# The best places to visit in Scotland - A first time trip!!



## gilly2125 (Dec 7, 2012)

Hi all,

As a surprise for my husband's 50th I have hired a motorhome for the very first time!! I am planning to tour Scotland but am brand new to it all. 

Has anyone any suggestions about where are the most intersting and pictureqsue places to visit? We are only going for a week on the 27th December so I want to be sure we use our time well. We have 2 boys of 13 and 11. 

Also, any tips on where to camp at night? 

Help!!

Gill


----------



## jonegood (Nov 5, 2007)

Do you work for the met office?


----------



## rocky1968 (Nov 10, 2011)

*scotland*

take a shoval with u and wellies snow will be a falling but if not go up to dunnets head right up the top stunning then over to durness lake eribo


----------



## Kev1 (Apr 4, 2011)

Ok Lots to see and do
If you havent been to scotland before then you are in for a treat.
Watch the weather forecasts carefully

Do you want to stay on campsites if so.

Then get a list of who are open that week.
If you want to do a couple of nights wilding
then fill up with water because
The weather is likeley to be below freezing 
so water will be turned off at public taps.

Keep the heating on in the van over night you dont want expensive freeze ups on a hire van.

Lots of places but in reality the weather may restrict you
A trip through the Great glen is impressive Inverness at one end
and Fort William at the other. Loch ness in between.
Why not call in at Aviemore
catch the funicular up Cairngorm a fabulous view from the top
Lots to do in Aviemore the kids could have a days snowboard lesson etc.

Kev


----------



## Bubblehead (Mar 5, 2007)

Hi

Heed all the advice on cold weather / snow and drive carefully.

You don't say where you are but I would recommend that you go up the M6/M74 to Glasgow and then up Loch Lomond following the A82 to Fort William, with a possible detour to Oban. This will take you through Glencoe.

At this point you can either go to Inverness if the weather is bad or head up to Kyle of Lochalsh and go to Skye and/or north up via Loch Carron to Inverewe. You can keep going north as long as you wish dependant on weather and time.

The best bits are the north and west coasts but you will be very restricted by time, weather and the number of open campsites. You can wild camp but will need to take on fresh water, dump grey and empty the toilet at some point. Do not try to do the whole of Scotland in a week unless you wish to spend every day driving all day and only have photo with the windscreen in them - its bigger than you think!

Return via the A9 down from Inverness, stopping at Aviemore and Pitlochry

Enjoy

Andy


----------



## mikebeaches (Oct 18, 2008)

I'd recommend that for a first time trip - and in mid-winter too - you should aim to stay at campsites that have an electric hook-up. You can than enjoy more comfort in the evenings. It might be worth packing a light fan heater to supplement what's available on the hired van. This time of year it's easy to consume huge amounts of gas on space heating, and then you've got the faff of finding refills and actually changing bottles over (though not quite the same issue if the van has diesel heating).

Daylight hours will be very short, especially the further north you travel.

I'd do some research to find sites that will be open. And think about what your two sons will enjoy most, as well as you and your husband. The kids probably won't want to be travelling long distances every day. 

Whatever you decide, have a great trip.

Mike


----------



## aultymer (Jun 20, 2006)

You will be very welcome in Gods own country. 
As a Scot I would not think of venturing north of the central belt at this time of year. 
As has been said - find sites which are open - there are not many! 
Moffat C&CC site is open but may already be booked up. 
As newcomers to motorhomes you may all be surprised by how different it is to living in a house! Think tin tent, rather than house on wheels. 
Good luck and let us know if there are any specific items we can help you with.


----------



## Jamsieboy (Jan 14, 2011)

Hi
Depends a lot of what you like doing!
Given the weather, time of year and the fact that you are a first timer I would suggest
CC site at Melrose
CC site in Edinburgh
CCC site in Moffat

Although the scenery is wonderful especially in the snow I would suggest leaving further North until the Spring

Enjoy


----------



## 3kiddiewinks (Aug 9, 2011)

Weather as said above, but roads are better than they used to be 

Scotland west coast is 100% a must, but you must check out the 3 sisters in Glen Coe, with the Road to Kinlochleven on the way, Glen Coe Village on Loch Leven is a beautiful place to visit, Scotland is perfect, and Edinbughs Arthurs seat is worth a look too,

