Xtreme Karting / Combat Edinburgh — Attraction in City of Edinburgh

We had a really distressing and unsafe experience here. The staff were rude, dismissive and disrespectful. They took no accountability for the unsafe environment we were in. We booked four rounds for a birthday - there were 4 of us which meant that we had to go on the track with a group of young boys. Immediately on the first round we noticed that these boys were going out of their way to continuously hit us at speed in their karts. When we exited from that round and as we were sat in the waiting area we heard them gloating about hitting us. Despite hearing this, we kept our composure. Unfortunately this behaviour continued for the next 3 rounds. The staff noticed and flagged in the second round that the driving was too dangerous, however that did not change the boys’ behaviour. One of our drivers had been hit a number of times and the moment he hit one of the boys, he was immediately disqualified. Appreciate that this action needs to be taken but it is strange that instant action was taken against our group but not them, the only difference between us being the colour of our skin. The last round was unbelievably unsafe, beyond description, with me personally being hit many times and at such speed that not only did my kart spin in the opposite direction leaving me blocking the track, but I also sustained a leg injury. I flagged my safety concerns to a member of the staff during this round whilst on the track and he was dismissive of it saying that they would “keep an eye on it”. When we exited, I was in such pain that I felt it necessary to raise my concerns again to the staff, specifically a blonde lady, who was sadly very dismissive and rude before even hearing what I had to say. Her manner of speaking to us was short and condescending. In situations like this, action should have been taken much sooner to prevent 4 very unsafe rounds - disqualifications for the full set of rounds should have been issued to repeat offenders. Had it been us behaving in this way I am confident that this action would have been taken, but for them, it was sadly not. We flagged to the staff that a separate group on the track after us were visibly not hitting each other - so clearly the behaviour of the boys couldn’t be put down to ‘accident’ which is what the staff tried to suggest to us. Their response was that that group knew each other - so effectively they were saying that the fact that we don’t know each other renders the animosity permissible? We were really shocked at this response. If anything, the staff should have been more alert to potential danger in this situation. This response was not good enough. A staff member (bearded man) eventually agreed with me that they should have issued black flags more often to the boys but didn’t - had they done this perhaps they would have been disqualified for all rounds and I would have avoided injury. Because the staff were so dismissive of my family, they became upset and walked out. When they did, the staff member shouted at them not to steal the suits - trust me, they had no intention of doing so and in any case I was still standing there. This was a racist assumption to make. I also flagged to the bearded staff member it was someone’s birthday and he snapped in her face that he simply did not care if it was. Finally - all we wanted was some accountability for the experience we had had. The staff were aware that the driving was dangerous and instead of apologising to us for our experience, they were dismissive of us and extremely rude. We have been to a lot of go karting places in Scotland and we have never had an experience like this. I truly couldn’t believe how...

Disappointed with the Experience – Poor Staff Attitude, Excessive Interference, and Unfair Treatment

I booked this event for my birthday for a group of five. One person had to cancel last minute due to a family emergency, and while I accept the 6-hour notice policy and didn’t expect a refund, what followed during the event was far more disappointing.

From the outset, the customer service was poor. Out of seven staff (three at reception and four on the track), only one person at reception was helpful. The rest were disengaged, inattentive, and at times even sarcastic. My kart felt heavily restricted during the first session — despite pressing full throttle, it lacked power while others raced past. I signalled staff several times but was ignored or dismissed. After the session, I raised the issue with a track marshal who gave a sarcastic response, while a more polite staff member at reception acknowledged the problem and promised improvement — but nothing changed.

What made matters worse was the excessive interference from staff. Our karts were remotely restricted multiple times, effectively handicapping us. Meanwhile, a separate group of adults (about 5–6, male and female) were driving aggressively, colliding with others, shouting across the track, and making abusive and derogatory remarks. Yet they were left unchecked. We, on the other hand, were constantly pulled aside and reprimanded, without valid reason. When I questioned this, the staff simply said “I only saw you,” which didn’t feel like a fair or professional response.

To be transparent, this led me to question whether I was being treated differently due to my appearance — either my skin colour or height. I’ve lived in Edinburgh for years and have never felt this way at any other venue, but this experience left me unsettled. Whether intentional or not, it felt like I was being unfairly singled out, and it cast a dark cloud over what should have been a celebration.

For comparison, I visited Xtreme Karting Falkirk recently — the difference was like night and day. The staff there were professional, the petrol karts were outstanding, and everyone was treated fairly. Unfortunately, the Edinburgh site did not live up to the same standard.

This birthday experience felt frustrating, one-sided, and frankly, disheartening. I won’t be returning to the Edinburgh venue and would not recommend it for smaller group bookings or...

Little regard for saftey they let a guy join our group who blatently crashed in to me. I then went down a staight and the front wheel came of the cart the cart wouldnt turn or stop forceing me in to the tire wall head on there was little to no concern I was given another cart n told the wheel bearing had collapsed I sat my final race out n spoke to the staff n said my wrists and legs were sore from the impact during the previous race. The staff never acted on it, there was no offer of a accident book or anything.to report it.

Reference your respones:

Hi I may not have used the words I was injured but using the words I was sore expecially after a bearing failed forcing me in to a saftey barrier should have been enough in my eyes yes I got in the other cart but I think a lot of that was down to the shock after what had just happend and my adrenaline was going as the Marshall brought it over to me but I guarantee you that I spoke to him and said I was sore I also mentioned it during a conversation with the lady on reception after that I had a conversation with a gentle man with a beard but never mentioned it to him as I thought why bother after mentioning it to 2 people previously. I wasn't made aware by the person who booked this that it was an open session, and because it was just the 4 of us on previous 2 sessions asuumed it must have been just the four of us.

To be honest this sounds like a bit of a cop out of responsibility on your part as I can definitely remember using the words I was sore you would have thought that was enough to kick the reporting process in. The first time I said it and I can definitely remember saying it to 2 of your staff. I am also shocked it took a poor review and me emailing to start this process which should have been done as soon as I said I was sore the marshal should have took me of rhe circuit n got a member of staff to fill in the paper work same at the reception when I said I was sore to them also the fact I never completed the last race. After saying I was sore to the Marshall and asking were helmet n suit went after...