HOW BUSY ARE THE SCOTTISH HIGHLANDS

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Cornish Crew

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We are hoping to tour the west coast of Scotland in late September. We just wonder if this is still a good idea with all the bad press about motor homes that we hear about. Hoping it is just bad press and relates to the minority, that responsible travellers would still be welcome. We are more than happy to use the less commercial type of campsites, CL's etc.
Just wondered if there are any funsters that have been recently, or are from the area that have a view or advice.
Thanks
 
Got all excited seeing a reply to my first ever post :giggle:
Hopefully someone in the know will post soon. Have just found some information about forestry car parks which looks good, but just wondering about the welcome in general ?
Tim
 
I'm thinking the same but suspect a big increase with the people who were going to France
 
The Wino said:
I'm thinking the same but suspect a big increase with the people who were going to France
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I was supposed to be going to France in September and I am now going to Scotland, so you are probably correct 😂

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Well we are presently in the South West near Stranraer staying on a small CL - everyone we met has been very welcoming so far. The owner has said her CL is the busiest it has ever been in the 10 years she has been here with a lot of short stays as people head up towards the Highlands, so you are not the only one.

My only other comment is everyone seems to take SD more seriously and the supermarket was stricter than the ones in Cheshire so we made sure to follow their lead out of courtesy.
 
Aly1 said:
I was supposed to be going to France in September and I am now going to Scotland, so you are probably correct 😂
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It's like lots of things that have happened in lockdown everyone seems to get the same idea at the same time!
 
We have been visiting the West Coast for 40 years. We will not be going this year! Our friends live near Lochinver above Ullapool and their comments about overcrowding on the single track roads and the sheer number of Motorhomes seeking very few places to stop convinces us not to go.If you check the Scottish Press you will be horrified at some of the comments. We normally take the press with a large pinch of salt but our friend assures us they are not reporting half of it. He was disgusted to find the contents of someone’s loo in the beck adjoining his home. He says it Is happening Frequently. It saddens us but it has been created by a good idea (the NC 500) with no infrastructure. Put the current situation on top of that and I guess it was inevitable.
Cheers
Bernie
 
I did put a link on another post about having to use campsites on the islands so that they know who is there etc. Cal Mac wants to see a campsite booked etc. They have been doing that on Tiree before corona.
 
The west coast is fine, but I’d advise trying to stay off of the NC500 route especially after Lochinver.

Theres been lots of issues with over crowding and poor Behaviour, obviously this varies on a daily basis, but in general locals have not been too happy.

If you take in Mull then Salen Bay campsite is great, but as of four weeks ago the local shop didn’t welcome outsiders.

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A friend of mine has just travelled up to Scotland to visit relatives and they were using the Gourock - Dunoon ferry. Normally they would just turn up and find the ferry fairly quiet but on this occasion there were large queues of traffic, mainly motorhomes and caravans waiting to head north so it seems as if it is rather busy.

I am please to see that the Forestry and Land Scotland have agreed to keep their overnight parking scheme open for motorhomes.
 
If your coming up the west coast I don’t think Ardrossan to Cambletown is running, but McInroys point - Hunters Quay will be quieter than the Dunoon boat.
 
Tim, late September is a great time to visit Scotland and the current influx of tourists will have eased. You should certainly have no problems finding places to park up or stay. Do remember though that the weather is always unpredictable and certainly cooler than in the south. We have had snow in Sutherland in September, the plus side is that the scenery becomes fantastic in autumn. Midges should not be a problem.

Due to the late start of tourism a lot more sites are staying open for longer this year.

Enjoy your visit.
 
Boris7 said:
If your coming up the west coast I don’t think Ardrossan to Cambletown is running, but McInroys point - Hunters Quay will be quieter than the Dunoon boat.
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That's the ferry I was referring to, Western Ferries service to Dunoon. It's a crossing that they use regularly and they have never seen it so busy.
 
We are heading up end of October into November and doing the 500 anti clockwise (I’ve heard the views are better) over about 2 weeks or so and will use sites to put something into the local economy. I have joined the Irish Motorhome Group on Facebook as we are doing Ireland next year. The amount of aires and free parking places is frightening compared to here, but they are now having a similar problem re waste dumping and parking.
If anyone is thinking of going to Ireland it’s worth a look as it does maps etc also the people are friendly and good natured sharing locations ,photos and assistance like most on this site, and they have their own Jim who runs it.

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Nicky and I were thinking of a revisit to Shetland in Sep/Oct this year but, the latest news on the CV19 spread in France and Spain etc, has brought out the many dozens of Facebook/local forum keyboard warriors who are shouting "stay away", "tourists not welcome", "no visitors", "quarantine outsiders"..........and all in the last 48-hours.

I just can't be bothered with it all so we'll go later next year when they are more desperate because their local economy is on its arse!
 
Mick and Ruth said:
We are heading up end of October into November and doing the 500 anti clockwise (I’ve heard the views are better) over about 2 weeks or so and will use sites to put something into the local economy. I have joined the Irish Motorhome Group on Facebook as we are doing Ireland next year. The amount of aires and free parking places is frightening compared to here, but they are now having a similar problem re waste dumping and parking.
If anyone is thinking of going to Ireland it’s worth a look as it does maps etc also the people are friendly and good natured sharing locations ,photos and assistance like most on this site, and they have their own Jim who runs it.
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Have a great time doing the The NC500, so pleased to hear you are doing it anti clockwise! It should be made a rule IMHO, you will find less oncoming traffic, especially MH's, the roads are so narrow even with passing places its difficult to make headway.
Thanks for the tip on Ireland, never heard of the Irish Motorhome Club, will look into that.
Best wishes.
LES
 
Just saw this might be of interest to some
9EAD9204-949B-4551-BD16-D2465022BCC7.jpeg
 
We live in Stranraer and it's pleasing to hear Rosemary1 saying it's more disciplined here and she recieved a warm welcome. I have never seen so many vans as this year.

