Edinburgh is an ideal base to explore other parts of Scotland:

• areas of outstanding natural beauty such as the Pentland Hills, the Borders, Loch Lomond and the Trossachs National Park, the Highlands, Dollar Glen (site of Castle Campbell, pictured above), the East Neuk of Fife and the beaches of East Lothian
• historic towns like St Andrews (home of golf), Stirling (with its medieval castle) and Linlithgow (site of Linlithgow Palace, birthplace of Mary Queen of Scots)
• stately homes such as Hopetoun, House of the Binns, Newhailes, Lennoxlove and Traquair
• picturesque towns and villages like Swanston, Culross, Gifford, Peebles, North Berwick (home of the Scottish Seabird Centre), Dunbar and Berwick-upon-Tweed
• beautiful gardens such as Dawyck and Kailzie
• Glasgow, Scotland's second city, is only 45 minutes away by train
• Dundee, the City of Discovery, is an hour away by train.

You can make day trips from Edinburgh by hire car, by train, or by booking with any of the various coach/minibus tour companies, such as Rabbie's Trail Burners, Scotline Sightseeing Tours, Gray Line Bus Tours and Haggis Adventures.

For car hire, there's a Europcar self-drive car-hire office in Edinburgh Waverley Railway Station (tel: +44 (0)131 556 5210). Another nearby self-drive car-hire company is Hertz Rent-A-Car at 10 Picardy Place (tel: +44 (0)8708 460013).

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