Ten Hill Place Hotel

About Ten Hill Place Hotel

Ten Hill Place is owned by the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh and operated by its trading arm, Surgeons Quarter, with profits going back to the College's surgical education and research work. That is an unusual arrangement for a city hotel and it gives the place a slightly different feel: professional, efficient, and without the marketing gloss you get elsewhere. It opened in 2006 and has been extended since.

There are 129 bedrooms across several categories, from compact standard doubles up to executive rooms and a handful of suites on the upper floors with views towards Salisbury Crags and Arthur's Seat. Rooms are plainly but well done — good beds, decent soundproofing, air conditioning, Nespresso machines in the higher grades — and are kept in noticeably better condition than the price would suggest. Accessible rooms are available on the ground floors.

Downstairs there is a bar and dining area serving breakfast, dinner and drinks through the day, with an emphasis on Scottish suppliers, plus a small gym. The hotel sits on Hill Square, a quiet Georgian square set back from the traffic of Nicolson Street, so despite being firmly in the city centre it is genuinely peaceful at night. Parking is limited to nearby public car parks.

Walking times are the main selling point: about ten minutes to the Royal Mile and Edinburgh Castle, five to the Festival Theatre and the University, and fifteen down to Holyrood. It is a sensible choice for a couple or a family who want a central, reliable four-star base without paying New Town rates, and it fills up fast during the Festival and the rugby.