When you think of Edinburgh in contrast to another UK city like London, you may think that it pales in comparison. The truth is that Edinburgh has just as much to offer as any other city but it does so in its own way.

Edinburgh is a fascinating city rich with beauty and history that draws scores of people into its story. What makes Edinburgh even more appealing to holiday goers is that they can enjoy what the city has to offer at affordable rates. This is thanks to Edinburgh’s wealth of serviced city apartments.

Affordable beauty and history

What makes the serviced city pads so affordable and so attractive is that they are paid for per night and not per person. These apartments also offer much more competitive rates than a hotel while giving you the comfort of a home away from home. The affordability comes in handy when you are working on a tight budget and want to make the most of your trip.

The money you cave can go back into your holiday budget to give you the opportunity to spend more on experiencing the sheer beauty and nostalgic history of Edinburgh.  The history of Edinburgh goes way back, as far as 79AD and the city boasts beautiful Gregorian and Victorian architecture.

This architecture is rife in Edinburgh’s Old Town as the city has refused to change its appearance drastically by tearing the historic buildings down in order to replace them with a modern concrete jungle as so many of the other UK cities have done.

When last have you taken a proper holiday? Taking a week or two off work and spring cleaning your home because you have nothing better to do in between lunch with the girls does not count.

A real holiday entails leaving your home and all the worries inside it behind for a week or two. A holiday means to go shopping and sight seeing in a city where you do not know the butcher and the grocer. It means having fun.

Many people cannot even think about taking a decent holiday because they cannot afford it. Holiday deprived people across the UK, your salvation is at hand!

Affordability for everyone

The new trend when taking a trip away from home, whether for business or pleasure is the serviced pad.  A serviced pad is a home away from home that comes in different sizes and styles to suit your budget from basic apartments to luxury pads.

Forget about those crazy and overinflated hotel bills and the nights of lying awake in your hotel bed thinking about costs. No more trying to figure out how long it will take to pay off your overreached credit card after your holiday. The greatest thing about staying in a serviced pad is that unlike staying in a hotel you pay per night for the accommodation and not per person per night.

You can take the whole family on a well deserved holiday without breaking the bank. Serviced pads are fully furnished and even though they feel like home they often offer more than your normal home comforts such as satellite TV and Wi-Fi connection.

Serviced apartments have taken the UK by storm. The have been catapulted beyond popularity and in a sense have become something that you just have to experience at least once in your life time.

Serviced city pads are possibly even surpassing luxury hotels in popularity and preference as the number one holiday and out of town accommodation. They have not gained such popularity without good reason, serviced city apartments can offer you so much more than a hotel whether you are looking for luxury or comfort.

Luxury, comfort and affordability; what more could you ask for?

Manchester is a city that needs to be experienced. Simply staying at a top-notch hotel and taking a tour or two does this amazing city no justice at all. This is where staying in a serviced apartment is a wonderful experience. You have all the comforts of home, and sometimes even more, to let you feel welcome and at ease.

You also have no restrictions, more often than not found in hotels, on when you may come and go. An added bonus is that you pay per night in the pad and not per person so if you have friends staying over it is not going to put you out of pocket or be a problem.

Staying in a city pad offers you the opportunity to eat what you want, where you want and when you want, allowing you to enjoy Manchester’s local cuisine at your leisure. You can also go out and come home any time of day or night without any repercussions; just like home, only better.

When you have to relocate to Edinburgh because of your work for more than a week or two you have to think of where you will live. A hotel is not really an option for most, so you are left with private rental, boarding and lodging or you can opt for a serviced apartment.

For most people the excitement of going to another city to work wears off quickly and then you long for your home. If you had opted for boarding and lodging you have no real privacy and most people are rather proprietorial about their private space.

When you get that ‘out of sorts’ feeling because you are not in your own home, small things start to irritate you needlessly. The comforts of home that you are missing loom overly large in your mind.

Do your own nesting

When you get a serviced apartment you can settle in, make it your home away from home. Serviced apartments have all the amenities of a home, with total privacy and are cost-effective as well. In this way you can be relaxed at work and come back to your apartment and know you will be at peace.

With your spirits high you will find time to enjoy all that Edinburgh has to offer and take time to sightsee, enjoy whatever cultural attractions you wish to experience and visit all the good eateries as well. Basically with a serviced apartment your life goes on exactly as if you are at home and you come and go in the same way as you would at home.

