OK, so having gotten over the initial shock at the pricing at Mortonhall, I'm happy to report that I
would recommend the site and would stay there again if visiting Edinburgh. Having browsed booking.com and discovered that for our dates, the only remotely similar cost for overnighting would be a dorm bed in a hostel, and that even a Travelodge anywhere near Edinburgh would probably cost 10x the pitch fee, I think £40 is fair. I still think an extra £8.50 for an awning is excessive, but having seen how closely packed the pitches are in places (not sure how legal?) I suppose it's understandable. Since we were planning on being out all day anyway, and made full use of the campser's kitchen (more on that to follow) in the evenings, we didn't really need the awning anyway.
The short walk to the bus stop for regular buses into the city centre (taking approx. 30 minutes) alone make the site probably the best place to stay.
The modern toilet / shower block is excellent, very clean and spacious, certainly one of, if not
the best we've seen:
The campers' kitchen in the same block is fantastic: very spacious with a lovely view of the park, and microwaves toasters and kettles available. Unfortunately you can't plug in your own appliances (like induction hobs). There
are some wall sockets, but you'd need a ladder to get to them (deliberate)!
The 24/7 piped muzak in this building is slightly irritating (if I never hear Enya's Marble Halls again it will be too soon!)
More annoying, however, especially if you are a light sleeper, is the constant traffic hum at night (presumably from the Edinburgh bypass, although it must be at least a mile or two away), but being only a few miles from the city centre, this is a small price to pay I guess.
There is an older facilities building which is not as modern, but also very good. There is a smaller campers' kitchen, with electric hobs available - but at a charge of £1 for 15 minutes, which would barely be enough to boil some rice
There is no WiFi across the site, but free WiFi is available at the bar / restaurant (typical pub menu / prices).
There's a shop and games room, a BBQ hut (for hire) and probably some other stuff I've forgotten to mention, but as I said before, as a base for exploring Edinburgh, the location alone makes it ideal and it's definitely up there with the best sites we've stayed at so far.
