Sightseeing Cruises
1–2 hours
Free cancellation
Not sure? You can cancel this booking up to 24 hours in advance for a full refund.
Recommended by 93% of travellers
93% of reviewers gave this product a bubble rating of 4 or higher.
from
£20
per adult
Forth Boat Tours
Forth Boat Tours
4.5
Full view
About
An acclaimed family owned visitor attraction and Edinburgh's Premier Boating Attraction. Voted Best Activity Day Out in Scotland and Best Hidden Gem UK & Ireland. There is only one way to explore The Three Bridges, UNESCO World Heritage site. On board one of our boats! Set sail for a 90 minute cruise full of adventure, history, seals, puffins and a UNESCO World Heritage site. Ideal for couples, families and a great day out with friends and family. Sail on our Three Bridges & Inchcolm Island cruise and listen to the guided commentary while you enjoy a drink from the bar. Or, why not sail on our Blackness Castle, Three Bridges cruise (includes a complimentary cream tea) for views of Blackness Castle as featured in Outlander and Outlaw King. See the Three Bridges as you have never seen them before! Out knowledgeable and experienced skippers and crew are waiting to welcome you on board.
Tours and Tickets by Forth Boat Tours
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Historical Tours
1–2 hours
Free cancellation
Not sure? You can cancel this booking up to 24 hours in advance for a full refund.
Recommended by 91% of travellers
91% of reviewers gave this product a bubble rating of 4 or higher.
from
£20
per adult
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Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.
Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as waiting time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.
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4.5
1,001 reviews
Excellent
774
Very good
173
Average
31
Poor
6
Terrible
17
Sagar D
United Kingdom626 contributions
Oct 2020 • Couples
We booked with this tour company for a boat ride and tour on Inchcolm Island. Booking was easy and online and you can then get straight on the boat. Doggies are welcome and we took our pooch, BooBoo. The cost was £45 for 2 adults, including the doggy, for the return boat ride and entry onto the island. The staff are very friendly. There is recorded commentary covering the rich history of the estuary during the 40 minute journey to the island, and some live commentary from the captain, which was engaging and highly informative. We really enjoyed listening. The captain spots seals and we dwelled a short time to observe some. Great! The boat leaves from a pier just under the Fourth Bridge so it’s a great place to take a picture of this magnificent and iconic bridge.
Written 15 October 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Oliviajthomas
Royal Wootton Bassett, UK161 contributions
Sept 2021 • Family
On a 9 day trip to Scotland seeing this iconic engineering masterpiece was first on the sightseeing list.
The views from the SouthQueensferry prom were spectacular but we enjoyed the very different perspective from the Forth Belle.
Loading starts 15 minutes before sail time and there are indoor and outdoor seats available.
The 90 minute cruise was accompanied by a taped commentary of historical and interesting information and the boat pilot was great at pointing out wildlife including several seal sightings, carefully turning the boat to give everyone a view whilst being respectful of the wildlife. The crew were great too, we had binoculars with us and they regularly came and pointed out things to look at.
With fantastic views of the Bridges and a helpful crew I highly recommend this tour
The views from the SouthQueensferry prom were spectacular but we enjoyed the very different perspective from the Forth Belle.
Loading starts 15 minutes before sail time and there are indoor and outdoor seats available.
The 90 minute cruise was accompanied by a taped commentary of historical and interesting information and the boat pilot was great at pointing out wildlife including several seal sightings, carefully turning the boat to give everyone a view whilst being respectful of the wildlife. The crew were great too, we had binoculars with us and they regularly came and pointed out things to look at.
With fantastic views of the Bridges and a helpful crew I highly recommend this tour
Written 9 September 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
RosyHER3
Scotland, UK478 contributions
Sept 2020
Excellent boat tour. Very informative commentary. Saw lots of seals and the captain allowed lots of time for photos, turning the boat around to make sure everyone got to take photos. Would reccomend.
Written 19 September 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
s j
London, UK890 contributions
Oct 2023 • Couples
Was ok for the money….
£17 per person for 90 minutes ferry tour of the forth…
Enquired at the little blue booth just before the bridge and was directed down the pier to queue.
The welcome was warm onto the boat while we all took our seats.
Captain introduced himself and we were off.
The trip was interesting with a stop halfway to look at the abbey on an island.
If it’s been raining the outdoor seats are wet right through to the foam so sit down at your peril. There is a story told while boating along inside and out however not loud enough and so many people chatting, impossible to hear and it’s repetitive which is disappointing.
Would try a bus tour next time.
£17 per person for 90 minutes ferry tour of the forth…
Enquired at the little blue booth just before the bridge and was directed down the pier to queue.
The welcome was warm onto the boat while we all took our seats.
Captain introduced himself and we were off.
The trip was interesting with a stop halfway to look at the abbey on an island.
If it’s been raining the outdoor seats are wet right through to the foam so sit down at your peril. There is a story told while boating along inside and out however not loud enough and so many people chatting, impossible to hear and it’s repetitive which is disappointing.
Would try a bus tour next time.
Written 8 October 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Sue C
40 contributions
Feb 2022 • Friends
We took the bus and boat tour. The guys on the buses were super helpful and friendly. The boat tour was a little blustery but we had a warm welcome aboard and the crew were very knowledgeable and friendly. Great seeing the bridges from the water.
Written 21 February 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Fruitloaf
Glasgow, UK956 contributions
Sept 2023 • Couples
Great 90 minute sail on the Forth. Taped commentary throughout and thanks go to the crew member who pointed out things of interest and gave a lot more info on points of interest and tidal info.
Check in at the small blue kiosk to the right of the RNLI Shed at Hawes Pier (see photos).
