Royal Mile Backpackers
Small, cosy and quaint.
Scotland provides a comprehensive choice of accommodation to suit all visitors.
For budget travel, the options are campsites, hostels and cheap B&Bs. In highland areas you'll find bothies – simple walkers' hostels and shelters – and in the Shetlands there are böds (characterful but basic shared accommodation).
Above this price level is a plethora of comfortable B&Bs and guesthouses (£25 to £40 per person per night). Midrange hotels are present in most places, while in the higher price bracket (£65-plus per person a night) there are some superb hotels, the most interesting being converted castles and mansions, or chic designer options in cities.
If you're travelling solo, expect to pay a supplement in hotels and B&Bs, meaning you'll often be forking over 75% of the price of a double for your single room.
Almost all B&Bs, guesthouses and hotels (and even some hostels) include breakfast in the room price.
Prices increase over the peak tourist season (June to September) and are at their highest in July and August. Outside of these months, and particularly in winter, special deals are often available at guesthouses and hotels.
If you're going to be in Edinburgh in August (festival month) or at Hogmanay (New Year), book as far in advance as you can – a year if possible – as the city will be packed.
Tourist offices have an accommodation booking service (£4), which can be handy over summer. However, note that they can only book the ever-decreasing number of places that are registered with VisitScotland. There are many other fine accommodation options that, mostly due to the hefty registration fee, choose not to register with the tourist board. Registered places tend to be a little pricier than nonregistered ones. Visit Scotland's star system is based on a rather arbitrary set of criteria, so don't set too much store by it.
Small, cosy and quaint.
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