North Coast 500 Route Planner

The North Coast 500 is a 516-mile loop around the north coast of Scotland, starting and ending in Inverness. This itinerary travels anti-clockwise; clockwise works equally well. The longer you take, the better. It means less time driving and more time looking at what you've come for. Plenty of guides try to fit the NC500 into three days. Don't. Scottish country miles take at least double, sometimes triple, the time of an A-road south of the border. This is the seven-day version, starting and ending at the Atlas Motorhomes depot in Glasgow.

Day 1: Glasgow depot to the Black Isle (collection day)

Roughly three hours' drive. Glasgow to Inverness via the M8, M80 and A9. Handover at the depot takes around fifteen minutes, which gives you time to stock up before you head north. Good supply stops along the way are Asda Robroyston in Glasgow (G33 1AD, ten minutes from the depot), Tesco Extra in Perth (PH1 2NR, about an hour out), and Tesco Extra in Inverness (IV2 7GD, about three hours out). For your first night, both Rosemarkie Camping and Caravanning Site and Fortrose Bay Campsite sit on the Moray Firth, ready for dolphin-watching in the morning.

Day 2: Inverness to Dornoch

About an hour's drive, but start on foot. Chanonry Point is a short walk from either campsite, and it is one of the best places in Britain to see bottlenose dolphins. The trick is the timing: roughly an hour after low tide. If you're on the beach around that window you're unlikely to miss anything, because you'll hear it before you see it. Someone always spots them first, there's a shout, and all the camera lenses start clicking. The dolphins come in close enough that you don't need binoculars. Heading north afterwards, Glenmorangie Distillery is an optional stop. Guided tours, single malt at the end, the obvious souvenir to take back to the motorhome. Dornoch itself is small and rewards an afternoon on foot. The golden sands of Dornoch Beach stretch a long way and are at their best at sunrise or sunset, with the chance of more dolphins and seals if you're lucky. Dornoch Cathedral sits in the town square, the old Dornoch Jail is round the corner, and Royal Dornoch Golf Course runs along the dunes. Places to eat: Milk & Honey, Luigi's. Park-ups: Dornoch Caravan & Camping Park, Grannies Heilan Hame Holiday Park.

Day 3: Dornoch to Wick

About an hour and a half on the road, with two strong stops on the way. First, Golspie and the Highland Wildcat Trails. Chargeable parking, then mountain bike or walk up Ben Bhraggie (locally vraggy). On a clear day the view from the top reaches both the west and the east coasts of Scotland in one sweep, which doesn't happen often this far north. Just along the road is Dunrobin Castle, built in the French chateau style and surprisingly elaborate for the Highlands. Guided tours, walks through the gardens, and falconry displays in the afternoons. Brora is worth a stop for the beach alone, with the local golf course running along the shore. Sheep and Highland cows turn up on the fairways more often than the members would probably like. Places to eat: Poppy's Coffee Shop in Golspie, Sutherland Inn in Brora. Park-up: Wick Caravan Site.

Day 4: Wick to Durness

About four hours. The big northern day, with three set-piece stops and a couple of smaller ones. Castle Sinclair Girnigoe is the first, a stunning and atmospheric ruin perched on the cliffs north of Wick. You can walk out along the headland to the mini sea stacks, or down to the small beach below, with Noss Head Lighthouse visible the whole way. From there it's on to John o' Groats, the northernmost stop on the route and the obligatory mileage-sign selfie. Don't stop at the sign though. From the village there's a coast path that runs roughly three kilometres east along the cliffs, past the Bay of Sannick to Duncansby Head, which is the most north-easterly point of the British mainland. A bit further on you reach Duncansby Stacks, with nesting seabirds on the cliffs and seals on the rocks below. It is the better view of the day. For the actual most-northerly point of the mainland, take the ten-minute diversion up to Dunnet Head. A word of warning: it can be very windy up there, especially in a bigger motorhome. Brace the door when you open it. Thurso is the last large town for supplies before Durness. After that the road skirts the Kyle of Tongue, where the views are particularly impressive, and then on to Durness for the night. Places to eat: Stacks Coffee House & Bistro at John o' Groats, Sango Sands Oasis Restaurant & Bar. Park-up: Sango Sands.