If you go to Grantown theres The Whisky Castle for a visit, but if keep on the a939 youll get some great views, with sky lifts to get up the high slopes

But maybe you need to do it in reverse :- Edinbugh, Perth, then A939 to Whiskey Castle, and then onto Grantown, and Avimore,
The trouble with Scotland is once you start to explore, you will soon find the days are just not long enough 

Another good point is plan your journey carefully, and know exactly where your going, as you can skip, and miss stuff, or end up jumping from 1 place to another,
If you just read what i put above, its a good route, but will take you past Glen Coe, Trossachs and Loch Lomond Etc
So you would either go up into Scotland my way, and come back down finishing off at Glen Coe, Trossachs and Loch Lomond Etc

Or even go from Edinbugh to Glen Coe, passing Trossachs and Loch Lomond, and then head across to Perth, and then up the way i said by zigzagging, make sure you go through Lochearnhead on the way to Perth, as there some great views to be had, with a car park to stay on with moutains all round

Anyway from Glencoe to Perth by motorhome is not far, and once youve done the Whiskey Castle, Avimore, and Newtonmore, you could go to Ben Nevis and onto Fort William, and carry on up the west coast as you like, or zigzag again, and do the Nessie trail to Inverness Etc, Etc

This is good, and worth a visit ( Free By Donation ) is the Folk Museum in Newtonmore here :-
http://www.highlandfolk.com/newtonmore.php

Apart from being able to see, and visit lots of battle grounds with history, and plenty of great castles, theres the distilleries, and most important dont forget Haggis Hunting here :-
http://www.glenhaggis.com//

We did 6 weeks up there going to all the highland games, and by the time we finished, my wee 1s were sick of Bagpipes, Men in Skirts, and ginger hair ,

But we still managed to miss so much in the trip


----------



## Spiritofherald (May 18, 2012)

It's all fantastic once beyond Glasgow (and I don't mean that as an insult to Glasgow) and you hit Loch Lommond and onwards. There really is too much to cover here, it would take a book to even start covering the great places. But I do agree with others and my fabvourite route is to take the road west of Lock Lommond and head for Fort William (Ben Nevis area) then continue northwards towards Localsh. From here you could take the Skye bridege and tour teh island (that would fill a week even just skimming through) or continue northwards to the tip of Scotland and maybe circle round through John O'Groats back south past Loch Ness and Inverness. So much to choose from!

I'll be up on Isle fo Skye about the same time as you too so give a wave if you see an 2003 reg Peugeot Elddis going the other way


----------



## 3kiddiewinks (Aug 9, 2011)

Yes you are right, and i still think my Zigzag tactic is good, as it allows you to cover more areas, but as you say, theres just so much to do, and see in scotland


----------



## Suenliam (Mar 22, 2006)

Interesting that the people who are recommending a good look at the weather and possibly reconsidering the destination are from Scotland :wink: Many of the snow gates have been shut this week already. Most main roads are otherwise open, but our local roads have been bad this week. 

Also the original poster does not say where she is located. Scotland is a long drive from most of England/Wales. That could knock a couple of days off the holiday particularly if the road conditions are bad and the kids get bored on a long trip - possibly in the dark. Even here in South Scotland it gets dark at 4pm. 

I wonder if the poster would consider a visit to Dumfries and Galloway? Known as Scotland in miniature it is not quite so dramatic as the West Highlands and not so cold as Grampian. I am not sure if we have any all year campsites other than Moffat which may be booked up. I know the Edinburgh CC site is fully booked for about a year in advance.

What ever and where ever you end up - have a great time.

Sue


----------



## 3kiddiewinks (Aug 9, 2011)

Thats a very good point about where your located, and the What ever and where ever you end up, maybe down to the weather conditions up north, i personally live in the south,


----------



## listerdiesel (Aug 3, 2012)

As above, all the tips and advice are good.

We go up to Inverness regularly as we deal with the rail depot there, and we obviously go up the A9 etc as it is quickest, but the western side is also nice, roads are single carriageway though, and I can well remember driving across to to the Kyle of Lochalsh through snow drifts on the main road.

I would have chosen a better time of year, but at least it will be quiet on the roads.

