Hadrian's Wall and The Borders Tour from Edinburgh with Admission
Description
* Includes entrance to Vindolanda Roman Army Museum (or Homesteads Roman Fort should Vindolanda be closed). Travel through 2,000 years of history as you visit ancient Roman sites such as Hadrian’s Wall, Dere Street, Birdoswald Fort, Steel Rigg and historic villages along the border of Scotland and England. You'll drive through stunning scenery in Northumberland National Park, the Irthing Valley and the Southern Uplands and learn about the Anglo-Scottish wars of the 14th–16th centuries. Your professional guide will illuminate the fascinating history of Roman Britain and the Scottish Borders on this small-group (limited to 16 people) day tour from Edinburgh.
Tour Options
Itinerary
A beautiful market town that Mary Queen of Scots famously visited. Optional visit to the Abbey.
Continuing south we make a stop at the scenic Carter Bar on the edge of the Cheviot Hills. This crossing point between Scotland and England runs close to the ancient Roman road and has formed the border between the two countries for the past 700 years.
Hadrian’s Wall - The wildest and most northerly frontier of the ancient Roman Empire. We follow the road that takes us along the south side of the wall, stopping at Steel Rigg. You have time to walk beside the wall and experience the isolation that Roman foot soldiers would have experienced as they guarded their empire from the ‘barbarians’ to the north.
* Entrance to Vindolanda Roman Army Museum (or Homesteads Roman Fort should Vindolanda be closed) included in the tour price. Vindolanda is one of Europe's most important Roman archaeological sites. Vindolanda means white lawns or white fields. We know that the Roman name for the fort was Vindolanda because of an altar set up by the civilians at Vindolanda to the god Vulcan which was found during drainage works in 1914. The altar is on display in the museum. The name Vindolanda has also been discovered on some of the writing tablets. (closed in January).
You'll have a short break in the Victorian spa town of Moffat, which attracted visitors in the 18th and 19th centuries seeking the health benefits of its mineral springs. The town is also famous for Moffat toffee, known for its unique buttery flavor and chewy texture. From Moffat, you'll travel north, past the Pentland Hills Regional Park on your way back to Edinburgh
Highlights
What's included
Traveller Ratings
Important Information
- Public transportation options are available nearby
- Suitable for all physical fitness levels
- We apologise, but we cannot accommodate children under 5 years old on our tours. Children under 18 need to be accompanied by an adult. Please note that if this policy is not followed, we will have to refuse travel without issuing a refund. Thank you for understanding.
- Luggage Allowance: You're restricted to 20kg (44lbs) of luggage per person. This should be one piece of luggage similar to an airline carry-on bag (approximately 55cm x 45cm x 25cm / 22in x 17in x 10in) plus one small bag for onboard personal items.
- Check in closes 15 minutes prior to departure
- This tour will depart from inside the Edinburgh Bus Station, Gate J and Gate K, St Andrew Square, Edinburgh, EH1 3DQ.
- Vindolanda Roman Fort and Museum admission. Tour will visit Homesteads Roman Fort should Vindolanda be closed.
- In order to retain the integrity of the tour and try to ensure that all our customers have the best possible experience, we do cap bookings from any one party to 8 passengers.
- Please note that Vindolanda is closed yearly during the month of January and part of February. Instead, we take you to Housesteads Roman Fort during this period.
Reviews(658)
Amazing day seeing Hadrians Wall, Vindalum, and Jedburgh. Kieran was a very entertaining guide. He was very courteous. He always was courteous and helpful to make sure we were helped to know what to do. Vindalum was amazing.
Our guide Jack Z (donkey) was amazing. His knowledge of the history of this area was spot on. Took us to a great part of the wall to explore and also to Vindolanda ruins and museum. Thanks Jack for sharing history, fun and a great day out.
Very interesting and engaging experience. Alex our guide was both knowledgeable and witty. Both Alex and Tom (assistant) were very helpful. We learned a lot about Roman history, Hadrian’s Wall and enjoyed the views of the countryside. We also liked his playlist and enjoyed the local stories about Edinburgh and the various villages we saw along the way. Enjoyed Vindolanda museum and cafe as well. One of our party is a history teacher and she enjoyed purchasing items for her classroom lessons on Ancient Rome. Worthwhile and informative experience.
