The Mountebank Comedy Walk of Edinburgh
- 2 hours
- Free cancellation up to 24h before
- Guided in English
- Instant confirmation
Highlights
Mountebank the original and best comedy walking tour of Edinburgh and the only tour of the city led by a professional, award winning stand-up comedian and historian with a Master degree in Scottish history. Since starting in 2019 Mountebank's success has attracted copy cat 'comedy' tours but Mountebank is the original, best and only tour led by an actual stand-up comic and historian! Your guide is Edinburgh based stand-up comic and historian Daniel Downie - and his trusty sidekick Brahan the dog! Daniel has brought several sell-out shows all about Scotland to the Edinburgh Fringe. He has been described as 'outstanding' and 'must see' by the Scotsman newspaper and his show about Mary Queen of Scots was named 'Best History Show' at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. Mountebank is all about the hysterical and ridiculous nature of Scotland's history, people, language, weather - all things Scottish basically! So come along and laugh a lot while you learn a little :)
Inclusions
What's included
- Guide
What's not
- Gratuities
Itinerary
The tour starts at the world famous Monkey Barrel Comedy club where I find out a little about you, you learn a little more about me (more than you probably care to know!) I teach you some of my favourite Scottish vocabulary and then we set off on our Old Town adventure..!!
Edinburgh's most iconic and historic High Street
The spot where trade occurred in medieval Edinburgh as well as everything from royal proclamations to punishments
The most significant religious site in the old town it played a key role in the reformation and is the resting place of swashbuckling characters such as the 'Great Montrose'
We stop outside the Writers museum for a comic take on some of Edinburgh's most famous literary figures
We stop for a stunning panorama of the south side of Edinburgh castle and learn about the daring raid of Edinburgh Castle by Sir Thomas Randolph in March 1314
Edinburgh's centre for law and disorder a bustling market place where justice was handed out in the form of public executions.
Our final stop is Greyfriars Kirkyard steeped in historical significance, gruesome stories of Edinburgh's bodysnatchers, ghosts, Harry Potter and of course Edinburgh's most famous dog Greyfriars Bobby
Cancellation
Free cancellation up to 24 hours before the experience starts, for a full refund.
Reviews
5.0
- 51,949
- 431
- 34
- 21
- 110
Ratings come from 1,995 reviews collected by our booking partner. They are travellers' own words, in the order they were written — never reordered to flatter the experience.
Showing reviews written in English.
5The reason for all those 5 stars
How does this guy have so many 5 star reviews? I’ll tell you. He was not only very quick witted and funny (he got us all laughing and there were some grumpy peeps in our group), he was incredibly knowledgeable AND so talented! He recited poetry for gods sake. And by the end of the tour he made it such that we all knew each other names! Unbelievable. Truly. Make sure you get the REAL Montebank - there are some copy cats out there .
5Laugh and learn
Great tour..... Having been recommended this tour by a local, we weren't disappointed. Daniel did a great job of doing what the tour says: stand up comedian's take on the history of Edinburgh. We learnt lots, laughed lots, without it feeling like a history lesson. Daniel's dry sense of humour and keen eye for absurdity (as well as knowledge of Scottish history) helped make for a really great trip to Edinburgh.
1Coarse language shouted in the street and misinformation
Our guide cursed the whole time, cursed at us for being Americans (when he found out four of six couples were American, his words were "(expletive) Americans." He was informative, this toilet-mouthed fellow with an alleged masters degree in history. I learned Alexander the Great was Greek (he was Macedonian), a house built in 1836 was Victorian (Victoria wasn't queen in 1836), Queen Victoria made them build a moat in front of the Edinburgh Castle (it's a dry ditch that was there long before Victoria), and the Scotch invented everything ever, including creating the first fire brigade "in the world" (Japan was first with the First Brigade in 1629). Very informative. The next day we took a Royal Mile tour in which not a single filthy word was shouted and no filthy "jokes" were spoken. Curiously, absent a "professional comedian and historian", we were correctly informed and had a ball, with many laughs. I understand there are other "Comedy Tours" in Edinburgh. I recommend those.
5Good Scottish Fun!
So much fun! Thought we'd recover from jet lag with a comedy tour and Daniel woke us up without a doubt. He joked with each person on our tour and had everyone laughing. Would definitely recommend to anyone with a sense of humor. (Might want to keep the kids at home with the adult humor)
5Informative and funny!
Daniel was very knowledgeable and at the same time hysterical! We learned so much about the history of the city and laughed alot as we were doing so. He took the time to learn everyone's name and addressed us each personally. His beautiful dog is well behaved. Highly recommend!
5Scottish humour
Daniel was a knowledgable and entertaining guide who gave us a good perspective on the history of Edinburgh. His comedic banter was fun and no one on the trip was offended, everyone joined in and had fun, exactly as a comedy tour should be.
Know before you go
- Meeting point
- The meeting point is 'Monkey Barrel Comedy Club' on Blair Street in the Old Town, I'll be the guy dressed in a kilt with a big fluffy dog :) - Please note the tour is strictly for ages 16+ - Fluent English is necessary to enjoy the tour fully, I have a Scottish accent some find hard to understand
- Pickup
- Everyone meets at the starting point; there is no pickup.
- Ticket type
- Mobile or paper ticket accepted
- Group size
- Up to 20 travellers
- Operated by
- Mountebank Scotland
- Wheelchair accessible
- Infants and small children can ride in a pram or stroller
- Service animals allowed
- Public transportation options are available nearby
- All areas and surfaces are wheelchair accessible
- Not recommended for travelers with poor cardiovascular health
- Suitable for all physical fitness levels
- *Strictly for ages 16 and over
How it compares in Edinburgh
- Its from-price is 87% below the median of the 144 city tours we list in Edinburgh.
- It is shorter than most of them.
- By number of reviews it ranks 5 of 144.
- The operator lists free cancellation on it.
About Edinburgh
Edinburgh, Scotland's capital, rises on volcanic hills, with a castle on a crag, a medieval Old Town and an elegant Georgian New Town.
Edinburgh Castle crowns Castle Rock and keeps the Honours of Scotland, the Scottish crown jewels. From there, the Royal Mile runs downhill through the Old Town, past St Giles' Cathedral and a warren of narrow closes, to the Palace of Holyroodhouse and the Scottish Parliament. Arthur's Seat, an ancient volcano, rises above the palace with sweeping views.
Top-ranked sights in Edinburgh: Royal Mile, Edinburgh Old Town, Edinburgh Castle.
Special offers in Edinburgh
Was/now prices come from the operator, never from us.
