Gumball 3000 to return to Edinburgh this year

The Gumball 3000 rally will return to Edinburgh this year, it has been announced.

Exotic cars on show outside the Rutland Hotel in Edinburgh at the 2014 event

The eighteenth annual 3000-mile race will see drivers reach Edinburgh on 1 May, having set off from Dublin on 30 April en route to Istanbul. Drivers will depart on the next leg of the journey the following day.

This year marks the rally’s return to Scotland after the European leg of the 2014 Miami to Ibiza race kicked off in Edinburgh.

The rally regularly features celebrity drivers and even royalty on the starting grid. Last year, Formula 1 driver Lewis Hamilton joined the final stage of the Stockholm to Las Vegas event.

A statement on the Gumball 3000 website read: “After crossing the Irish Sea, Gumball cars will arrive in Edinburgh where they will be displayed in a static car show for the public to view.

“Throughout the day crowds will be entertained with lots of Gumball activities suitable for all the family to enjoy and to create an unforgettable experience in the Scottish capital.”

The venue is currently marked to be West Princes Street Gardens, and full details will be released by the organisers in due course.

This year’s full route will take in Dublin, Edinburgh, London, Annecy (in the French Alps), Prague, Budapest, Bucharest and, finally, Istanbul.