Remember to keep fuel topped up as garages are not exactly plentiful once you leave the main towns. Perth to Inverness there are no garages for nearly 100 miles for example. We fill the Discovery with LPG at Perth and again in Inverness, but after that there's only one more before John O'Groats. Better situation for regular fuels, but the Perth-Inverness run is without fuel on the A9.

Peter


----------



## papaken (Nov 21, 2010)

Living in the Northeast we are 100mls from Scotland and this time of year its a days travel into say the west coast around Kirkcudbright.  
Considering your maybe lack of experience driving a motorhome and knowledge of it, daylight driving hours, after all you do not want to be looking for sites and settling in in the dark, a few planned route/sites (with EHU) is as a minimum a must.  
If you decide to move site to site try to make it only a couple of hour trips which will give you daylight when you get there.
As to the weather good luck a seven day forecast before you set off will decide your optional route.
I believe there is a rally on in Kelso over this time is that an option as you would be with other motorhomers.
Happy travelling and lets know how you managed when you get back.


----------



## 3kiddiewinks (Aug 9, 2011)

Two good points above is definitely the petrol, and the night driving, as there can be alot of bendy roads, and the deer are out at night too, so you really dont want to be hitting them


----------



## lalala (Aug 13, 2009)

We loved being in Dumfries and Galloway, mainly the Galloway end where beaches are wonderful, winter and summer. It will be a far less arduous trip for your first motorhome experience. Also why not look at joining one of the Camping Clubs and using their certificated sites or locations. You might find some with electrical hookup which would be even better.
lala


----------



## CurlyBoy (Jan 13, 2008)

.....don't stop before Fort William, and then follow the west coast as far as you are able in the time, you probably won't get far as like me you will probably stop at every bend to take another stunning photo.

curlyboy


----------



## Landyman (Apr 3, 2010)

We were in Scotland this summer (if you can call it summer) for the first time in a motorhome.
You might like to read my blog which will give you some info about the sites we used, together with the GPS co-ordinates for each and lots of photos.

www.motorhomemoments.wordpress.com

Enjoy your trip.

Landyman.


----------



## HH66 (Oct 19, 2008)

We spent a week in May/June in Dumfries and Galloway. Plenty of places in and around the Galloway Forest to try a night's wild camping (and no midgies in the winter!) The weather tends to be milder than further north (we live in Carlisle and it's similar to ours.)
Plenty to see and do - would recommend the lighthouse at the Mull of Galloway as an overnight spot if you can get down there (narrow roads).
I'd also echo Lalala's comment about joining one of the clubs - there won't be many sites open but at least on a CS/CL you can fill/empty and keep warm!


----------



## Pudsey_Bear (Sep 25, 2008)

Easy, head for Skye, Camp where there's space, but not too close to houses, unfortunately you don't say where you're based.

If Skye is too far, come off the M6 at Moffat and go east or west, west is more rugged East is prettier, rolling hills, valleys some nice towns along the way, Moffat, Selkirk.

Scotland is indeed Gods country, which is why it's our usual destination when we got away, we went south once, it was too busy, too many BMWs and Mercs, Scotland is much less hurried, more Audi, VW country :lol: :lol: 

To be honest once you get north of Leeds it's pretty much all good.


----------



## motormouth (Jul 3, 2010)

Well I for one would like to thank all respondants who have given me lots of great tips as and when we next go north.
I am sure the OP will get round to it sometime.


----------



## Pudsey_Bear (Sep 25, 2008)

motormouth said:


> Well I for one would like to thank all respondants who have given me lots of great tips as and when we next go north.
> I am sure the OP will get round to it sometime.


OOPS I should have said north of Northallerton is all good :lol: :lol: :wink: :wink:


----------



## DJMotorhomer (Apr 15, 2010)

Hi

There are 3 sites I would recommend to you.

Caravan Club sites at Garlieston and New England Bay.

The other is a private site and in my opinion the best

Clachtoll Beach - its near Lochinver and run by a lovely man named
Jim. Lovely walks etc he cannot do enough for you and we will return next year.

Cheers


DJM


----------



## Suenliam (Mar 22, 2006)

Garlieston and New England Bay closed for the winter and Garlieston is a member only site. The original poster did not have CC membership when they posted. Otherwise good sites for the summer.

Sue

(edit: the other site looks great as well but I have just checked - it shut for the winter in September)


----------

