with this tour
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Bessie_d
Sep 30, 2024
Literary History Pub Experience - Loved hearing about the history of the literary figures in the history of Scotland. The title was a bit deceiving in that I thought we would be touring some of the pubs in the area.
Review provided by Viator
Richard_o
Oct 8, 2024
Unprepared for rain - Lack of a contingency plan for a rainy night rendered this performance unbalanced and off-kilter. A bit disappointing.
Review provided by Viator
Select Date and Tickets
up to 15 guests
1 Adult
January 2025
Sun
Mon
Tue
Wed
Thu
Fri
Sat
Today