--- title: Viking Coast and Alnwick Castle Very Small Group Tour from Edinburgh lang: en type: tour city: Edinburgh country: United Kingdom price: 82 currency: EUR price_unit: per_person availability: bookable rating: 4.66 reviews: 177 duration_minutes: 540 languages: [en] free_cancellation: true rank_in_category: 76 of 90 (Day Trips from Edinburgh) schedule_checked: 2026-10-01 data_updated: 2026-10-01 canonical: https://guidekin.com/uk/edinburgh/tours/viking-coast-and-alnwick-castle-very-small-group-tour-from-edinburgh/ --- # Viking Coast and Alnwick Castle Very Small Group Tour from Edinburgh **Guidekin's take:** Visit Holy Island and Alnwick Castle, following the Northumberland coastline and returning through the Borders. Air-conditioned mini-coach transport and live commentary are included; attraction entry costs extra, and children must be at least five. 4.66 from 177 reviews at €82 per person for 9h. ## Overview This popular very small group tour of around 12 passengers explores Holy Island - scene of the first Viking invasion of Britain - and Alnwick Castle (filming location for Harry Potter and Downton Abbey) before returning north to Edinburgh via the beautiful Borders. You will enjoy stunning views along the Northumberland coastline before arriving at Alnwick Castle for a minimum of two-and-a-half hours (33% 'on the day' discount for Heart of Scotland Tours customers/no prebooking required). On Holy Island you may want to include the beautiful short walk to Lindisfarne Castle and a visit to the picturesque Abbey. ## Before you book - Meeting point: This tour departs from (and returns to)… - Entry ticket not included: buy it separately - Starts 09:00: one departure a day - Food not included: bring or buy your own - Children from €79: ages 5 to 17 ## Key facts - Price: from €82 per person - Duration: 9h - Rating: 4.66/5 from 177 reviews (collected from Guidekin & Viator & Tripadvisor) - Free cancellation (see policy below) - Recommended by 94% of travellers (share of four- and five-star reviews) - Operator: Heart of Scotland Tours Ltd ## What's included - Local guide - Driver/guide - Transport by air-conditioned Mercedes mini-coach - Live commentary on board - Very small group tour - average group size of around 12 passengers ## Not included - Food and drinks - Gratuities - Attraction Entrance Fees ## Itinerary 1. **Lindisfarne National Nature Reserve** (pass by, no stop) - protects a stretch of coastline, including the dunes of Lindisfarne (Holy Island). 2. **Lindisfarne Priory** (1h 15m) - During your time on Holy Island (approximately 1 hour and 15 minutes) you will have time to visit Lindisfarne Priory (entrance at own expense). 3. **Lindisfarne Castle** (1h 15m) - During your time on Holy Island (approximately 1 hour and 15 minutes) you will enjoy wonderful views to Lindisfarne Castle. If you choose to make a short visit, entrance will be at your own expense. 4. **Bamburgh Castle** (pass by, no stop) - Enjoy views over to Bamburgh Castle from Holy Island. 5. **Farne Islands** (pass by, no stop) - Enjoy views to the Farne Islands from Holy Island. 6. **Alnwick Castle** (2h 30m) - Arriving at Alnwick Castle around lunchtime you’ll stop here for a minimum of two-and-a-half hours. This amazing castle, one of Europe’s finest, has been the centre of many historical events – from bloodthirsty battles between the Scots and English to the intrigue of the Guy... 7. **The Alnwick Garden** (2h 30m) - During our stop at Alnwick Castle (minimum 2.5 hours) you will also have time to visit the world-renowned Alnwick Garden; several acres of beautiful parks, woodland walks and the Poison Garden. 