Motorhome Rentals Edinburgh

Edinburgh

Edinburgh is Scotland's historic heart and a great place to base a touring holiday from the comfort of a rental motorhome. The city itself is a blend of ancient and modern, combining the thousand-year old castle, medieval mansions and elegant Georgian crescents with buzzing nightlife, upscale restaurants, stunning modern buildings and cultural events. Most of central Scotland's attractions can be explored on a daytrip, and the farther north you travel the more you'll be aware that Scotland is only nominally a part of the UK.

Edinburgh's rural surroundings offer unspoiled natural beauty, scenic drives and walking and trekking, and golf fanatics are within a easy drive of the game's birthplace, St Andrews. Under an hour away is Glasgow, once a gritty shipbuilding and industrial hub now reinvented as a city of culture. Heading south, Roman Hadrian's Wall awaits, built almost two millennia ago to keep the Scots out of England.

Attractions

Edinburg's historic Old Town is bisected by the Royal Mile running to Holyrood Palace from massive Edinburgh Castle set high on its volcanic plug. Still a working military base, the castle holds the Scottish crown jewels and medieval St Margaret's Chapel. It's the troubled history of the land in one magnificent structure. Holyrood Palace is an official residence of Queen Elizabeth II, and medieval St Giles' Cathedral is home to the ancient order of the Knights of the Thistle.

Edinburgh New Town's name is a misnomer, as it's the city's Georgian quarter. Elegant Georgian crescents and the property designed by architectural genius Robert Adam in 1796 compete for attention with medieval Dean Village, home of the city's ancient flour mills fed by the Water of Leith. The National Gallery of Scotland is here, and sunsets and sunrises seen from the crest of Carlton Hill are breathtaking.

Edinburgh's port, Leith, is approached by the Water of Leith Walkway from Dean Village to the Firth of Forth. Here you'll find the Royal Yacht Britannia, now decommissioned and moored at the harbourside. Leith's landmarks are the six bronze figures by world-renowned sculptor Antony Gormley, along the waterside between the ocean and Scotland's National Gallery of Modern Art.

Camping

Mortonhall Caravan and Camping Park is an award-winning site in 200 acres of landscaped grounds 15 minutes by road from the city centre. Offered are a restaurant, bar, coffee shop, games and TV rooms. Several golf courses are close by, as are the Royal Observatory and the Hermitage of Braid.

Edinburgh Caravan Club Site is on the shores of the Firth of Forth, a short drive or longer walk from the Old City. Open to non-members as well as members of the club, electric hook-up points, water and friendly, helpful staff are standard. Facilities are well-managed and the site is quiet at night.

Linwater Caravan Park is set in East Calder to the west of the city in rural surroundings. The site offers showers, laundry and drying facilities, a children's play area and disabled access including a shower and toilet. Country walks wind through farmland and along a river.

Driving

Edinburgh is a relatively small city home to a good number of car owners, resulting in rush hour and weekend congestion. On-street parking is an expensive lottery due to the 'Blue Meanie'parking wardens, making it best to walk or use public transport. Driving between major cities is straightforward using the motorway and dual-carriageway network linking Edinburgh with the central and northeastern cities, but northern roads are less direct and journeys may take longer.

• Speed limits in the city: 48kph.
• Speed limits on national roads: 112/kph.
• Help number: 999/112.