Renting cost ‘soars by third’ in Edinburgh Festival

THE cost of renting a house has risen by almost a third for the Edinburgh Festival season, according to research.

Holiday homes in the capital can cost tourists over a thousand pounds for a full week. Picture: Kate Chandler

It has found the average price of a four-person home in Edinburgh next month will be £178 a night compared with £136 this month.

Experts predict the cost will soar to £190 for the final week, when the city’s book, Fringe and TV festivals are all being staged, along with the Edinburgh International Festival and the Tattoo.

There is then forecast to be a drop of more than 40 per cent between August and September.

The research was carried out by global search engine HomeToGo, which draws on data from more than 150 accommodation websites. Its findings were released just weeks after it emerged hotel prices in Edinburgh were the most expensive in the UK for the first time, with the average cost of a room £175, compared with £170 in London.

Trivago, the company behind the hotel pricing research, revealed last year how the cost of a room in Edinburgh was 36 per cent higher on average in August compared with July.

Jay Patani, UK general manager of HomeToGo, said: “Edinburgh’s population more than doubles during festival season, so it’s no surprise that renting a property becomes more expensive in August.”

Accommodation was cited as one of Edinburgh’s major weaknesses in the recent Thundering Hooves report into the future of the city’s festivals, saying high occupancy rates make it “challenging” for artists and visitors to find accommodation. A long-term strategy is to be drawn up after shortages at both the “low-cost and luxury ends” of the market were identified.