With Halloween almost here, Edinburgh’s award-winning historical escape room experiences Escape the Past has researched and put together the top 10 most haunted locations in the city.
Escape the Past’s highly qualified, history-loving team of eight, are extremely well placed to give fellow city-dwellers, the capital’s most haunted locales.
The history-loving owner behind Escape the Past, Chris Wood, who studied history at Edinburgh University, said: “You just have to glance over our city’s history and you can understand why Edinburgh has such a chilling reputation. Few places on earth have packed quite so much murder, mystery and misery into just a few square miles.
“Beneath Edinburgh’s elegant spires lie forgotten vaults and buried streets once ravaged by the plague. Kirkyards that were plundered by resurrection men, the Grassmarket gallows drew crowds in their thousands to watch executions, and the city’s hilltops once blazed with the fires of the witch trials.
“We conducted research with our deeply knowledgeable team who have worked as veteran tour guides in our city, studied history and conducted a lot of research into our capital’s dark history, to create our escape rooms.
“For our research, we weighed up the number of recorded sightings, the paranormal investigations each place has attracted, and how long its legend has endured in Edinburgh literature and lore.”
Check out the top 10 most haunted Edinburgh locations in our photo gallery below.
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1. Greyfriars Kirkyard
Edinburgh’s most famously haunted location, Greyfriars Kirkyard has been a burial ground since the 1560s and is associated with the persecution of the Covenanters in the 17th century. Its notorious Black Mausoleum houses the remains of Sir George Mackenzie, nicknamed ‘Bluidy Mackenzie’ for his brutal treatment of the Covenanters. Since the late 1990s, visitors have reported attacks, unexplained bruises, scratches, sudden cold spots and shadowy figures, fuelling the legend of the terrifying ‘Mackenzie Poltergeist’! | Stock
2. The South Bridge Vaults
Hidden beneath Edinburgh’s South Bridge, these underground chambers were once workshops and taverns before becoming overcrowded slums plagued by poverty and crime. Today, the vaults are famous for reports of a hostile spirit known as ‘The Watcher’ or ‘Mr Boots’, described as a tall, dark figure in a long coat and tricorn hat. Visitors have reported heavy footsteps, unexplained touches, scratches and bruises, while another ghost, a young boy called Jack, is said to playfully tug at people’s clothes. | PA
3. Edinburgh Castle
With a history spanning almost a thousand years, Edinburgh Castle has witnessed sieges, executions and the imprisonment of thousands of prisoners of war. Its most famous ghosts include a headless drummer boy, said to appear before impending attacks, and a young piper who allegedly disappeared into underground tunnels beneath the Royal Mile. Visitors and staff have also reported unexplained touches, sudden temperature drops and shadowy apparitions. | Stock
4. The Real Mary King’s Close
Hidden beneath Edinburgh’s Royal Mile, the Real Mary King’s Close preserves the story of the city’s former streets, now underground, where residents endured the devastating plague outbreak of 1645. Its most famous ghost is Annie, a young girl said to have died during the plague and to haunt a small room after losing her favourite doll. Since a reported psychic encounter in 1992, visitors have left toys and gifts for Annie, while some claim to experience sudden cold spots or feel a small hand tugging at their clothes. | Taste