Car hire Aberdeen

Introduction

Scottish Aberdeen is also called the "Granite City", after the material that was used for the older buildings. It is also known as the Oil Capital of Europe, because it's the base for North Sea oil explorations. You don't think this seems like an attractive destination for a city trip? We beg to differ. The granite houses sparkle in the sun and to brighten up the gray granite, the buildings have many flowers. Furthermore, Aberdeen has one of Europe's oldest universities (King’s College was founded in 1495) and St. Machar's Cathedral. Other than that the city is an excellent base for daytrips to beautiful castles or excellent golf courses. Or you could go on the so-called Malt Whiskey Trail (for instance to the Glenfiddich and Glen Grant breweries).

Population

Aberdeen has more than 200,000 inhabitants.

Location

Aberdeen is on the Scottish east coast, in between the Dee and Don river mouths. Between these two rivers, the coast has sandy beaches with high sand dunes further north. South of the river Dee the coast consists of steep and rugged rocks.

Economy

The economy revolves around oil extraction in the North Sea. Aberdeen's heliport takes workers to and from the oil rigs; it is one of the busiest heliports in the world. Because the extraction of oil will stop one day, Aberdeen is focusing more and more on alternative sources of energy. The Energetica Science Park has companies focused on the technology for alternative energy.

Fishery used to be a predominant industry for the local economy, but nowadays it only plays a minor role.

Airports

Aberdeen Dyce International Airport is located twelve kilometers North West of the city center. The airport is easily accessible by car: from Aberdeen take the A96 (to Inverness) and after that the Dyce exit (A947). The exit to the airport is clearly indicated on the road signs.

Public transport

The city has good public transport. The "First" company operates the city lines and bus services to suburbs such as Dyce, Cults & Culter and Kingswells. On weekends there are night buses available. Stagecoach operates one city bus service (59); other than that this company offers transport to more distant locations.

Traffic and Parking

Since old Aberdeen has many narrow streets, the best way to get to know the city is by foot. To find a parking space in the street can be difficult, but there are many other parking facilities in the center. These are clearly indicated on the signs. The parking rates are quite high. You can also park your rental car for free at one of the parking facilities on the outskirts of the town (Ellon, Stonehaven, Kingswells and Bridge or Don) and travel to the center by public transport.

Hotels

Aberdeen has a good range of accommodations. You can choose from simple boarding houses and bed & breakfasts, to five star hotels to atmospheric country inns in the city's vicinity. Furthermore there are many apartments for rent. Please take into account that much of the available accommodation is used by the oil riggers. If you have a specific hotel in mind, then please make your reservation well in advance.

External sources

For more information about Aberdeen, we recommend Google and the following sources:

• Wikipedia, Aberdeen
• Official website Aberdeen
• Tourist Information Aberdeen (multilingual)