Edinburgh Castle announces reopening date as historic sites set to open their doors

The castle doors will open on August 1, alongside Stirling Castle and Urquhart Castle by Loch Ness.

The opening of the castles is part of a phased approach by HES to reopen 70 per cent of its free-to-access and ticketed properties by mid-September, aligning with phase three of the Scottish Government’s route map out of lockdown.

Historic Environment Edinburgh is Scotland’s biggest operator of visitor attractions, caring for over 300 properties.

From August 1 Edinburgh Castle’s external space will be open, as well as prioritising access to interior spaces were social distancing can be easily maintained.

HES anticipates that by the end of August further internal spaces will be open.

On Wednesday Scottish tourism is anticipated to restart with over 200 HES unstaffed and key-keeper sites across Scotland available to access where physical distancing can be readily maintained.

These sites include Doune Castle, Caerlaverock Castle and Dundonald Castle.

Visitor numbers will be limited for safety reasons, and people will be required to pre-book tickets online and to use contactless payment where possible.

Some locations will include one-way systems, and some areas of the sites - including encloses spaces - will be closed off to visitors.

Chief executive of HE, Alex Paterson said: “At the forefront of our planning is the safety of our staff and visitors, whilst being able to reopen for the tourist season by gradually enabling safe access to our properties and facilities in line with Scottish Government guidance.

“We’ve been working exceptionally hard to ensure our properties will be accessible and ready to welcome visitors, however it’s important that we implement our resumption plans at the right time given the different requirements for each site.

“We’re very much looking forward to welcoming visitors back to our sites.

“There will of course be some initial changes, including managing visitor numbers at certain sites as well as restricting access to specific locations, but we can assure visitors of a warm welcome as always.”

The phased opening of sites across Scotland will mean that seasonal sites, with the exception of Inchcolm Abbey in the Forth, will not be opening for the 2020 season.

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