Royal Yacht Britannia Trust has just acquired the lightship vessel MV Windsor Castle with plans to convert it into a 25 bedroom luxury 'boatique' hotel. She will be berthed permanently adjacent to the Britannia in Edinburgh's historic port of Leith.

Launched in August 1963, she was the last ship built by the Blythswood Shipbuilding Company in Glasgow and was previously the Northern Lighthouse Board's (NLB) tender Fingal. She was Leith registered but spent most of her NLB service working out of Oban for 30 years, followed by her last 6 years, based in Stromness, Orkney. At 239 feet long, she is nearly two-thirds of the size of Britannia.

MV Windsor Castle is scheduled to arrive in Leith at the end of August. She will then undergo an 18 month conversion and is scheduled to open as a hotel in Spring 2016.

Details: www.royalyachtbritannia.co.uk