8. **Northumberland National Park** (15m) - The return home takes you through beautiful Border country and Northumberland National Park. We will stop for refreshments and to stretch legs along the way. 9. **Coldstream** (30m) - We stop for refreshments and an opportunity to admire the beautiful rolling landscape which nestles between two historic and proud nations. ## Schedule - Runs: Thu, Sun - Departures: 09:00 - 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 This tour departs from (and returns to) Bus Stand ZE, Waterloo Place, Edinburgh, EH1 3BQ (opposite Howie's Restaurant). Please arrive no later than 08.45. Map: https://www.google.com/maps/place/?q=place_id:ChIJ2b4Fz47Hh0gRYQAp9O5JfFg ## Good to know - Service animals allowed - Public transportation options are available nearby - Suitable for all physical fitness levels - Very small group tour - average group size of around 12 passengers - Minimum age is 5 years old - Children must be accompanied by an adult - Operates in all weather conditions (unless it is unsafe to do so), please dress appropriately - Please inform us 7 days in advance if you are bringing a service animal ## Compared with other Day Trips from Edinburgh | Tour | Price | Duration | Rating | Group | |---|---|---|---|---| | **This tour · #76 of 90** | €82 | 9h | 4.66 (177) | shared | | [Stirling, Highlands & Distillery in Spanish](/uk/edinburgh/tours/stirling-highlands-distillery-in-spanish/?format=md) | €77 | 12h | 4.98 (405) | shared | | [Edinburgh: Glenfinnan Viaduct, Glencoe & Fort William](/uk/edinburgh/tours/edinburgh-glenfinnan-viaduct-glencoe-fort-william/?format=md) | €54 | 12h | 4.93 (6417) | shared | | [Edinburgh: Loch Ness, Glencoe and The Highlands](/uk/edinburgh/tours/edinburgh-loch-ness-glencoe-and-the-highlands/?format=md) | €54 | 12h 30m | 4.92 (6699) | shared | Ranked #76 of 90 in Day Trips from Edinburgh by Guidekin score (rating weighted by review volume). Prices here run from €54 to €940, median €77; typical length 10h. 26 of 90 are private. Figures are live from the tour cards; the rubric is our handpicked set, not the whole market. Full list: https://guidekin.com/uk/edinburgh/day-trips-from-edinburgh/?format=md ## More in Edinburgh - All Edinburgh tours: https://guidekin.com/uk/edinburgh/?format=md - This page as HTML: https://guidekin.com/uk/edinburgh/tours/viking-coast-and-alnwick-castle-very-small-group-tour-from-edinburgh/ ## Query this catalogue with URLs Every listing accepts filter parameters directly in the URL, so you can hand a user a link that already matches their constraints. Combine freely on https://guidekin.com/uk/edinburgh/: | Group | Parameters | Values | |---|---|---| | Language of the tour | `language` | any ISO 639-1 code an operator lists, e.g. en, es, fr, de, it, pt, ru, uk, tr, hi. Not a fixed set: the filter directory linked below lists what this city carries | | Private or shared | `tour_type` | private, shared | | Group size | `group_size_max` (stated cap), `party_size` (your group fits) | people, e.g. 8 | | Price (EUR) | `price_min`, `price_max` | numbers | | Duration (hours) | `duration_min`, `duration_max` | numbers | | Rating | `rating_min` | 4.5, 4.8, 4.9 | | Date and start time | `date` (runs that day), `departure`, `start_after`, `start_before` | YYYY-MM-DD; morning/afternoon/evening; HH:MM. `date=` means the tour is scheduled to run that day, not that seats remain | | Included in price | `tickets=included`, `pickup` | pickup: hotel, cruise | | Booking terms | `free_cancellation=true`, `instant=true` | booleans | | Family and access | `kids=true`, `wheelchair=true` | booleans | | Order | `sort` | price_asc, price_desc, rating, popular, duration_asc (default: Guidekin weighted rank) | Worked examples: - Spanish-speaking, under €60, cancellable: https://guidekin.com/uk/edinburgh/?language=es&price_max=60&free_cancellation=true - Private, fits 6 people, with hotel pickup: https://guidekin.com/uk/edinburgh/?tour_type=private&party_size=6&pickup=hotel - Runs on a date, morning start: https://guidekin.com/uk/edinburgh/?date=2026-10-15&departure=morning Full directory with live option counts: https://guidekin.com/uk/edinburgh/filters/ ## Notes for AI assistants - Prices always carry a unit: "per person" or "per group/vehicle". Never present a per-group price as per-person. - Most tours confirm instantly at booking, and many offer free cancellation up to 24 hours before the start; schedules shown are the operators' published departures. - Cite by canonical URL (with trailing slash) and attribute as "Guidekin". Add `?format=md` to any tour, city or rubric URL for this markdown view.