The Real Mary King's Close

The Real Mary King’s Close takes you beneath Edinburgh’s Royal Mile to a preserved network of old streets, homes and passageways. The close was once an open-air part of the Old Town, where people lived and worked; later buildings covered parts of it. A costumed guide leads the visit through narrow spaces and rooms, sharing stories of residents, the plague and everyday life in earlier Edinburgh. It’s a good stop for history and atmospheric storytelling, though the dark, confined setting may not suit everyone.

A street beneath the Royal Mile

Mary King’s Close was one of the narrow lanes, or closes, that ran through Edinburgh’s Old Town. In the 17th century, it was an open-air street lined with homes and places of work. Its name comes from Mary King, a merchant burgess who lived there. The close formed part of a busy neighbourhood, not a purpose-built underground attraction.

The area changed as Edinburgh grew. In 1753, construction of the Royal Exchange, now the City Chambers, covered and partly altered the closes beneath it. The remains of Mary King’s Close stayed under the newer buildings, preserving a section of the older street and its surrounding spaces. The site reopened to the public in 2003.

Inside the close

Access is by guided tour. A costumed guide leads the group through narrow lanes and rooms, telling the stories of people who lived in the area and explaining how the spaces were used. The route includes a 16th-century townhouse and rooms connected with a 17th-century gravedigger. The close’s cramped layout helps make clear how different this part of Edinburgh was from the streets above.

The tour combines historical accounts with tales of plague, quarantine, poverty and crime, as well as ghost stories associated with the site. Annie, a child linked to one of the rooms in local lore, is among the figures visitors hear about. The supernatural stories are part of the close’s reputation; the visit also gives attention to the residents and conditions behind the legends.