Edinburgh Dungeon
31 Market Street EH1 1DF
Some visitor attractions need swathes of cutting edge rides and all sorts of high tech trickery to thrill and scare. Edinburgh Dungeon doesn't. No, it relies on something a lot more Edinburgh, using a cast list of the sinister and baleful real life characters who have blackened the city's dark heart over the centuries to get right into your imagination. On this 'tour' you come face to face with the 'Bodysnatchers' Burke and Hare, meet the local cannibals and attend an autopsy. If it all sounds a little terrifying it is, but it is brilliantly done using a talented crew of actors who guide and thrill you through the themed rooms. They, of course, use a little trickery too, but we don't want to spoil the surprises for you. The Dungeon's one big nod to the traditional theme park-style attraction is the drop ride that simulates your own hanging in all too vivid fashion. If you have been before you will want to go back as they constantly evolve too with the 'Street of Sorrows' a fine new addition in 2014, evoking the days when Edinburgh's poorest residents were buried alive below its streets.The Edinburgh Dungeon is both very Edinburgh and also very good.