MUSIC  Brit and Grammy Award winning, multi-platinum singer P!nk has announced plans for a new tour in 2009. The tour will kick off in Belgium on 26th February and is coming to the Echo Arena Liverpool on 29 April 2009. P!nk’s previous tour sold out arenas across the UK and Europe and established her as a major headline artist. It’s a show not to be missed. Over at the O2 Academy on April 18^th The Smiths Indeed return with their UK tour. Devoted to recreating the atmosphere, the excitement, the music and the movements of a band that meant so much to so many fans.

SPORT  If you’re visiting Liverpool to catch your team against one of Merseyside’s football giants why not make a break of it and check in with Serviced City Pads. Everton will play Wigan on April 5ht and Manchester City on Saturday 25^th at Goodison. Liverpool have got a packed calendar this month playing Blackburn Rovers on April 11^th and Arsenal on April 21^st at home, in the Barclays premier league. Anfield hosts Chelsea in the first leg of the Champions League quarter final on April 8^th.  For tickets go to www.evertonfc.com or www.liverpoolfc.tv

THEATRE With so much going on, April is definitely the month to visit one of Liverpool’s famous theatres. Over at the Royal Court from Thursday 23^rd April to May 9^th Willy Russell’s Shirley Valentine takes the stage.  Shirley Valentine has won awards all over the world and was made into a BAFTA winning, Golden Globe and Oscar nominated film. The funny and uplifting play will make you forget about your worries and make you feel glad to be alive.  A great Liverpool writer and a great Liverpool actress in a great Liverpool play. Across town at the Liverpool Empire David Essex, together with Boogie Nights creator Jon Conway invite you onto a roller coaster ride of romance and rock and roll, underscored by a helter skelter of David Essex hits and album favourites. From 13^th to 18^th April. If you’re visiting Liverpool between the 20^th to 25^th don’t miss the chance to see Riverdance! Of all the performances to emerge from Ireland in the past decade, nothing has carried the energy, the sensuality and the spectacle of Riverdance. The show broke all box office records during its premiere run at the Point Theatre, Dublin in 1995 and has now been experienced live by over 19 million people worldwide. With 9,000 spectacular performances in over 276 venues throughout 32 countries across 4 continents, and a worldwide television audience to date in excess of 1.75 billion people – Riverdance is a truly global phenomenon. Don’t miss your chance to experience the magic of this inspirational piece of theatrical entertainment! For more information and tickets go to www.liverpoolempire.org.uk

ENTERTAINMENT At Liverpool’s Rawhide comedy Club there’s another month of great performances on the cards. On Thursday 16th there is Dave Johns & Jonathan Mayor plus two guest acts, on Friday 17th & Saturday 18th  there’s Dave Johns, Paddy Lennox, Steve Harris & Jonathan Mayor. Later in the month see Justin Moorhouse & Brendan Riley on the 23^rd and Justin Moorhouse, Dominic Woodward, Pierre Hollins & Brendan Riley on the 24^th and 25^th. Tickets start at £30.

If you are thinking of visiting this remarkable city this April book in with Serviced City Pads and make the most of your weekend. Give Chris a call on 0151 709 8000, he’ll be happy to organise your perfect place to stay or for more information go to www.servicedcitypads.com

Sport is one of the most loved things in this world. There is not a nation or a people under this sun who does not love sport in some form or another. Indeed sport has come a long way and has definitely become more civil than Roman gladiator times. Sport is also often the reason for travelling to another city in the UK.

People in the UK definitely love their sport and the cities indulge sports fans with a great sporting heritage and fantastic sports grounds to visit and enjoy. Edinburgh is no exception; in fact this city boasts quite an extraordinary sporting culture.

Living and loving sport affordably in Edinburgh

Travelling to Edinburgh in order to catch an all important game or to indulge in some sport-based rest and relaxation is now more affordable than ever before. Serviced apartments in Edinburgh make your accommodation affordable for any budget and taste. You can choose from luxury serviced apartments in Edinburgh to a plain, no frills home away from home; the choice is yours. With the extra money you can better your enjoyment of the many sporting treasures on offer.

From football and golf to rugby, this city has it all. Why not take a trip to Murryfield park, Hampden park or try your hand at gold at Muirfield golf course to make your stay complete. Affordable accommodation means more money to spend on the little things that make your trip unforgettable, you only live once so why not enjoy the time you have as much as possible. Serviced pads in Edinburgh give you that extra money in your pocket to indulge with.

