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St Andrews History Tours: Explore the Rich Historical Quarters with Historian Richard Falconer
4.9
41 Ratings
Fife
Join historian Richard Falconer on a captivating tour of St Andrews’ rich historical quarters. Discover lost and forgotten history, visit Mary Queen of Scots’ holiday locations, and explore the unique charm of this ancient city.
Duration:
1 hour, 30 minutes
Cancellation:
1 day
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Highlights
- St Mary’s College - A haven off the beaten track. Learn about the 3rd college of the university built in 1538 to combat heresy.
- St Leonards School - Hear about St Leonards school, the top private school in Scotland and one of the top schools in the world where the Queen Mother attended primary school.
- The Pends - Learn about the only entrance to the city to St Andrews for the pilgrims and journey along the historic thoroughfare through the former priory precincts of the Cathedral.
- St Andrews Harbour Trust - Visit St Andrews harbour, an area of great beauty missed by many a visitor to the town.
- St Andrews Cathedral - Learn about the incredible history of the former seat of the Catholic Church in Scotland.
- St Andrews Castle - The was the Bishops Palace from the 13th century. For the most part there was spiritual peace here but it has a fascinating history that culminated in the Scottish Reformation.
- University of St Andrews - Explore all the historic quarters of Scotland’s oldest University around St Andrews, with its amazing architecture and unique history.
What's Included
- Guided tour with Richard Falconer, professional English-speaking guide and historian.
Additional Information
See all the major historic quarters of St Andrews (excluding golf) and hear about its unique and rich history, with your guide - Richard Falconer. As a local historian, author and guide for 10 years, you will learn previously lost or forgotten history, about Mary Queen of Scots, the Knights Templar, St Andrews Meridian line, the Cathedral, the pilgrims and Scotland’s oldest university. Please note, that there is no mention of golf on this tour, for golf, check out Richard’s golf and Old Course tours.
Your guide is local historian and author - Richard Falconer
Visit the Cathedral, Palace, Harbour and University
Learn all about St Andrews unique history
Not suitable for any with walking impediments and all must be fluent in English
- Participants must understand English well
- Under 5s free, not suitable for under 2s
- Not suitable for those with walking difficulties (walking slowly)
Location
The Bothy St Andrews
All tours meet opposite the Bothy Restaurant in Church Square, behind Holy Trinity Church (formerly the Dolls House Restaurant).
Cancellation Policy
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
Customer Ratings
4.9
(41 Ratings)
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Lisa_s
Jul 18, 2024
Great value and awesome guide - Awesome guide.. Included items we were interested in. 1.5 hours was perfect and the tour was a great value. It was worth more than what was paid!
Review provided by Viator
Timothy_k
May 8, 2024
History - Our guide, Richard, was enthusiastic about sharing his well-researched knowledge of St Andrews. We were shown hidden gems about the lovely town and were told histories of the cathedral and other buildings. Great tour!
Review provided by Viator
Michael_s
Apr 26, 2024
I would recommend this tour to anyone. - The tour guide was very knowledgeable about the town of St Andrews and took the time to show us the highlights.
Review provided by Viator
Gentry_w
Sep 7, 2023
St Andrews: More than Golf - Richard was a great tour guide and answered any question that was thrown at him. St Andrews is a can’t miss.
Review provided by Viator
Nancy_s
Jul 20, 2023
Great tour - guide wonderful - Our guide, Richard, was a wealth of information! Made the tour wonderful! Highly recommended to all age levels.
Review provided by Viator
760bt
May 10, 2023
What a very informative, interesting and fun tour! - It was an excellent, fantastic and most enjoyable tour. Richard Falconer was very knowledgeable, professional, friendly, helpful and always came up with suggestions/ideas to enable me to make the most of my tour as well as to plan my tours effectively. For example, Richard was with a tour group when he bumped into me in St Savlatore Hall and he suggested I join them there and then to go into the St Salvatore's chuch as it would be closed by the time I did my evening tour. Also when I was booking my tours, Richard pointed out that I was booking more tours than I needed and advised me which tours would already cover everything I needed. And during the tours, Richard was a superb tourguide, making my day so interesting, informative, fun and enjoyable too! I highly recommend Richard and his tours!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Sarah
Apr 27, 2023
Lovely tour through St. Andrews - This was a great informative tour of St. Andrews. We learned so much from Richard about the long history of the town. Would highly recommend.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Sally_w
Apr 22, 2023
Superb history tour - Richard was a superb guide. He truly brought the history alive and we enjoyed speaking with him and learned so much. The cathedral history was especially fascinating.
Review provided by Viator
Linda_carlotta
Apr 15, 2023
Excellent! - I received this tour as a gift and my husband and I were lucky with the weather as it turned out to be cold but sunny. It was February and we were fortunate enough to be the only ones on the tour! Our guide Richard was very welcoming and cheery and engaging and not above cracking the odd joke or too! Richard is clearly very knowledgeable and passionate about his subject matter and the tours themselves. We thought we knew St Andrews but Richard’s tour took us to places and views we had not seen before. Although ours was a historical tour Richard , when appropriate shared some of his broader knowledge about St Andrews, the golf and inevitably William and Catherine! This was an excellent tour and I would highly recommend it. Thank you Richard!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Gregorj_13
Apr 10, 2023
Excellent - A hugely informative and enjoyable tour of the highways and byways of St Andrews. Our guide, Richard, was engaging, with a wry sense of honour. His knowledge was comprehensive and, as a local, he gave us insights into St Andrews from ancient to modern day times. Thoroughly enjoyed the 90 minutes.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
