Aberdeen International Airport is around five miles northwest of the city centre. Not only is it a key international airport which was used by 3.7 million passengers in 2014 it is also a major heliport serving the gas and oil platforms in the North Sea. Car hire in Aberdeen opens up many of the most beautiful parts of Scotland including Royal Deeside where you will find Balmoral Castle as well as the eastern part of the dramatic Cairngorms National Park.
Aberdeen is often known as “the Granite City” as much of it was built using the dark stone long quarried in the area. Hire a car in Aberdeen and take a trip to the Aberdeen Art Gallery where there are many works by Scottish artists dating back to pre-Raphaelite times. Also worth visiting is the Maritime Museum overlooking the harbour. This not only tells the story of the city’s sea-going past, it also looks at the effects that the oil industry has had on the region.