Blog Zero: Edinburgh to Sol del Este

[27-28 October 2025]

When you step into the First Class Lounge on Platform 5 at Waverley Station, you could be forgiven for thinking you were entering the Etihad Business Class Lounge at Bangkok Airport.  Apart from the (miniscule) range of food and drinks, the (lack of) comfort and opulence of the surroundings, and the intrusive smell of toilets on the way up to the first floor lounge, that is.  And the pictures of smiling railway employees covering one wall.

The trip down to Newcastle was a pleasure – a sunny run down the East Coast, with nice food and drink included.  Followed by a much cheaper-than-Edinburgh Uber to the airport hotel.  Up at 4:00am for the 5 minute walk to the Terminal.

We left the hotel at 4:50am and we were sitting at our breakfast table in the airport at 5:20am.  OK, it is the end of October and it was 5:00am, but Newcastle airport seems to be full of split new equipment and dedicated to making passenger transit as speedy and hassle free as possible – to be recommended.

Sitting with our coffee, orange juice and relatively healthy granola and berry breakfast, we felt quite conspicuous.  Every table around us was filled with 50-60 year old women (no doubt about age, as one was wearing a glittery cap stating her birthday) downing pints.  That’s apart from one more sophisticated group, who were on the gin and tonics.

Walking around with an already inflated flight neck support in place also seemed to be in vogue – we were particularly taken with the Union Jack version. Must get one. Only 50 (well behaved) people on the Jet 2 flight to Mahon, some buying double orders of beer and wine.  Well, it was 7:30am by now.

Picked up the hire car, despite a new local rule that car operators can’t enter the Terminal in Mahón, which left us waiting inside and Don Cars waiting outside, and about 10 minutes trying to get the Juke to work – it was so quiet we didn’t realise the engine was, in fact, on.

Round to Sol del Este and La Gardenia, which is looking even more beautiful than usual this autumn.