Edinburgh's Castle of Light event cancelled after six years due to 'unpredictable weather'

The Castle of Light event has been cancelled after six years, with the organiser blaming increasingly unpredictable weather.

The popular event brought colourful light displays to the castle for visitors to enjoy around the festive season.

Since launching in 2019, it has attracted more than 200,000 visitors.

Historic Environment Scotland (HES) has announced that the event will not return, as it is “no longer sustainable”.

Last year’s event was hampered by winter storms and high winds, which led to cancellations and refunds.

Castle of Light event in 2021. Castle of Light

A spokesperson said: “Castle of Light has required a very substantial planning, operational and financial commitment from HES teams across the organisation.

“The event is also highly weather-dependent. High winds and storms have caused cancellations in previous years, leading to large numbers of refunds, additional staff time, and financial uncertainty.

“When all of these factors are considered together, the event is no longer sustainable for HES, and the decision was taken by Executive Leadership not to extend the contract for Castle of Light.”

HES says they are exploring different options for the upcoming festival season, which is both cost-effective for the organisation and visitors.

They added: “Castle of Light has been a fantastic part of Edinburgh’s winter offer for the last six years, but will not be going ahead this year as we take the chance to explore new Christmas offers at Edinburgh Castle, investing in improving our festive daytime offer with brand new decorations, family activities and our popular Christmas afternoon teas.”