Landmarks

Palace of Holyroodhouse Entrance Tickets

Name: Palace of Holyroodhouse Entrance Tickets
Start: 2025-10-20T09:00:00
End: 2025-10-20T18:00:00
Location: Palace of Holyroodhouse

Palace of Holyroodhouse facade with central fountain, Edinburgh, Scotland.

Historic room with portraits and chandelier at Palace of Holyroodhouse, London.

Ornate room with a canopy bed and paintings at Palace of Holyroodhouse, Edinburgh.

Dining room inside Palace of Holyroodhouse, Edinburgh, with ornate decor and portraits.

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Free cancellation up to 36 hours before the start of your experience

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Audio guide

Enhance your experience with multilingual audio guide

4.5/5

(4,922)

Agnieszka

Oct 2025

Verified booking

5/5

Definitely a must when you're visiting Edinburgh. The palace of Holyroodhouse was an amazing experience full of beautiful views inside and outside of the castle and an interesting history aspect. The organization here was perfect and the audio guide was just on point, a lot of fascinating information packed in a reasonable amount of time. The whole experience was truly absorbing and the castle was such an incredible place. The service was very friendly. My expectation were high but the quality of the tour and the beauty the castle really suprised me in a great way. Great organization shows the amount of amazing work, effort and talented team of people behind it. Incredible experience, highly recommend!

Erica

Sep 2025

Verified booking

5/5

I thought that the audio and video tour of the Palace of Holyrood House was particularly well organised.. The tour guided you in a logical progression through the various rooms of the palce and there were visual prompts to help you locate and identify key features as well as video clips and photos to give background information. I found booking the experience quite straightforward, apart from the instruction that said tickets must be printed out. This was a bit worrying to a tourist with no access to a printer and proved quite unnessessary, as almost everyone in the entrance queue had tickets on their phone and there was no problem.

Rachelle

Oct 2025

Verified booking

5/5

Touring Holyrood Palace was wonderful! From the time we got in line to get our tickets, until we exited, we had a wonderful time. The lines went fast, the audio tour was very easy to understand and very informative. I learned a lot about it's history! This was my first time in Scotland, and Holyrood was at the top of our list of places to visit. It was even better than I imagined. I would highly recommend this place! I would love to come back with more friends and family to show them the rich history here!

Step into the royal world of the Palace of Holyroodhouse. See where King Charles III stays when in Scotland, and learn about its rich history.

Discover the eclectic State Apartments, a royal masterpiece showcasing the blend of grand and contrasting tastes of successive monarchs.

Walk in Mary, Queen of Scots footsteps as you visit her Historic Apartments and find out the chilling stories about murder that haunt the walls.

Seek solace in a peaceful oasis amidst the crumbling ruins of Holyrood Abbey which once used to be one of the grandest abbeys in Scotland.

Upgrade to a guided tour of the palace with after-hours access, or enjoy a 48-hour hop-on-hop-off pass with entry to Edinburgh Castle and The Royal Yacht Britannia.

Entry to the Palace of Holyroodhouse

Audio guide in English, Brazilian Portuguese, French, Gaelic, German, Italian, Japanese, Mandarin Chinese, Russian and Spanish

1.15-hour guided tour of the Palace of Holyroodhouse (as per option selected)

Exclusive after-hours State Apartments access (as per option selected)

Small group of max 25 guests (as per option selected)

Expert Royal Collection Trust tour guide (as per option selected)

Complimentary guidebook (as per option selected)

48-hour hop-on-hop-off bus (as per option selected)

Entry to Edinburgh Castle and The Royal Yacht Britannia (as per option selected)

Audio guide on the bus (as per option selected)

You can cancel these tickets up to 36 hours before the experience begins and get a full refund.

4.5
4,922 reviews
How do we collect reviews?
These ratings include verified reviews from both Headout guests and our trusted partners who operate this experience locally. All reviews come from real travelers who've taken this experience.
3.5K
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Guests from United States, France, Spain and over 10 countries have loved this experience
What our guests say
Agnieszka
Oct 2025
Verified booking
5/5
Definitely a must when you're visiting Edinburgh. The palace of Holyroodhouse was an amazing experience full of beautiful views inside and outside of the castle and an interesting history aspect. The organization here was perfect and the audio guide was just on point, a lot of fascinating information packed in a reasonable amount of time. The whole experience was truly absorbing and the castle was such an incredible place. The service was very friendly. My expectation were high but the quality of the tour and the beauty the castle really suprised me in a great way. Great organization shows the amount of amazing work, effort and talented team of people behind it. Incredible experience, highly recommend!
Rachelle
Oct 2025
Verified booking
5/5
Touring Holyrood Palace was wonderful! From the time we got in line to get our tickets, until we exited, we had a wonderful time. The lines went fast, the audio tour was very easy to understand and very informative. I learned a lot about it's history! This was my first time in Scotland, and Holyrood was at the top of our list of places to visit. It was even better than I imagined. I would highly recommend this place! I would love to come back with more friends and family to show them the rich history here!
Hannah
Oct 2025
Verified booking
5/5
Everything about the palace was wonderful! Appreciated the free listening experience provided to understand the history as well as present day at the palace. Absolutely stunning building! Gift shops had unique and fun items - so many beautiful pieces. Also visited the cafe which had some of the best food on our trip. We had a sandwich, a scone, tea and loved it all. Pricing was reasonable for everything - entrance tickets, gift shops and cafe! Recommend this to everyone!!
Suzanne
Oct 2025
Verified booking
5/5
This is a "do not miss" tour! We did the audio tour and it was perfection. Each stop was fully explained and with just the right amount of information and time provided to explore the area. You cannot take pictures inside the palace which makes the experience even more enjoyable. I loved the history and the story of Mary Queen of Scots! The fact that this is a working residence for the royals is fascinating.
Lucila
Oct 2025
Verified booking
5/5
My reservation did not have a barcode or QR code, only a reference number and I had no problem to enter the Palace, the entrance time is throughout the day it is open, there is no specific time and that's great because you can plan the whole day. I really enjoyed the visit!

