Trip with Lesley to see the Royal Military Tattoo in Edinburgh - so worth it!!

About a year ago, my coworker Lesley and I talked about going to see the Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo. When we first looked into tickets and accommodations, everything was extremely expensive, so we decided to postpone the trip until the following year. In 2025, we planned ahead—purchasing tickets several months in advance and booking two dorm rooms at the university, which were quite affordable (by Scottish standards). I was so excited to go on a last hurrah with Lesley before moving back to the US!

We flew out of Stansted with Ryanair, since that was the cheapest. 

Aug. 2, 2025

We arrived on Friday afternoon and walked to a nearby restaurant for dinner. 

The next morning, I woke up to find out that Lesley has been sick all night long! It may have been something she's eaten at the restaurant. That was a real bummer. 

She told me to still go on the city tour that we had scheduled, to which I reluctantly agreed. 

The City tour was guided by a guy with a dog, and that's how he advertised it on the guru walk. I thought that sounded great. The group was huge, about 20 people or more. But since most areas were for pedestrians only, it was no problem to walk around the city. 

The Guru guide with his dog: 

I loved the stories he shared and I learned so much about Edinburgh and what it was like to live there during the middle ages.

Thankfully, Lesley felt much better by that evening, and we were able to enjoy the Royal Military Tattoo together. After taking an Uber into the city, we walked a short distance to the queue for the castle grounds. We arrived about an hour before the event and were glad we did, as the line was incredibly long.

Finally, we made it to our seats, and I was very glad to have checked where the better seats were, because that made a big difference. We sat opposite the entrance, a bit higher up, giving us an excellent view as the groups marched toward us.

It was a fantastic show and we enjoyed every minute of it. It is the world's largest bagpipe event, featuring performers and military bands from many countries, not just the United Kingdom. Switzerland's group was one of my favorites. In fact, Basel hosts its own tattoo, presumably the second biggest bag pipe event in the world. 

We got back to the dorms quite late. It took forever to get an Uber! Even so, it was absolutely worth it. We loved it and were so glad we came!!

The next day, we toured the Britannia, the royal yacht. It was fascinating to see how the royal family traveled and to view the bedrooms used by Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip. What surprised me most was how simple and modest the rooms were. Rather than being extravagant, the bedrooms felt quite ordinary and comfortable.

After that, we hopped on a sightseeing bus and toured the city while listening to the narration along the way. It was the perfect way to see Edinburgh, especially since Lesley was still recovering from knee surgery. Even so, she was doing remarkably well and was already able to walk much more than we had expected.

Before long, it was time to fly home. We were so grateful to have shared this trip together, knowing that it may be a very long time before we have the chance to see each other again.

THE END