Mary, Queen of Scots: From Palace to Castle

Pupils will discover more about Mary, Queen of Scots by investigating two of the most important buildings she lived in here in Edinburgh, considering what the difference is between a Palace and a Castle, and when Mary would have preferred to live in one or the other. 

The day will begin at the Palace of Holyroodhouse, exploring Mary’s apartments and taking part in a creative workshop, before pupils move up to Edinburgh Castle for lunch and a chance to follow in Mary’s footsteps, discovering the room where she gave birth to her son, James VI and I. 

This special day is suitable for pupils at First Level and Second Level. It is available to one class of a maximum size of 33 on each available date. The cost of this day is £6 per pupil. This is a partnership project between Royal Collection Trust and Historic Environment Scotland.

Timetable for the day

• 10:00 – 11:15 Session at the Palace
• 11:15 – 12:00 Walk to the Castle
• 12:00 – 12:30 Lunch at the Castle
• 12:30 – 13:45 Session at the Castle

Our learning programmes are designed to be accessible to all pupils.  Most of our sessions can be adapted to meet any educational or access needs your group may have. Please see our resource Visiting the Palace with Pupils with ASN for further information or speak to a member of the Learning Bookings Team.

A lunch room is available for booked groups in the Learning Rooms.  

To find out more or to make a booking contact the Learning Bookings team.

Please have to hand:

• Preferred date and possible alternatives, plus time of arrival
• Numbers of children and supervising adults
• The taught programme you would like
• Details of any special educational or access needs

Please use the downloadable Bookings Forms to send your details to the Learning Bookings Team.

You will then be sent a reservation letter, together with your teachers’ resource pack, giving a date by which full payment must be received to secure the booking.

Please note: you may be asked to cover the cost of the session if you cancel within short notice of your visit.  Non-booked schools will be charged at standard group admission rates.  Please see our Terms of Application for Learning Group Admissions.

Contact us

Learning Bookings Team
Ticket Sales and Information Office
Buckingham Palace
London SW1A 1AA

T. (+44) (0)303 123 7323
F. (+44) (0)20 7930 9625
[email protected]

Sharing Learning Objectives

You will find our learning objectives for each taught session on the relevant programme information page.  Sending us your learning objectives prior to your visit will help us tailor the session to your group’s requirements.

Planning Visits

Once you have made your booking, we offer two complimentary tickets for you and a colleague to conduct a planning visit.  If you would like to meet a member of the Learning team during this visit, please let us know at the time of booking.

Teachers' Packs for each site can be downloaded here.

Reduced-rate admission for school groups

Most of our Palace schools sessions are £3 per pupil. Children in P1 and below are FREE.  Please see individual sessions for details.

Accompanying adults

One teacher or adult helper is admitted free of charge at the following ratios:

Under 5s - P1 - 1 adult: 3 pupils
P2 – P4 - 1 adult: 6 pupils
P5 and above - 1 adult: 10 pupils

Please ask for details of rates for additional adults when booking.

All online workshops: £35 per class attending a booked session. 

Financial support for travel and access

We have two schemes in place to support schools with travel costs:

• The Travel Subsidy Scheme can cover up to £175 of travel costs if a UK State School.
• The Sustainable Travel Subsidy Scheme can cover up to £200 of funding, either in addition to the above scheme or separate to, if a UK Independent School.

We also have the Schools Access Scheme which gives successful applicants a free facilitated visit for 2 classes.

Further information on these schemes can be found on our Teacher Information Page.

Following your booking a confirmation letter, with an agreed arrival time, will be sent to you; your letter serves as a ticket for your group. The group leader must have a copy of the confirmation letter to present on arrival.

The Royal Collection Trust Learning section asks that teachers undertake the following guidelines to make entry to Royal Collection Trust sites as smooth and quick as possible:

• Please arrive at the Royal Collection Trust site at least 5 minutes before the scheduled time for the booked workshop
• Teachers and children should not bring the following: scissors, compasses, metal cutlery, sharp metallic implements
• Only bring what you need! The Royal Collection Trust Learning section will provide all necessary equipment such as clipboards, pencils and drawing materials (groups can bring their own sketchbooks if they prefer to use these)