Let us pay! Plans to introduce an entry fee to visit Edinburgh's St Giles Cathedral (unless you're Scottish or under the age of 16)

Published: 20:06, 4 June 2026 | Updated: 20:06, 4 June 2026 It has witnessed many a notable event in its 900-year history and saw 33,000 people file past the Queen’s coffin over a 24-hour period as she lay in rest there following her death in 2022. Traditionally free, St Giles’ Cathedral, in Edinburgh, is planning to introduce an entrance fee to tourists later this year. Up until now, visitors to the High Kirk have not needed to pay for a ticket but encouraged to make a £10 donation instead. But from September the 12th Century place of worship will ask £12 from all non-Scots residents hoping to step inside - although those under the age of 16 regardless of where they are from can still visit for free. The popular destination, which sees up to 1.7 million people come through its doors every year, said the new ticket fees will help the Cathedral share its story with national and international visitors as well as level up its in-house concerts and events. ‘This is an exciting time in the life of St Giles’,’ the Minister of the Cathedral, the Rev Dr Scott Rennie, said. ‘As Scotland’s High Kirk we want to offer visitors from home and abroad the best possible experience and the opportunity to understand how faith and history have shaped Scotland’s life as a nation. St Giles' Cathedral is popular on Edinburgh's Royal Mile ‘I am confident that these changes will be transformational in incorporating the life and cares of Scottish people into our cycle of worship through the year.’ St Giles’ has been a site of worship for 900 years, and it welcomes more than 1.5 million visitors each year. It also holds numerous weddings each year, with Olympic champion Sir Chris Hoy and Lady Sarra, nee Kemp, tying the knot there in 2010. The Cathedral said it has an organisational responsibility to ensure its longevity as a place of worship and as a key part of the Unesco World Heritage Site that is Edinburgh. ‘St Giles’ has a complex and fascinating history,’ Sarah O’Connor, head of heritage and culture at St Giles’ said. ‘These changes will allow us to fully integrate storytelling into our visitor experience, and increase our ability to offer dynamic, impactful, and high-quality cultural events and projects. Up until now, visitors did not need to pay for a ticket but were encouraged to make a £10 donation instead ‘Fundamentally, we want our visitors to have a positive and meaningful experience and come away with a deeper understanding of the history and cultural role that makes St Giles’ Cathedral the High Kirk of Edinburgh.’ Jack Oades, organist and master of the music at St Giles’, said the increased funds from ticket sales will allow the Cathedral to ‘significantly level up’ its musical offering and in-house concerts and events. ‘This will not only allow us to improve the frequency of our choral worship, but to attract world-class performers and engage with the wider creative and cultural activities across Edinburgh and Scotland,’ he said. The Cathedral previously considered introducing an entrance fee amid a drop in donations three years ago but those plans were eventually abandoned. It has not been explained how it would differentiate between Scotland-based and other visitors to enforce the ticketing. Charging for an entrance fee is not unique to St Giles when it comes into force. No comments have so far been submitted. Why not be the first to send us your thoughts, or debate this issue live on our message boards. By posting your comment you agree to our house rules. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual We will automatically post your comment and a link to the news story to your Facebook timeline at the same time it is posted on MailOnline. To do this we will link your MailOnline account with your Facebook account. We’ll ask you to confirm this for your first post to Facebook. You can choose on each post whether you would like it to be posted to Facebook. Your details from Facebook will be used to provide you with tailored content, marketing and ads in line with our Privacy Policy.