Mercat Tours, Scotland’s premier living history company, is launching a series of exciting tours this summer.

The Vaults Vigil offers budding ghost hunters the opportunity to spend the night beneath the streets of Old Edinburgh investigate the possible sources of strange noises, unpleasant smells and cold spots all experienced by visitors to the Vaults.

The evening begins at the Mercat Cross in the Royal Mile and ends at the Vaults in Blair Street.

Mercat also has a new tour, ‘Writers by the Mile’. This engaging tour of the Old Town evokes the sites and sounds described by some of the world’s most famous and respected writers – Sir Walter Scott, RL Stevenson, JK Rowling, Ian Rankin.

Walk the Mile with Scott, Burns & Stevenson, find out which celebrated Scottish play was 400 years between performances, discover who was the original Sherlock Holmes and learn how the city has inspired Rankin & Rowling.

From plays to poetry, historical novels to thrillers, personal diaries to diatribes, tours will provide visitors with the historical background, strange tales and quirky quips that lie behind famous works of literature.

Further information on these and all Mercat’s tours can be found at www.mercattours.com