Glorious sunshine at last..but don't expect room to enjoy it

IT is what we have been waiting for all summer, but if you want to enjoy the sunny weekend, then be prepared for a distinct lack of elbow room.

Hotels across the city are fully booked and extra trains have been laid on as hundreds of thousands of sports and music fans descend on Edinburgh.

Anyone looking for a hotel room in the city this weekend will most likely have to join a waiting list in the hope of a cancellation, and then face having to pay hundreds of pounds.

The newly refurbished George Hotel on George Street was reportedly offering rooms at £999 for tomorrow night, but even those have been snapped up.

It comes as tourism chiefs are expecting one of the busiest weekends of the year, and police have warned motorists to expect heavy congestion on the roads.

Weather forecasters are predicting two days of sunshine for the last weekend of the Fringe.

The weekend begins on a high note when the Kaiser Chiefs and The View play to thousands of fans at Meadowbank Stadium tonight. A crowd of 8000 is set to watch Ricky Gervais' sell-out gig at the Castle on Sunday, and another hot ticket will be Razorlight at Meadowbank on the same day.

Meanwhile, the Scottish rugby team take on South Africa at Murrayfield tomorrow, while thousands of Aberdeen fans are expected to travel to the match against Hibs at Easter Road.

Ben Carter, VisitScotland's area director for Edinburgh and the Lothians, said: "The forecast is for fine weather, which is likely to mean an increase in numbers of people making day trips to local attractions."

More than 820,000 people visited Edinburgh during August last year, and VisitScotland expects similar numbers this year - despite the poor weather.

First Scotrail is laying on extra late-night services between Waverley and Glasgow Queen Street, Stirling and Inverkeithing this weekend. British Airways is expecting to fly more than 20,000 passengers to Glasgow and Edinburgh this weekend - up to 60 per cent more than the many popular European destinations.

A Met Office spokesman said people could look forward to a largely fine weekend, although there could be light showers late on Friday night and early on Saturday morning.

He said: "The east coast is going to be the best place to be in Scotland. Saturday should generally be fine, with temperatures of up to 21 degrees. On Sunday it could be slightly cooler, and we expect it to be around 19 degrees."

But anyone planning to make a last-minute trip may struggle to find a room, with most city-centre hotels now fully booked. Average prices are around double the low-season rates, with a standard double room at the Macdonald Holyrood Hotel costing £220, compared to £95 in January.

Sergio Bertasius, manager of the Inverleith Hotel, said it was charging £119 for a room, compared to £59 during quieter periods. He said: "This weekend looks like it will be really busy. The phone has been red hot with requests."