Weddings boost palace visitor levels

SEVERAL special events including the royal weddings have helped to make this a record-breaking year for the Palace of Holyroodhouse.

The celebrations of Zara Phillips and Mike Tindall, an exhibition of German and French masterpieces and a new year-long visitor pass are all credited with helping the visitor numbers at the Queen’s official Scottish residence to surpass 150,000.

Altogether more than 152,000 people visited between April and September this year – 13 per cent more than in 2010.

Deborah Clarke, curator of the palace, said: “The royal family has had a lot of publicity this year and we have had two royal weddings, one of them in Edinburgh. I think it did give a new focus to Edinburgh and the palace.”