A royal escapade in Scotland

Situated at the end of the Royal Mile in the center of Edinburgh, the Palace of Holyroodhouse is absolutely stunning both inside and out. A royal residence in Scotland for over 5 centuries, His Royal Majesty The King uses it for state ceremonies and official entertaining. Explore the Historic Apartments of Mary, Queen of Scots. These walls have witnessed many dramatic events during her short and turbulent reign, including the murder of her Italian secretary by her husband Lord Darnley. It is hardly a surprise then that her Bedroom came to be described as 'the most famous room in Scotland'. Take a walk through the exquisitely decorated State Apartments, renowned for their beautiful plasterwork ceilings, historical works of art, and unparalleled collection of Brussels tapestries.

Opulent interiors and haunting ruins

Visit the Great Gallery, where Bonnie Prince Charlie held several lavish balls after the setup of the Jacobite Court in September 1745. Take the chance to discover the ruins of Holyrood Abbey and the Palace's unique gardens, set against the breathtaking backdrop of Arthur’s Seat. Admire a colorful array of medicinal and culinary plants inspired by some of the earliest recorded gardens of the site, at the newly added physics garden. You can also choose to upgrade your tickets to include a 1.15-hour English-guided tour of the Palace of Holyroodhouse with an expert Royal Collection Trust tour guide and after-hour access to the State Apartmenets or get a 48-hour hop-on-hop-off bus pass which gives you entry into Edinburgh Castle and The Royal Yacht Britannia, along with the Palace of Holyroodhouse.

Edinburgh Castle

Monday	09:30am - 05:00pm	last entry 04:00pm
Tuesday	09:30am - 05:00pm	last entry 04:00pm
Wednesday	09:30am - 05:00pm	last entry 04:00pm
Thursday	09:30am - 05:00pm	last entry 04:00pm
Friday	09:30am - 05:00pm	last entry 04:00pm
Saturday	09:30am - 05:00pm	last entry 04:00pm
Sunday	09:30am - 05:00pm	last entry 04:00pm

Palace of Holyroodhouse

Monday	09:30am - 06:00pm	last entry 04:30pm
Tuesday	Closed
Wednesday	Closed
Thursday	09:30am - 06:00pm	last entry 04:30pm
Friday	09:30am - 06:00pm	last entry 04:30pm
Saturday	09:30am - 06:00pm	last entry 04:30pm
Sunday	09:30am - 06:00pm	last entry 04:30pm

What's not allowed

Palace of Holyroodhouse

Large bags, rucksacks and suitcases (30L or over) are not allowed inside for security reasons.

Due to venue restrictions, pets cannot tag along for this experience.

Keep your camera tucked away – photography is strictly not allowed inside the State Apartments.

Accessibility

Palace of Holyroodhouse

This experience is wheelchair and pram/stroller accessible, except in some parts of Mary, Queen of Scots' rooms.

Your guide dogs are welcome at the venue.

48-hour HOHO Pass

Only parts of Edinburgh Castle and the Palace of Holyroodhouse are wheelchair accessible. The Royal Yacht Britannia experience and the HOHO bus are wheelchair accessible.

Mobility scooters are allowed if they can be folded and stored as luggage.

Your guide dogs and pet dogs are welcome aboard.

Additional information

Palace of Holyroodhouse

Holyrood Palace is closed between June 26 and July 4, 2025. Entry to The King's Gallery and a Palace Guidebook are offered as an alternative to Royal Edinburgh Ticket customers.

As the Palace of Holyroodhouse is a working royal palace, security, and opening arrangements may be subject to change at short notice.

The palace is closed on Tuesdays and Wednesdays.

48-hour HOHO Pass

Children aged 15 and under must be accompanied by an adult or senior citizen during their visit.

You can board your HOHO bus anytime between 9am to 6pm and visit the Palace of Holyroodhouse, Edinburgh Castle, and the Royal Yacht Britannia within 48 hours.

Please click here for detailed route maps and boarding points.

Your voucher will be emailed to you instantly.

Display the voucher on your mobile phone with a valid photo ID at the meeting point.

Redemption Point

Show your ticket at Palace of Holyroodhouse.

Address: Canongate, Edinburgh EH8 8DX, United Kingdom..

Get Directions to the Meeting Point