Holiday feature

IF you can't decide between a relaxing country break or a weekend in the city, the Scottish Borders could be the answer.

Only a few hours drive from East Lancashire, the Borders provide beautiful landscapes and visitors are only a short hop from the shopping centres of Edinburgh and Glasgow.

Peebles is ideally placed for a day trip to Edinburgh, and is a typical Scottish market town with a friendly feel, a handful of shops and restaurants and several cosy pubs.

By far the biggest hotel is the enormous Edwardian "Peebles Hotel Hydro", which looks out across the valley.

The old-fashioned hotel is a lovely place to forget the stress of the 21st century but it also has a modern swimming pool, sauna, steamroom and health and beauty salon.

I tried an aromatherapy massage that turned my legs to jelly, but if that's too much, just watch yourself floating by in the skylights above the dimly-lit pool in the evenings before dressing for dinner in the stately dining rooms.

Dinner is pricy at around £25 for three courses, but service is efficient and portions are huge.

Menus change daily and include modern dishes as well as traditional Scottish specialities such as cranachan, a rich combination of oatmeal, cream, whisky and raspberries.

The area is a favourite for walkers and golfers, and children can enjoy horse riding at the neighbouring stables, but there are also plenty of historic places to go. Nearby is the beautifully preserved 13th century house of Traquair, open to visitors during the summer months with grounds including a maze.

Visitors enter through a gate next to the "Bear Gates" which have never been opened since Bonnie Prince Charlie last passed through them in 1745.

Beer lovers shouldn't miss a trip to the House's brewery, which produces award winning ale the old fashioned way.

Although Peebles has an "away from it all" atmosphere, it's actually only a 40 minute drive from Scotland's buzzing capital city, 20 miles to the North.

Edinburgh has something for everyone -- several art galleries and museums, top quality shopping and, of course, the world-famous castle that dominates the town from the top of an ancient volcanic rock.

The castle includes state rooms that are still occasionally used, dungeons for prisoners of war, a tiny chapel thought to be 1,000 years old and a glittering display of Scotland's own crown jewels.

On a sunny day, it's also worth a trip to the camera obscura next door, where you can see an image of the city projected into a roof-top room.

There's never any shortage of places to eat in Edinburgh -- pubs and cafes line the Royal Mile leading to the castle but some of the best modern restaurants are to be found in the Grassmarket just to the south of it.

AMY BINNS stayed as a guest of the Peebles Hotel Hydro, where double rooms cost from £77 a night per person. For more information, call 01721 720602. Peebles is 72 miles North of Carlisle on the A72.