North vs South | Edinburgh vs Buckinghamshire

I live in the south of the UK in a place called Buckinghamshire, or Bucks for short. Living in Buckinghamshire has lots of advantages - we get the great countryside views but we're also close enough to London for a day trip! (About an hour on the train!). Overall I'm really happy with where we live, but the UK is a big place and I sometimes wonder what it's like to live in the north of the country in somewhere like Edinburgh for example. Today, in association with Hotel Direct, I will compare the two and see what the differences are between the North and South!

 Where to stay

Rocco Forte Balmoral Hotel in Edinburgh is a place I would LOVE to visit! 

It's full of history and includes a clock tower that has run three minutes fast since the hotel's opening in 1902. I am such a fan of places like this, the history of buildings really interests me and I know I could get taken in with this place for a day or two. Asides from it's obvious beauty and historic tales, it's a 5 star hotel and includes a sauna, indoor swimming pool, a gym and massage rooms! Kinda' hard to beat!

In terms of accommodation in Bucks, we do have some lovely manor and stately homes so in this sense we're pretty similar. Hartwell House (pictured above) is one of my favourites - it's a country house in the village of Hartwell in Buckinghamshire. in Historic terms - the property was first mentioned in the Domesday book and belonged to an illegitimate son of William the Conqueror!

Where to go shopping

Princes Street in Edinburgh has one of Europe's most impressive settings, enjoying as it does a visually stunning and uninterrupted panorama across Princes Street Gardens to the majestic Castle and Old Town. It is along Princes Street that the main department stores such as Jenners, House of Fraser, Marks & Spencer, British Home Stores and Debenhams are to be found, together with a wide range of other shops, hotels, coffee shops and fast food restaurants.

In terms of shopping in Buckinghamshire, personally, I think the best place to head for is Milton Keynes! (Unless you make the hour trip on the train to the capital - London of course). The centre:MK is a huge state of the art modern shopping centre and has pretty much any single store inside that you'll ever need. It isn't however located right next to a castle, unlike the shopping in Edinburgh is- boo!

Must see attraction

For over 44 years Britannia served the Royal Family, travelling over one million miles to become the most famous ship in the world. To Her Majesty The Queen, Britannia proved to be the perfect royal residence for glittering state visits, official receptions, royal honeymoons and relaxing family holidays. For Great Britain, she was a majestic symbol of the Commonwealth and a proud ambassador. For the Royal Family and dedicated crew of Royal Yachtsmen, she was home.The Royal Yacht Britannia, berthed at Leith, Edinburgh is now a five-star visitor attraction and an exclusive evening events venue. As a huge fan of the royal and of course history, I would love to visit this yacht!

Here in Buckinghamshire we sadly don't have royal yachts to visit but we do have Bekonscot model village which is the world’s oldest original model village. It was opened in 1929 and it’s a great place to bring the family and stomp around like giants! There are six model towns, a huge Gauge 1 model garden railway, ride-on railway, remote-controlled boats, castles, lakes and industries in 1.5 acres of award-winning gardens.It's a great family day out, and it's your chance to be a giant in a miniature land of adventure, hidden away in a 1930s timewarp. 

So there we have it -- just a few differences between right here in Bucks and up north in Edinburgh. As much as I love Buckinghamshire, I now have such an urge to book a mini-break to Edbinburgh - purely for the amount of history is has on offer!

Have you ever been to either?

* PR collaboration