Sit inside or out, great views all around. Tea/coffee, alcohol and snacks available downstairs at The Belle Bar.
Wrap up warm, it gets windy out there. No seals lounging around as the tide was particularly high and also coincided with Spring High Tide so all usually visible rocks that the seals rest on were submerged.
Great team on board. South Queensferry is a very popular part of the country, well worth a visit. Good variety of small shops, Hotels, gift and souvenir shops.
Best thing is the breathtaking view of the Three Bridges.
From the Forth Belle an better all around view! Get up close and under too.
My suggestion is that a tip bucket be placed available to passengers at the end of each sailing who really appreciate the work the crew put into each sailing.....Tip buckets are the norm with all excursion tours, trips etc.
There is a very small tip cup at the downstairs bar. Not too easy to spot.
Get a big bucket!
Check in at the small blue kiosk to the right of the RNLI Shed at Hawes Pier (see photos).
Sit inside or out, great views all around. Tea/coffee, alcohol and snacks available downstairs at The Belle Bar.
Wrap up warm, it gets windy out there. No seals lounging around as the tide was particularly high and also coincided with Spring High Tide so all usually visible rocks that the seals rest on were submerged.
Great team on board. South Queensferry is a very popular part of the country, well worth a visit. Good variety of small shops, Hotels, gift and souvenir shops.
Best thing is the breathtaking view of the Three Bridges.
From the Forth Belle an better all around view! Get up close and under too.
My suggestion is that a tip bucket be placed available to passengers at the end of each sailing who really appreciate the work the crew put into each sailing.....Tip buckets are the norm with all excursion tours, trips etc.
There is a very small tip cup at the downstairs bar. Not too easy to spot.
Get a big bucket!
Written 29 September 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
OscarWilde1
Gharghur, Malta240 contributions
Sept 2021 • Couples
This is certainly a relaxing option if you feel the need to get away from the hustle and bustle of the central areas. The bridges are aesthetically pleasing and engineering feats. The seals are an added bonus. Otherwise not much else. Just relax.
Written 25 September 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Fiona R
4 contributions
Aug 2020
We went on the 1pm trip and it was great. The staff were friendly the views were spectacular and although we are living with Covid it was lovely feeling very normal as all adhered to guidelines without it feeling inhibitory.
Well done to all at forth boat tours.
Well done to all at forth boat tours.
Written 8 August 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Hi 694fionar
Many thanks for your lovely comments. We will pass them onto the team.
Written 15 August 2020
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
Jayne M
Prestwick, UK59 contributions
Sept 2020
Great family run boat, welcoming staff, Covid safe, interesting commentary very informative. It was a lovely way to spend my birthday afternoon as so many other places of interest were closed. Wonderful to see the 3 bridges from below, highly recommended
Written 3 October 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Blair Durno
Arbroath, UK326 contributions
Jul 2021 • Solo
We did it as a part of the Edinburgh Bus Tours Bus and Boat Experience. Was such a wonderful experience. First class service. Saw plenty of wildlife. Such as Puffins and Seals. Was quite something seeing them up close. Was very good and well liked. Everything was well explained. Especially for Covid-19 Safety Measures. One person deals with the tickets. Then the next person takes down details. For Track and Trace purposes. Plenty of signage on the boat explaining the safety measures in place. Will definitely do it again.
Written 23 July 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
we are on the Blackness castle trip tomorrow at 12
can we take our well behaved dog - kept on a lead
John, Margaret, Moira, Yannah, Torin
Warren
Written 20 April 2024
Are advanced tickets necessary? We have a complicated schedule that day and are not sure exactly when we might be able to get to the boat launch.
Written 24 December 2023
Hello, for the cream tea, are there non-dairy/vegan options? We received a voucher as a gift but either my partner nor I eat dairy.
Thanks
Written 18 September 2022
I can’t answer this as we did not have the cream tea.
Maybe ask them directly.
Written 2 October 2022
Are dogs allowed on the Forth Bridges Trip?
Written 20 August 2021
Thank you for your question. They are allowed. Must be kept on a lead at all times.
Written 23 August 2021
I want to book online but don't have access to a printer to print my tkts, is there another way of showing proof of booking?
Written 18 June 2019
We had a printout of our tickets, but in the end we didn’t show them, they just ticked our names off the list when we boarded.
Written 18 June 2019
My mother in law uses a wheelchair is there somewhere to store the wheelchair as it can be folded and she can walk aboard ? Also we are staying in Edinburgh centre how do we get to the boat tour ?
Written 2 June 2019
Yes ,there is lots of room onboard and the crew are very helpful and extremely friendly. The Boat Tour company have a bus transfer option from Waverley Bridge,, we took a train from Waverley station to Dalmeny station and walked downhill to south Queens ferry to get the boat, this works out a bit cheaper. Hope this helps 👍
Written 2 June 2019
Where do we park?Is it near where we board boat.?
Written 26 May 2019
FBT19
South Queensferry, United Kingdom
Thank you for contacting Forth Boat Tours. For our Three
Bridges & Inchcolm Island Cruise you can park at Hawes Pier, South Queensferry. Park on the hill going out of he village. It is free.
If you are booked on our Blackness Castle, Three Bridges Cruise (including complimentary cream tea), you can park at Port Edgar Marina, South Queensferry. Again, it is free.
We look forward to welcoming you on board.
Written 27 May 2019
Hi ,how long does the cruise last and does the boat roll around a lot ???
Written 25 May 2019
About an hour & a half , it was smooth and calm when we went but check the weather before you go , rains not a problem as the main part of the boat is glass covered .
Written 25 May 2019
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