Half price, then free, for English Heritage members
This place is cared for by Historic Environment Scotland. First-year English Heritage members get 50% off the ticket price; members who have renewed get in free. Bring your valid membership card, and any pre-booked tickets, to ensure entry.
More information
In-person price; £10 booked online. One undated price table is published; recheck in spring 2027. Children under 7 free but need a ticket; up to two carers free per transaction; Young Scot card holders pay £1 online; 25 per cent off with code GOOD25 for car-free visitors booking online. Audio guide on your own device included. Explorer Pass accepted. No family ticket on the webstore. English Heritage members: half price in your first membership year and free after your first renewal, on showing a valid card; bookings capped at six people per membership. Historic Scotland members free.
In-person price; £5 booked online; under-7s free with a ticket. English Heritage members: half price in your first membership year and free after your first renewal, on showing a valid card; bookings capped at six people per membership. Historic Scotland members free.
In-person price; £8 booked online. English Heritage members: half price in your first membership year and free after your first renewal, on showing a valid card; bookings capped at six people per membership. Historic Scotland members free.
The Trust's page does not say how parking is charged.
Historic Scotland says there is limited car parking on site, reached through the outer gate 2.65 m high, so unsuitable for large vehicles, campervans and buses; the car park is stone-cobbled at the front of the palace with two accessible bays next to the entrance. No charge or free statement is published, so the status is recorded as unknown, although a September 2026 visitor reports free parking and advises arriving before noon to find a space. The town's Vennel car park (160 m, with the nearest adapted toilet) and Water Yett car park (440 m) are the alternatives.
Driving pin: the forecourt car park inside the outer gate, 49 m from HES's pin inside the palace. By rail: Linlithgow station, a short walk, with regular trains from Edinburgh, Glasgow and Stirling in under half an hour; the X38 bus from Edinburgh to Falkirk stops at the Cross; National Cycle Route 754 follows the Union Canal, with racks for four bikes at the palace; 25 per cent off online with code GOOD25 when arriving car-free.
Linlithgow Palace, the birthplace of Mary Queen of Scots, is the magnificent roofless Renaissance residence that the Stewart kings built over two centuries above Linlithgow Loch as a royal stop between Edinburgh and Stirling. A royal house stood here from at least David I's reign, Edward I raised his pele here in 1302, and after a fire James I ordered the present palace in 1424, building the Great Hall; James IV added the royal apartments, James V the three-tiered courtyard fountain of 1538, and James VI rebuilt the north quarter, leaving four ranges around a central courtyard. It was the royal nursery of James V and of Mary in 1542, and declined after the court left for London in 1603. Climb the narrow spiral stairs to Queen Margaret's Bower for views over the Peel, the loch, the town and the Forth bridges; the surrounding parkland and the 2.3-mile loch path are free. The north range, king's bedchamber and court kitchen are closed for conservation. Quieter than Stirling, visitors say.
Later dates are in the calendar.
Prices, non-members
| Ticket | On the day | Online |
|---|---|---|
| Adult | £11.00 | £10.00 |
| Concession | £9.00 | £8.00 |
| Child | £5.50 | £5.00 |
1 April to 30 September daily 9.30am to 5pm; 1 October to 31 March daily 10am to 4pm; last entry 45 minutes before closing; closed 25 and 26 December and 1 and 2 January. Historic Scotland recommends booking in advance to guarantee entry. Notice: while conservation works continue, the North Range, King's Bed Chamber and Court Kitchen are closed, with the Great Hall, Chapel Royal floor, courtyard and fountain and Queen Margaret's Bower open. The Peel parkland and loch path are free at any time; the Spectacular Jousting event is held on the Peel each summer.
Entry over a 5 cm stone threshold onto an uneven level floor, a single step into the shop; the courtyard, king's fountain and old entrance are level with flagstones and cobbles and benches; the Great Hall and Chapel Royal are up a spiral stair of about 25 uneven steps and the upper levels by further spiral stairs with many small level changes; Queen Margaret's Bower is a small turret up steep stone steps. A temporary toilet is on site and the nearest adapted toilet is at The Vennel, 350 m away; baby changing; shop; no cafe; audio guide on your own device included; picnic tables and benches on the Peel. Dogs on leads in the open-air parts, not in roofed areas.
Dogs: Visitors' dogs are allowed in the open-air parts of the palace on a lead at all times but not in roofed areas. The Peel parkland and the loch path, free and open ground of the same HES site, with the palace's lead rule.
Photo: Linlithgow Palace and the crown spire of St Michael's Church reflected in Linlithgow Loch. Patrick Fuller, CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Linlithgow_Reflection.jpg. Licence: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0. Resized and cropped for display; derivatives retain the source licence.
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Dogs, with restrictions
About 4 km (2.3 miles), around an hour, a compacted gravel circuit of the loch from the Peel beside the palace, passing the crannog islands Cormorant and the Rickle, with grebes, ducks, swans and wintering geese and goldeneye; ranger-led walks through the year. Free.
A section of the 134-mile coast-to-coast route from Helensburgh to Dunbar that HES says 'includes gems like Linlithgow Palace and Peel, Kinneil House and Blackness Castle'; the palace is a John Muir Way passport stamping station. Free.
