It was the first time the honour had been bestowed on the town and rally organisers wanted to make sure that everything ran smoothly.
Public access to a number of roads, including North Street, South Street, Murray Street and Currie Street was restricted but that didn't stop nearly 4,000 people descending on Duns for the start on Friday night.
With an entry list of 298 cars - the highest ever for the rally - many drivers lined up at the start line at the beginning of North Street. From there they sped through South Street and Murray Street before exiting the town via Station Road.
With cars reaching speeds close to 140mph, safety was the main priority for the organising committee, this year more than ever following injury to a marshal during last year's rally.
The rally's media manager, Grahame MacGregor said having a stage in Duns was a big challenge for the committee and overall they are pleased with how it all went.
He added: "Staging part of the event in Duns was a new thing for us and of course we wanted it to go well. With two stages on Friday and one on Saturday, people were treated to non-stop action, particularly on Saturday when the National Rally finished in the town.
"It was also a great experience for the local drivers. Euan Thorburn - who was second in the Reiver's Rally and ninth in the International Rally - got to drive past his own front door, not many drivers can say they've done that!
"Trying to run an event like this we're never going to get the backing of everyone but it's astounding how much support we get from communities year after year.
"The biggest challenge for us was the fact that the streets in Duns are narrow and confined so inevitably this meant that there had to be some disruption for everything to run smoothly and safely.
"You can't take any chances when you've got hundreds of cars speeding through. For example, Duns's Mike Horne who won the Challenge Rally, said he was doing speeds of up to 125mph going out of the town!
"The committee are eternally grateful to the people of Berwickshire for putting up with any inconvenience. We'd like to thank them for their understanding and hopefully they weren't affected too much as it is really their rally and they should be proud of it."
As well as being able to watch the rally itself, the organising committee hoped that other aspects of the event, such as the Continental Market in Currie Street, would draw crowds.
Unfortunately this, coupled with the fact that Murray Street was closed meant that businesses in the surrounding area suffered as a result.
Although Graeme McGregor said he thought there was "a happy balance" between market stalls and the food and drink outlets in the town, manager of Costcutters, Arfan Tariq, said that on what should have been a busy weekend for the shop, takings were less than half what they would normally be.
Another Murray Street business, Forte's was also a victim of the closures.
Owner, Paul Forte said: "We are normally open until 10pm on a Friday but had to shut just after 5pm so this took away a good few hours trade when we'd expect to be at our busiest.
"We were also shut for about four hours on Saturday too so trade was dramatically down. Takings were worse than what you'd expect from a cold and wet day in winter.
"Fortunately we had a good day on Sunday or it could have been even worse.
"I thought the whole idea of having the rally in Duns was to try and help the town but we lost local customers as well as potential extra sales.
"I think the organisers were a bit over zealous with the closures. I don't want to sound like a killjoy as I think the rally is a terrific event; I just think there should have been more consideration for businesses as it shouldn't really affect our livelihood."
But there are two sides to every story and those businesses who weren't affected by the road closures enjoyed a fruitful weekend.
Pubs and restaurants in Duns were packed out with locals and visitors and fish and chip shops did a roaring trade.
Rally manager Colin Pagan accepted that some local businesses weren't entirely happy with how things were organised but said that with an event of such a nature there was always going to be 'winners and losers.'
He added: "There were people in and around the town all week not just over the weekend so surely businesses would have been able to take advantage of that.
"Whatever we do some people will be adversely affected in one shape or form and we will sit down with these people in the coming weeks to get their opinions.
"Overall the committee is very pleased with how things have gone. It was a new experiment for us as the demands of modern rallying have meant that the event has been moved further away from Duns in the past few years. It was terrific to be able to bring some of that excitement back to the town."
Chairman of Duns Community Council, Andrew Mitchell, whilst acknowledging that some people weren't too happy with the rally coming to to the town, admitted that personally, he'd like to see it return.
"I know there were a number of people worried about road closures and not being able to go in or out of their houses or shops but the community council held a meeting well in advance and canvassed the streets that would be affected to give people an opportunity to put their views across.
"And the organisers also hosted a similar meeting with Scottish Borders Council which gave people another chance to raise any concerns.
"I only had two people come up to me on the day to say they were unhappy at the restricted access and I will be happy to pass these grievances on to the organising committee when we meet with them.
"People seemed to be thoroughly enjoying themselves; you only had to look at the smiling faces in the Market Square and down at the roundabout to see that.
"I would personally welcome a stage being held in Duns again next year as I'm sure it will have benefited the town financially as well."
What are your views on this issue? Log on to www.berwickshire-news.co.uk and let us know.