Biarritz of the North

Image credit: Visit Scotland / Kenny Lam

Gilmerton House is located near the beautiful seaside town of North Berwick, which has long been a popular spot for tourists and day trippers due to its close proximity to Edinburgh. With its own train station, people have flocked to this seaside town for rest, relaxation and leisure for decades.

So, if you’re looking for luxury accommodation near North Berwick – whether you’re travelling from abroad or holidaying at home – let Gilmerton House become your home from home for exploring ‘Scotland’s leading coastal, leisure and food and drink destination’. Why not enjoy the feeling of putting a bit of the ‘Biarritz’ back in the North?

The Arrival of the Railway

It was sea-bathing and golf that originally put North Berwick on the map. The laying of a single-track railway line to North Berwick by the North British Railway Company in 1850 was to herald a dramatic change in North Berwick's fortunes. The town became more accessible to visitors, attracted by the healthy aspect of sea-bathing, golfing and its scenic views. At this time, the only other connection with Edinburgh was by coach and horses. The popularity of the journey to North Berwick increased dramatically following the visit by rail of the Prince of Wales in 1859 and again when he returned as King Edward VII in 1902.

The plans for a ‘branch line’ were drawn up in 1846, and a single-track line was opened in August 1849, terminating at Williamstone Farm, where a temporary wooden platform was erected. Suitcases and golf clubs could be seen secured to the roof of the carriage as it arrived on the platform. The passengers were then transported by horse-drawn carriage into North Berwick. 

Its success was immediate, and in 1874 the Town Council wrote to the Railway Company asking them to restrict the cheap excursion tickets as the town was being overrun with visitors. On Easter Monday, 1895, 1500 visitors arrived in North Berwick on regular and special excursion trains. When added to those already in the Burgh for the weekend, this amounted to over three thousand visitors. 

North Berwick Golf

While the elite of London society would normally go to Biarritz to play golf, North Berwick became a destination of choice. The town soon became known as the 'Biarritz of the North'. The upper classes who needed something to occupy themselves could now visit North Berwick for golfing seasons in August and September. They would come up on the train and head to the vast homes they had built west of the town. They would promenade and visit each other’s houses for tea.

One of the earliest references was in an article written by Edmund Yates, editor of 'The World', a weekly society journal, in November 1889, in an article about Arthur Balfour, Foreign Secretary and Prime Minister, when he used the term ‘Biarritz of the North’ to describe the town. The slogan was subsequently used in an advertising campaign by the North Berwick Town Council in 1902. The North Eastern Railway Company displayed the posters, which featured many of their most popular destinations, to increase the number of passengers using the railway.

Since 1849, challenge or brag matches between the best golf professionals of the day, attracted large crowds to North Berwick. In 1899, Willie Park Jnr. who owned the property at the 'Garve' in Beach Road, challenged Harry Vardon to a match for 100 pounds over the West Links, with the return at Ganton; 36 holes played on each course. Provost John McIntyre permitted the shopkeepers to close in the afternoon to allow their staff to follow the match. In July, over 7,000 spectators arrived by train at North Berwick to watch the game. 

In the summer, the 'Rose,' a paddle steamer owned by the Galloway Saloon Steam Packet Company, would also bring daytrippers on a round trip from Leith to North Berwick, tieing up at Galloways Pier on the Platcock Rocks.

North Berwick Ladies’ Golf Club

The arrival of female players at North Berwick chimed with the growth of the resort town and this ease of access of visitors from London and Edinburgh by train. Ms Fortune, the author of ‘Par for the Ladies’, a fabulous book recounting this period, said: “When you see the list of people who came to North Berwick to play golf, it is astonishing. It is like a Who’s Who of Britain.”

The women who visited North Berwick - from the noble ladies to the politicians’ wives and industrialist’s daughters – were the ones who helped to create this new fashionable town that had golf at the heart of this high society meeting point. Among the women to play in the North Berwick Ladies’ Club was Lady Grace Wemyss, wife of the 10th Earl of Wemyss and Margot Asquith, wife of the Liberal Prime Minister HH Asquith. These notable families spent the months of August and September in the town. They would bring their entourage of housekeepers, butlers, footmen and nannies to manage the household and the local merchants and shopkeepers would supply all their sundries. 

Women would also partake in some of the activities available in North Berwick. In 1888, the committee of the new North Berwick Golf Club agreed to create a nine-hole links for women. Ladies were already playing at women-only courses in Musselburgh and St Andrews by this time, but the new links at North Berwick was considered to be far superior.

North Berwick Outdoor Swimming Pool

In 1895, the outdoor swimming pool was built next to the harbour and was tremendously popular, with numerous events taking place during the day and in the evenings, including galas and celebrities to attract people. Huge crowds would attend these events, and the end-of-season party in September would include a huge firework display. The pool was allegedly heated, but swimming could still be a chilly experience on stormy days when used to sweep waves across the wall and into the pool, which acted as a kind of safety valve protecting the rest of the harbour area. The pool was just short of its centenary when it was closed in 1998 despite a vigorous local campaign to save it.

For many years, this was the centre of North Berwick’s social life – for both locals and visitors – alongside the Pavilion built at the harbour in 1930. The Pavilion had many uses, with regular dances all year round; in the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s with live bands on stage it was packed with dancers.

East Lothian’s popularity as a holiday destination has continued to develop since this era. Still, like everywhere around the world, Scotland now competes in a global tourism market since the advent of the aeroplane. It is often referred to as ‘Scotland in miniature’ with its 40 miles of coastline, rolling countryside, picturesque towns and villages, a wide variety of attractions and excellent golf courses. 

With its close proximity to Edinburgh and good links to the city centre and airport, it continues to attract a British audience, evenly matched by worldwide visitors. And with new health clubs, spas, distilleries and experiences all popping up on the landscape, the area continues to develop and thrive, attracting vast numbers of holidaymakers throughout the year, as well as during the summer months.