Day 5: Durness to Lochinver or Ullapool

About three hours to Lochinver, four to Ullapool. If you have the time though, this is the day to stretch out and stay two nights at Durness. Sango Sands sits high on the cliffs above the beach, with a steep path winding down to the sand. There is a particular feeling to opening the door of the motorhome and looking out at the North Sea while weather rolls in across it, knowing you don't have to be anywhere. If a single day on the NC500 earns its keep on a slow afternoon, it is this one. When you do move, Balnakeil Beach is a short drive west: near-white sand, big dunes, walking paths for as long as you want them. On the road back from the beach is Balnakeil Craft Village, a former early-warning radar station turned into a cluster of artists and makers. Cocoa Mountain is here, and it has the best hot chocolate we've ever had. Easily worth the diversion. Smoo Cave is the other Durness set-piece. Three chambers; the first is enormous and is Britain's largest sea cave. A wooden walkway takes you into the second chamber, which has a small waterfall pouring through the rock above. The third chamber needs a boat tour to reach, with all the Indiana Jones overtones that implies. Heading south, Kylesku Bridge is worth a stop. Park north of the bridge for the photo, and keep an eye on the hills for stags. From here you have a choice: the A894 straight to Lochinver, the longer B869 coast loop in before Lochinver, or the A894 straight on to Ullapool if you're behind on time. Lochinver is small, with beach access and the option of a multi-day stay; it is also the home of the famous Lochinver Larder pies, which alone justify the detour. Ullapool is a proper village and the ferry terminal for Lewis and the Outer Hebrides, with good road cycling and hill walks if you want a more active afternoon. Places to eat: Cocoa Mountain (Durness), Peet's and Lochinver Larder (Lochinver), The Ceilidh Place (Ullapool). Park-ups: Clachtoll Beach Campsite, The Shore Caravan Site at Achmelvich (not dog-friendly), Broomfield Holiday Park (Ullapool).

Day 6: Lochinver or Ullapool to Applecross

About five hours, the longest driving day of the trip, but threaded with stops. Corrieshalloch Gorge is the first, with a suspension bridge and viewing platforms across the gorge for anyone with a head for heights. After that the road runs west past Little Loch Broom and along Gruinard Beach, with picnic park-ups along the way if you're slow about it. Inverewe Gardens, near Poolewe, is a National Trust botanical garden built up over the past century. A remarkable plant collection given the latitude. Gairloch is the natural lunch stop, with parking by the beach and a café on hand. The drive along Loch Maree is one of the quiet highlights of the trip, with a couple of small stops on the way. Victoria Falls (named for Queen Victoria's visit in 1877) is a quick walk in. Beinn Eighe National Nature Reserve has a visitor centre and walking trails at the loch's southern end. And on a clear day, take the fifteen-minute detour through Kinlochewe to the Glen Docherty Viewpoint: the view down the valley to Loch Maree is one of the best on the route. From Shieldaig, take the coast road round to Applecross. It's single-track with passing places, but it is the right road for a motorhome. Handle it the way you'd handle any of the better Highland singles, slow and patient, and it rewards the pace. Applecross Campsite is the obvious overnight stop, with wild park-ups available too if you're set up for them. Applecross Inn is the place to eat. Places to eat: Bridge Cottage Café (Poolewe), Kishorn Seafood Bar, Applecross Inn. Park-up: Applecross Campsite.

Day 7: Applecross to Inverness and onward to the Glasgow depot

About six hours of driving across the day. Back along the Applecross coast road to Shieldaig, then the A896 and A890 toward Achnasheen and the A832. Rogie Falls, just south of Garve, is a short walk down to the Blackwater River and a suspension bridge. If you're lucky you'll see salmon leaping upstream. Singleton of Glen Ord Distillery at Muir of Ord (turn off at Contin) is the day's whisky stop, with tours and tastings year-round. Beauly Priory is ten miles before Inverness; Mary Queen of Scots reportedly exclaimed c'est un beau lieu when she visited, and that's how the town is said to have got its name. Back at Inverness, the North Coast 500 is officially complete. From here it's the run south to the Glasgow depot. If you'd rather break it up, House of Bruar makes a good coffee and shopping stop with dedicated motorhome parking (daytime only, no overnighting). For a final night before the drop-off, Witches Craig near Stirling or Red Deer Village Holiday Park on the Glasgow outskirts both work.

How long should I take to drive the NC500?

Seven days like this is comfortable. Five is a sprint and you'll spend most of it driving. Ten gives you long mornings at Smoo Cave, a slow Applecross afternoon, and the option of a Hebrides ferry. Three is, honestly, a mistake. The road won't let you.