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WillH said:
We live in Stranraer and it's pleasing to hear Rosemary1 saying it's more disciplined here and she recieved a warm welcome. I have never seen so many vans as this year.
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Am I correct in thinking that 'someone' has launched the SW250 to resemble a mini NC500 style route.

If a designer label is placed on something or a place then people will flock.

We spent a few weeks in D&G during 2018 and 2019 and we found some great places to camp in our PVC.

.......but it has changed now IMO and instead of finding a Camper or PVC parked on the coast or in a small woodland space, there is now huge tag axle vans and the bigger vans rammed in to every orifice.

The locals will soon get fed up for sure.
 
Yes Blue Knight very true unfortunately, The SW 300 as seen here. As for The FCS Stay The night facility, keep it as quiet as you can everyone. :whistle2:
LES
Quote:
The South West Coastal 300 is a new Scottish driving route that is perfect for a campervan or motorhome trip. Extending some 300 miles through the tranquil and scenic south-west region of Scotland, the circular road route takes in numerous attractions.
1597488277918.png
 
TinaL said:
Yes Blue Knight very true unfortunately, The SW 300 as seen here. As for The FCS Stay The night facility, keep it as quiet as you can everyone. :whistle2:
LES
Quote:
The South West Coastal 300 is a new Scottish driving route that is perfect for a campervan or motorhome trip. Extending some 300 miles through the tranquil and scenic south-west region of Scotland, the circular road route takes in numerous attractions.
View attachment 415751
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Cheers Les, Very useful indeed sir (y)
 
Yes, true, but we are not seeing anything like the numbers on the NC500. We go out a lot locally with our dog both in the car and day trips in the van and have noticed more vans parked up, but not a serious number and certainly not a problem to date. There were a handful at the start of lock down but they were escorted away by the police. The reversal of the Forestry and Land Scotland Stay the Night decision was a ray of sunshine and we shall certainly be taking advantage of it later this year. We are not travelling yet as we consider it not safe enough for us at present.
 
I live near Oban and the amount of vans this year is staggering 🥴 now I don’t think I’ll go touring until winter this year. Lots and lots of hire vans causing minor road accidents not used to the size and our narrow roads. A few mostly hire vans again leaving the place filthy. In our village if it happens again I can see the pier access locked up again. A pitty because 99.9% of visits are welcome and painless 🥴

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Borderland said:
A friend of mine has just travelled up to Scotland to visit relatives and they were using the Gourock - Dunoon ferry. Normally they would just turn up and find the ferry fairly quiet but on this occasion there were large queues of traffic, mainly motorhomes and caravans waiting to head north so it seems as if it is rather busy.

I am please to see that the Forestry and Land Scotland have agreed to keep their overnight parking scheme open for motorhomes.
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That ferry will be VERY busy now.. not necessarily due to Covid but it is a diversion route for the closure of the A83 at The Rest and be Thankfull due to yet another landslide
 
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fat haggis said:
I live near Oban and the amount of vans this year is staggering 🥴 now I don’t think I’ll go touring until winter this year. Lots and lots of hire vans causing minor road accidents not used to the size and our narrow roads. A few mostly hire vans again leaving the place filthy. In our village if it happens again I can see the pier access locked up again. A pitty because 99.9% of visits are welcome and painless 🥴
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Hire van companies should give better/longer advice to their hirers, I believe they are given access to CMC sites (temp membership) included in the hire price, so they could empty & refill sensibly every few days. They should also be equiped with at least 2 cassettes especially if hired out to a family, for the sake of £90 quid, its a no brainer.
I have had 2 hirers approach me last year, and ask was it OK to dump their cassettes in public loos, when I told them the regime of leaving it better than you found it, I could see they didnt really get it!.
They do not really consider the impact of their selfish sanitary behaviour because to them its a one off visit, and they wont be back again, it will be someone else's problem. Just look at The Fairy Falls Car Park on Skye as a good example, the whole place stinks of pee & worse.:mad:
LES
 
Cornish Crew said:
We are hoping to tour the west coast of Scotland in late September. We just wonder if this is still a good idea with all the bad press about motor homes that we hear about. Hoping it is just bad press and relates to the minority, that responsible travellers would still be welcome. We are more than happy to use the less commercial type of campsites, CL's etc.
Just wondered if there are any funsters that have been recently, or are from the area that have a view or advice.
Thanks
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We live South West Scotland and decided on a jaunt out to Oban/Fort William/ Mallaig areas for early Sept which we managed to book 2 weeks ago.....
HOWEVER that took nearly 4days to achieve constantly emailing and phoning sites. We ended up taking what we could on small sites.... no chance on big sites..... total nightmare.
 
poppycamper said:
That ferry will be VERY busy now.. not necessarily due to Covid but it is a diversion route for the closure of the A83 at The Rest and be Thankfull due to yet another landslide
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Yes, I forgot about that. I hear that the conditions are going to continue to deteriorate on the A83 due to erosion despite the many millions spent on it. Difficult problem to solve as there is no easy long term solution.
 
Hopefully everyone is going to the West coast and up to the Highlands. Over on the East coast we have it reasonably quiet at the moment. Great scenery and accessible roads. Lots of history. Loads of places to visit and great towns. And above all no midges. Lol
Funnily I’m going south next week, I wonder if I will be allowed back without quarantine. :pray::imoutahere:

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