Break Free From The Edinburgh Fringe

By Contributor -

The Maid of the Forth begins one of her evening cruises.

The Fringe is fabulous – but every now and again, the frantic pace, endless crowds and non-stop noise just gets too much. If you’re in Edinburgh during August and feel the need to escape, or desperately need to recharge your batteries by the start of September, here are a few ideas…

Go Underground

This August, The Real Mary King’s Close is offering a special late night tour of its spooky streets. During the tour, vistors to the warren of alleyways and houses which were covereed over when the City Chambers were built can find out more about Edinburgh’s witches – and even see the street where a woman who was burnt for witchcraft once lived.

The other-worldy guide who leads the tour goes back to a time when Mary King’s Close was open to the skies and fear and suspicion lingered around every corner; herbal medicinal therapies were considered to be witchcraft and being different was a crime… Try not to scream at the scarey parts!

Condemned is at Mary King’s Close until August 28 (Wed-Sun, starts at 10.30pm, tickets £17.50). For more information, click here.

Go Fossil Hunting

The National Museum of Scotland’s fascinating Fossil Hunters exhibition comes to an end on August 14 so there are only a few days left to uncover the story of how fossils recently discovered in Scotland may provide the key to the evolution of life on land.

For more information about this free exhibition at the National Museum of Scotland, click here.

Feel The Need For Speed!

A day spectating at Scotland’s fastest race track isn’t peaceful – but it’s great fun!

On Saturday, August 20 and Sunday August 21 many of Scotland’s top motorcyle racers will be at East Fortune Race Circuit, which is near Haddington, for the latest round of the Scottish Championships.

The track speeds through the East Lothian countryside, with spectating spots incredibly close to all the action. Between races, you can wander through the pits and watch the racers and their teams work on the race bikes and there are lots of opportunities to talk to Scotland’s fastest men and women on two wheels!

Admission £10, under-16s and OAPs free.

Go Cruising!

On September 9, the Maid of the Forth will set sail along the Forth on a 3-hour evening cruise featuring live music. The band, The Maid of the Forth Stompers, will perform a whole host of popular tunes from Dixieland-style to more traditional jazz, with the chance to sing-a-long and make requests.

“The Jazz Cruises are a highlight of the Maid’s evening events calendar,” said Duncan Macrae, Maid of the Forth Skipper. “The August tickets were snapped up so we bowed to public demand and added another date in September. In addition to fantastic food and music, there will be live commentary highlighting all the local landmarks and stunning scenery seen during the cruise.”

Tickets for the Maid of the Forth Jazz Cruises (adults £17, adults with BBQ supper £25, concession £15, concession with BBQ supper, £23). For more information, click here.

Be Snap Happy!

From September 16, the National Museum of Scotland will be displaying 100 awe-insiring, award-winning photographs from the Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition. The winning images were selected from over 42,000 entries from 96 countries and their visit to Edinburgh is part of an international tour when they will be seen by millions of people.

Entry to this exhibition is free. For more information, click here.