DEMAND from tourists attending the Edinburgh Fringe Festival helped lift occupancy levels to more than 90 per cent at what is billed as the city's largest independent hotel.

Ten Hill Place on Nicolson Street said occupancy had leapt from 58% in July, with the 129-bed hotel welcoming 6,333 guests in August. Jackie Hudson of Surgeons Quarter, which runs the four-star hotel, said: “The buzz within the hotel and campus has been great.

"Although it’s not the same volume as a normal peak Fringe period, we’ve been delighted to see some sort of normality returning."