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DOORS OPEN DAYS 2026 UPDATE

07 Friday Aug 2026

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Due to overwhelming popularity, our volunteer-led guided tour tickets for his year’s Doors Open Days event on Saturday 26th September have already SOLD OUT! However, we do have unlimited availability for self-led tours – no tickets needed for these, just show up and get a map from one of our volunteers. If you’ve ever needed an excuse to visit Warriston, here’s your chance to have a wander in our beautiful green space and discover some of our “residents”.

Self-guided tours of Warriston Cemetery with maps on Saturday 26th September only.
Visitors may take self-guided tours with free maps, at anytime between 10am-4pm, no tickets or pre-booking needed. Look for our volunteers at the “Red Lady” tomb.

Visitors can explore Warriston Cemetery on a self-led guided tour. Notable graves, Victorian funeral practices, local history and biodiversity projects can be discovered. Friends of Warriston Cemetery volunteers will also be on-site taking part in our regular workday activities and can demonstrate and instruct visitors on some of our techniques. 

The Friends of Warriston Cemetery group was set up in July 2013 to care for the first garden cemetery in Edinburgh. Opened in 1843, the cemetery was in private ownership until 1994, when it was compulsorily purchased by the City of Edinburgh Council following years of abandonment. Together the Council and the Friends are working to restore the 9+ hectares of heavily overgrown cemetery, seeking a balance between family/public access and biodiversity and wildlife protection.

Please note:
The entire site is outdoors. Please dress appropriately for the weather.
There is no access from the Warriston Crematorium side.
There are no public toilets at Warriston Cemetery.
While some of the site is wheelchair accessible, most paths aren’t paved, some paths are narrow and bumpy, and inclement weather may make them muddy.

Doors Open Day 2026 at Warriston Cemetery!

01 Saturday Aug 2026

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We are delighted to announce that the Friends of Warriston Cemetery are taking part in this year’s Doors Open Days event! We are hosting guided and self-led tours on Saturday 26th September only. The guided tour tickets are free but must be booked in advance at EventBrite (no tickets needed for self-guided tours – just show up and get a map). If you’ve ever needed an excuse to visit Warriston, here’s your chance to have a wander, discover some of our “residents”, and ask lots of questions!

Click HERE to book free tickets for our volunteer-led guided tours.

Overview

Free Volunteer-led Guided Tours of Warriston Cemetery (Self-guided tours with maps also available). Saturday 26th September only.

Visitors can explore Warriston Cemetery as part of a volunteer-led guided tour. Notable graves, Victorian funeral practices, local history and biodiversity projects will be discussed. Friends of Warriston Cemetery volunteers will also be on-site taking part in our regular workday activities and can demonstrate and instruct visitors on some of our techniques. Tickets are required for our volunteer-led tours, with a maximum of 20 visitors per tour. (Tickets are free.) Meet at the “Red Lady” tomb.

Alternatively, visitors may take self-guided tours with free maps, at anytime between 10am-4pm, no tickets or pre-booking needed. Look for our volunteers at the “Red Lady” tomb.

The Friends of Warriston Cemetery group was set up in July 2013 to care for the first garden cemetery in Edinburgh. Opened in 1843, the cemetery was in private ownership until 1994, when it was compulsorily purchased by the City of Edinburgh Council following years of abandonment. Together the Council and the Friends are working to restore the 9+ hectares of heavily overgrown cemetery, seeking a balance between family/public access and biodiversity and wildlife protection.

Please note:

The entire site is outdoors. Please dress appropriately for the weather.

There is no access from the Warriston Crematorium side.

There are no public toilets at Warriston Cemetery.

While some of the site is wheelchair accessible, most paths aren’t paved, some paths are narrow and bumpy, and inclement weather may make them muddy.

Click HERE to book free tickets for our volunteer-led guided tours.

Map with points of interest.

24 Friday Jul 2020

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This map indicates just some of the many points of interest within Warriston Cemetery. Click on the map to view it full-size. Opens in a new tab/page. If printing, it’s best to set it to A4 size, landscape format, no margins, no headers/footers.

the first points of interest map

Planting update.

24 Friday Feb 2017

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A few weeks ago we planted some teensy winter-flowering shrubs near the grave of James McNab, as part of our “botanical” theme. He was an eminent personage at the Royal Botanic Garden of Edinburgh “across the road” and, amongst other achievements, he had designed the former Winter Garden there. We weren’t expecting any action from those plants for a while, but this one just couldn’t wait! In flower already.

Click the photograph to view a larger version.

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Sir Robert Rowand Anderson stone

29 Thursday Sep 2016

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24/09/2016 The Sir Robert Rowand Anderson stone ready for viewing on Edinburgh Doors Open Day. It’s ready every day, of course, but it had a special marker for this day.

“Sir Robert Rowand Anderson, FRSE RSA (5 April 1834 – 1 June 1921) was a Scottish Victorian architect.”

Click this link to view his Wikipedia page… Sir Robert Rowand Anderson.

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War Memorial cleaned.

29 Thursday Sep 2016

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24/09/2016 The recently-cleaned War Memorial. Its official title is the Cross of Sacrifice, designed by Sir Reginald Blomfield in 1918. It is present in Commonwealth war cemeteries containing 40 or more graves. (Ed.)

The Commonwealth War Graves Commission had ensured that the Cross of Sacrifice was washed down a couple of days before Doors Open Day. They have pressure-washers and have to bring in large containers of clean water, as there’s no source on-site. They also ensured that paths to War Graves were clear. Very well done CWGC! And there are a couple of new stones recently erected. (CG)

Photos resized to suit page formatting. Click an image to view a larger version. Opens in a new page.

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