--- title: Small-Group Historic Coffee Tour in Edinburgh | 90min lang: en type: tour city: Edinburgh country: United Kingdom price: 18 currency: EUR price_unit: per_person availability: bookable rating: 4.95 reviews: 81 duration_minutes: 90 languages: [en] free_cancellation: true schedule_checked: 2026-10-01 data_updated: 2026-10-01 canonical: https://guidekin.com/uk/edinburgh/tours/small-group-historic-coffee-tour-in-edinburgh-90min/ --- # Small-Group Historic Coffee Tour in Edinburgh | 90min **Guidekin's take:** Explore Scotland’s coffee trade through Edinburgh’s coffee-house stories, with access to the underground venue The Lost Close. Coffee or tea and a local guide are included; the route is on foot. 4.95 from 81 reviews at €18 per person for 1h 30m. ## Overview There's no tour like it in Edinburgh! A walking tour specifically around the history of the coffee trade in Scotland. Begin your journey at John’s Coffee House & Tavern, originally opened in 1688 and once frequented by Enlightenment thinkers like Adam Smith and David Hume. Sip a freshly brewed cup from Edinburgh roaster Common Coffee as you explore the role of coffee houses in Scotland’s intellectual and social history. From there, your guide will lead you on a walking tour of key historic sites tied to Edinburgh’s early coffee culture, revealing how coffee arrived in Scotland and how it helped shape conversation, commerce, and community in the capital. Your tour ends with a second coffee at The Lost Close, an atmospheric underground vault hidden beneath the city and sealed for nearly 200 years after the Great Fire of 1824 ## Before you book - Meeting point: The meeting point is OUTSIDE of John's… - Starts 10:00: one departure a day - Age 18+: The tour is strictly for adults. Children under 18… ## Key facts - Price: from €18 per person - Duration: 1h 30m - Rating: 4.95/5 from 81 reviews (collected from Guidekin & Viator & Tripadvisor) - Free cancellation (see policy below) - Recommended by 99% of travellers (share of four- and five-star reviews) - Operator: The Lost Close - Events & Experiences ## What's included - Access to The Lost Close, unique underground venue - Experienced Local Guide - Coffee and/or Tea ## Itinerary 1. **The Lost Close** (45m; admission included) - We have exclusive access to a hidden, underground space, which was once a coffee house dating back to the 18th century, used by prosecutors and pirates alike. For the second half of our tour, we'll be exploring a series of underground rooms, where we'll drink coffee and... 2. **Old Town** (45m) - The Old Town of Edinburgh has a rich history of coffee houses, we'll visit a few of the locations on a walk. For the first half of the tour, we will be outside exploring the closes and wynds, the narrow alleys of Edinbuurgh's Historic Old Town. Most of the ancient coffee... ## Schedule - Runs: daily - Departures: 10:00 - Schedule last checked: 2026-10-01 - These are published departures, not a live seat count; availability is confirmed at checkout. ## Cancellation For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time. ## Meeting point The meeting point is OUTSIDE of John's Coffee House & Tavern. Just off the Royal Mile, behind St Giles Cathedral on Parliament Square. We'll head underground from there. Map: https://www.google.com/maps/place/?q=place_id:ChIJl4MjlEPHh0gRrG33eTQpM6U ## Good to know - Service animals allowed - Public transportation options are available nearby - Suitable for all physical fitness levels - The tour is strictly for adults. 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