The Scholar Hotel

Each room is built for a comfortable, no-fuss stay after a day on the course. You've got spacious beds with premium Elite mattresses, quality linen, a TV with a wide range of channels and a desk with proper workspace if you need to send a few emails between tee times. Tea and coffee are well covered too, with award-winning Novus tea and an OPAL capsule coffee machine in-room. Bathrooms are modern and generously sized, with rainfall showers, Laura Thomas toiletries and plush towels, which is exactly what you want after a windy links day.

Food-wise, The Brasserie serves breakfast, lunch and dinner with a focus on locally sourced Scottish ingredients. If your group likes to keep logistics simple, it's handy having the bar and garden dining area on-site for a post-round drink and a relaxed bite without trekking back into town. You can sample Edinburgh's excellent food and drink scene without leaving the hotel, which suits groups who'd rather not hunt for restaurants after a long day playing Gullane or North Berwick.

On the practical side, you'll find free WiFi throughout and free on-site parking, plus a good number of electric car charging points, subject to availability. That's a real plus for groups driving up with clubs in the boot and for anyone planning day trips to East Lothian. The hotel's location also works well for public transport, with bus routes into the city centre running regularly and taxis back from the Old Town typically taking around 10 to 15 minutes in the evening.

If you're travelling as a society or small group, the combination of parking, on-site dining and easy access to both city courses and coastal links makes The Scholar a straightforward base. You're not stuck out on the coast with limited evening options, but you're also not paying city-centre hotel rates or dealing with restricted parking. It's a sensible middle ground that keeps transfers short and gives you flexibility to build an itinerary around Edinburgh's parkland courses and the championship links of East Lothian without doubling back across the city every day.