'Royal' lodges in Edinburgh's Holyrood Park to be turned into holiday lets
- Published
Duddingston Lodge in Holyrood Park is to be renovated into a holiday let
Three historic lodges in Edinburgh's Holyrood Park are to be renovated into holiday homes.
Tourists will be able to stay in the refurbished Meadowbank, Duddingston and Dumbiedykes Lodges.
They were built as part of the Prince Albert's landscaping plans of the park in the 19th century.
Historic Environment Scotland, which manages the park on behalf of Scottish Ministers, said it would use the income to fund the public body.
It said it was too early to to give opening dates for the holiday lets.
The lodges were previously used by Holyrood Palace staff and latterly by staff of Historic Environment Scotland.
The lodges are dotted around Holyrood Park in Edinburgh
The grounds known as Holyrood Park have been associated with the Scottish Royal household since the 12th century, and were extended to roughly their present boundaries in the 1540s by James V.
The rights of the Earl of Haddington as hereditary keeper of the park were bought out in 1843, after Queen Victoria's first visit to Holyrood Palace in 1842, bringing it again under Royal control.
In 1855-8, at the instigation of Prince Albert, plans were drawn up for the landscaping of the park.
Bogs were drained, Dunsapie and St Margaret's Lochs were formed, the Queen's Drive (originally Victoria Road) was constructed, and lodges built by Robert Matheson, who also worked at Holyrood Palace during the same period.
A spokeswoman for Historic Environment Scotland (HES) said: "HES is currently seeking to appoint an agency to manage and market three lodges within the boundary of Holyrood Park as holiday lets - Meadowbank Lodge, Duddingston Lodge and Dumbiedykes Lodge.
"This project is designed to bring these historic lodges back in to use, with revenue generated supporting the wider work of HES to protect and promote Scotland's historic environment, while also creating a unique new visitor offering within Edinburgh.
"We have recently successfully piloted a similar project in Melrose with the formerly vacant Cloister House, which is adjacent to the Abbey, now restored and in use as holiday accommodation."