Market · Canongate

Old Tolbooth Market

Tucked at 179a Canongate inside the historic Tolbooth building, this compact community market is the Canongate's own neighbourhood bazaar — part street food, part vintage treasure hunt, part local social hub. It is the kind of place you stumble into and stay far longer than planned.

Food Stalls Up Front, Vintage in the Back

The market's layout rewards exploration: food booths crowd the entrance with hot, ready-to-eat options — including haggis served straight from the stall, a quick and genuinely authentic taste of Scotland without the sit-down restaurant price tag.

Deeper inside, a vintage market unfolds with rails of clothing, curios, records, and the sort of unexpected finds that make rummaging worthwhile. The mix of cultures and traders gives the market a lively, community-driven atmosphere that feels nothing like a tourist trap.

A Canongate Institution

The Old Tolbooth Market sits in the shadow of the Canongate Tolbooth — the striking 16th-century turreted building that also houses the People's Story Museum next door. Shopping here means you are standing inside one of the oldest civic buildings on the Royal Mile.

It is a sharp contrast to the souvenir shops further up the hill: the traders here are local, the prices are real, and the atmosphere is convivial rather than commercial. Come hungry and come with time to browse.

Getting There and Timing Your Visit

The market is at 179a Canongate, EH8 8BN, directly on the Royal Mile between Canongate Kirk and the Scottish Parliament. It is impossible to miss the Tolbooth's distinctive clock tower projecting over the pavement.

It makes a natural stop on any walk from the World's End junction down to Holyroodhouse — fuel up on a haggis bite before tackling the rest of the Canongate.

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