Serviced apartments attract people from all walks of life and are suited to the needs of all travellers. Hotels have long held the market for accommodation away from home and they will always have their place, but serviced apartments have carved out a niche that has turned this type of accommodation into a thriving business.

Benefits

Flexibility is the major attraction that draws people to serviced apartments. You are no longer bound to a hotel room, the specific services offered by the hotel with set meal times that you cannot miss or you will have to make do with room service.

You come and go as you please when you use a serviced apartment without disturbing anybody. You have a home from home as the apartment will come with a fully equipped kitchen, lounge, bathroom and number of bedrooms that gives you a homely feeling that most people prefer.

However long your stay is, whether it’s for a few days or weeks, you can plan your own schedule, have your meals when you want and eat whatever you feel like and at any time of the day or night.  This type of accommodation is eminently suited for business travellers as well as holidaymakers.

Today it is not unusual to find that business executives make use of serviced apartments if they regularly have to stay for extended periods of time in one of the big cities as they feel as comfortable as they would at home, especially if choosing an apartment with extra services. And the good news is that these apartments come at a far more economical rate than the average hotel costs.

Have you ever settled for watching the football game on television because travelling to another city to watch it live is too expensive? Well think again. You can afford to travel to and stay over in another city in order to catch that important game live. Having to book yourself into an overpriced hotel is a thing of the past. Introducing Manchester serviced city apartments. So what makes these apartments to great for out of town football lovers?

The best seats in the house are in the stadium, watching the action live

Nothing beats watching your favourite team live, whether they win or lose the experience will stick with you much longer than anything you can watch on the goggle box. City pads are affordable for almost anyone. The variety is endless and if you really do not want to miss that game you can even hire one a stone throw away from the stadium.

Hiring a serviced apartment means that you can go to the game with a bunch of your mates; you only pay a flat rate instead of paying per person sharing, per night. This makes going to watch that Manchester football match live affordable and at the same time loads of fun.

The best part is that a city pad is like your home away from home, if not better, and you can come and go as you please. So if you want to go and enjoy a few drinks at a nearby pub after the game, nobody will look at you skew for coming in late or happy.

Staying in another city can either be exciting or it can be a drab experience. You can either enjoy your time away from home or you can spend all your time being homesick. The ideal is to thoroughly enjoy your time away from home and to make the most of your trip wherever you happen to go and whichever city you visit.

Many people are declining the opportunity to take time away from the mundane drudge of everyday life and go on holiday. Why? The answer is quite simply that taking a holiday out of town is too expensive in these tough economic times. There is a more affordable option available that also allows you to enjoy Edinburgh the next time you visit more than you did before.

Drink, eat and enjoy the merrymaking

Being merry is what a holiday is all about. It is about getting away from the same old, same old and embracing the newness of another city. When you choose to stay in a luxury serviced apartment in Edinburgh you can have you cake and eat it too. The money you save on an expensive hotel can be put back into your holiday budget to be used for something else. Edinburgh is well known for its restaurants that offer all sorts of cuisine to tantalize your appetite and tease your taste buds.

It would be a crime to visit this beautiful city without dining in a different restaurant each day of your stay. You can make that a reality when you choose to stay in serviced apartments in Edinburgh.

For a fun holiday experience, you may want to save up money for the various activities you may want to do at your holiday destination. However, some of the most crucial things that may become rather costly on your trip include accommodation and food.

Previously, people opted for hotels as accommodation and ate at restaurants (which can be quite expensive when you add up the bills) during the entire holiday. Nowadays, people have another choice; they may opt for serviced pads.

With a serviced pad as accommodation you get to save on accommodation, dining and laundry fees. Overall the three together can accumulate over the length of your holiday and prove to be quite a bit.

Saving with a serviced pad

You get to save on accommodation when opting for a serviced pad because they charge by room and not by the number of people. Thus, if you are up for it, you may choose a smaller serviced pad. Two people may share a room or people can even take turns to sleep on the couch.

You get to save on dining fees because the serviced pad has a fully furnished kitchen where you can cook your own meals. Thus, you get to choose eating in or eating out, instead of having no choice but to eat outside all the time.

This is the same with laundry. The serviced pad provides washing machines for you to do your own laundry if you want to save some money. With the money saved, you will be able to enjoy exploring even more.