About Ewan Macrae
I’m Ewan — an Edinburgh walking-tour guide since 2011, and the person behind Holyrood Palace Tickets, an independent comparison guide to Palace of Holyroodhouse tickets and tours. This site is not the Royal Collection Trust and doesn’t sell official tickets; it compares what’s on offer so you can book the right thing at the right price.
Why me, why this palace
I live in Abbeyhill, five minutes’ walk from the palace gates, and most of my Royal Mile tours end on the Holyrood forecourt. After enough years of answering the same questions there — is it better than the castle, why is it shut on a Tuesday, which combo ticket isn’t a waste of money — I wrote the answers down. Holyrood is the palace most visitors skip, and for a lot of them it’s the better ninety minutes: a working royal residence with Mary, Queen of Scots’ actual chambers and a fraction of the castle’s crowds. My case for it is in the comparison, and I’m just as happy to tell you when it’s not worth your slot.
What this site does
I compare the palace tickets and tours sold through GetYourGuide, read what bookers actually report, and write up honest reviews of each one — including the thinly-reviewed newer products, flagged as such. I’m not a ticket seller: when you book, you do it on GetYourGuide, a licensed reseller. Official palace policies — opening days, concession rates, the 1-Year Pass — are set by the Royal Collection Trust, not by me, and I link to their site in the footer.
How the site is funded
If you book through a link here I earn a small commission, at no extra cost to you. That keeps the site free and doesn’t change what I recommend — the cheapest thing I point people at costs £19.50 and the advice on the prices page includes when you should book direct with the palace instead. The affiliate disclosure spells it all out.
Spotted an error, or got a question I haven’t answered? Get in touch.