Few visitors can help but fall in love with the natural beauty of the Borders. This is a landscape whose verdant fields and dark-wooded hills and glens seem to rise and fall forever
... until, of course, you happenchance upon a small yet bustling market town.

Here instead you might find yourself exploring farmers’ markets, independent shops and boutiques, art galleries and historic buildings.

Beautiful in all of its seasons, from multi-blossomed summers to snow-swathed winters, this is a place that is constantly changing, always surprising.

There are many signs to be found, too, of a rich – often deeply troubled – past. Ruined abbeys are lasting monuments of religious wars, while immense castles stand proud and resolute after years of battering by cross-border battles.

Today, however, the real focus for tourists and residents alike is on living life in the present.

After all, this is an area that can offer an outstanding quality of life; its close-knit communities may be steeped in history and heritage, but they are also proving to be positive and forward-thinking.

Today it’s evident each of the Border towns has a character and atmosphere all of its own – and it’s no surprise many have become top tourist destinations and places to live and work in their own right.

Peebles, for instance, remains entirely unspoiled, with its famous High Street and medieval alleyways, protected amidst the hills on the banks of the salmon-rich Tweed, perfectly preserved.

A Royal Burgh since 1152, with its rural setting and genteel nature it’s incredible to think Peebles is only 23 miles south of the nation’s busy capital.

Also on the River Tweed lies Melrose in whose abbey a casket was discovered and is believed to hold the heart of Robert the Bruce. Of course, this is also the birthplace and fast-beating heart of the sport of Rugby Sevens, soon to take its
place among Olympic sports at Rio 2016.

Famed equally for the toughness of its own rugby club and softness of fine quality knitwear, such as cashmere, Hawick is also known for The Horse statue.

This pays tribute to a particularly pugnacious victory over English invaders at nearby Hornshole in 1514.

Not content with being on the banks of one river, Kelso lies at the junction of the Tweed and the Teviot. It is here in 1937 that Provost John Scott inaugurated Civic Week so that Kelso could have a Common Riding similar to neighbouring towns.

Almost every year since, a Laddie with his Right and Left Hand Men leads his followers in ride-outs into the countryside.

Horses are no strangers in the Royal Burgh of Jedburgh, which lies just 10 miles from the Border. While its most famous resident was Mary Queen of Scots, its annual Jedhart Callants Festival and a firm focus on “country life”, today makes Jedburgh a much sought-after place to live. From Selkirk high above the Ettrick and Yarrow Valleys to Innerleithen, where Traquair House hosted so many kings and queens; from Coldstream, birthplace of the Guards, to Eyemouth with its natural harbour, and St Abbs, paradise for nature lovers, these towns are the vibrant hubs of the greater Borders community.

Not the last of these and, as the biggest, certainly not least, Galashiels lies at the heart of the region and is historically the centre of the region’s renowned tweed industry.

Its modern USP, however, is its central location with main routes leading outward through the region, linking with Edinburgh, Carlisle and the major towns.

But the common thread through all these Borders towns today is the trinity of Ts: Trains, Tourism and Textiles.

The Borders Railway promises to open up the Scottish Borders as the perfect place to work, live and visit.

Passenger services for the new route will begin on Sunday, September 6, but already there is significant work under way to maximise the potential economic benefits of the railway, from encouraging even more tourists to visit to the Borders Railway Prospectus, whose aim is to encourage inward investment.

Like communities all over Scotland, towns in the Scottish Borders are facing challenges but the railway’s welcome return could be a key driver for local economic development.

In terms of tourism, there can be no doubt the railway promises to open up increased opportunities for encouraging the millions who visit Edinburgh every year to explore further down the rail line.

The Borders’ famed textile industry, meanwhile, has been boosted in modern times by the renewed demand for high quality knitwear products, particularly cashmere, around the world.

This has helped several Borders firms to grow, reviving the historical industry and, of course, the traditional skills required to produce the very best.