We had a wonderful tour with Andrew! He was funny, engaging and full of interesting facts! He showed us some absolutely amazing views. Ample stops for snacks, drinks, and restrooms! We had a blast and would definitely book another tour!
Stephen with Rabbies was an amazing guide who truly made this trip. All the stops were amazing and Stephen did a good job providing background information, framing what we were about to see, and playing music to wrap it all together. Truly an unforgettable experience.
Kieran is an exceptional tour guide that shared “smashing” Scottish music, poems and stories to bring history to Hadrians Wall and the Borders. We thoroughly enjoyed this tour and highly recommend it!
Seeing Vindolanda was the highlight of this trip. Our guide made sure we maximized our time there. It was a long day but very informative.
You get alot of history, stories, jokes and music. Our guide, Allie P was great, made many stops if interest for us!
We enjoyed our day overall. I was especially excited to see Hadrian's Wall, and the tour gave us multiple opportunities to climb up, walk along the wall, take photos, and enjoy the beautiful views. Our first stop was a little confusing. We had a short amount of free time in a town with the ruins of an old church, but we weren't given much context about what we were seeing or whether it was worth paying to go inside. Since we also needed to find restrooms and wanted to see Mary, Queen of Scots' death mask and house, we spent much of our limited time trying to use the restroom and then Googling what the church was all about before deciding to skip it and hurrying through town to Queen Mary's House. We booked a guided tour because we were hoping for more historical interpretation. Instead, this stop felt more like being dropped off and left to figure things out ourselves before racing back to the bus. Hadrian's Wall was definitely the highlight of the day. My family loved walking along the wall, taking photos, and soaking in the scenery. We appreciated that the itinerary included multiple stops along the wall rather than just one viewpoint. Vindolanda was another excellent stop. The archaeological site is fascinating, and the museum was very well done. We were lucky enough to visit while Roman reenactors were there, which added a lot to the experience. (One note: the museum was quite warm inside, so be prepared on hot days.) Food options were a bit mixed. There was a café at the first stop, but only enough time to grab a coffee to go. Vindolanda had a sandwich counter, and we enjoyed eating outside on the shaded deck. The only disappointing part of the day came near the end. The planned dinner stop was closed, and the backup stop, a garden centre with some sort of food option, was also closed. We eventually stopped at Gretna Green, but almost everything was closing as we arrived. The sandwich case was empty, the pastries were gone, and we ended up having potato chips and a bag of shared shortbread cookies for dinner. After a full day of sightseeing and walking, that wasn't an ideal way to end the day. The small group size was excellent. There were just two families of four, one family of three, and one solo traveler, so the bus never felt crowded. Our driver was safe, punctual, and got us everywhere without issue. My teenagers were amused that we saw llamas from the bus at various farms along the way. Where the tour fell short for us was the guiding itself. This was the first time we've taken a guided tour where the guide didn't really engage with the group at all. There was historical commentary during the drive, but aside from beginning a story about Mary, Queen of Scots, which was never finished, there was less information and interpretation of the places we visited than we wanted. Personally, I would have preferred to hear so much more about Roman Britain, Hadrian's Wall, and Vindolanda, since those were the focus of the day. One of the reasons we booked a guided tour was to benefit from a guide's expertise, and that aspect didn't quite meet our expectations. Overall, we enjoyed the day and are glad we went. Hadrian's Wall and Vindolanda were both excellent, and the small group size made for a comfortable experience. With a little more historical interpretation from the guide and better planning around the evening meal stop, this would easily have been a five-star tour. As it stands, I give it 4 out of 5 stars.
Our guide, Stephen, was extremely knowledgeable and was great at answering any questions you had. I was very interested in the history of the Border Rievers, due to family history in that region. Stephen added extra details and one on one conversations to make sure all tours members got everything out of the tour that they wanted.
