Hi
I am collecting a MK1 MX5 from Goodwoodsportcars next month, so intend on travelling by train to Edinburgh, stay for a couple of days, then collect the car & spend the next 4-5 days touring around (a bit of !) Scotland, before making our way back to Cambridgeshire
Any recommendations for scenic routes / places to stay …much appreciated
Thanks
^^^ we are doing the NC500 later this year. It’s not bad here today though, just off the A53 Buxton to Leek road.
Try going West of Fort William via the Corran Ferry. Take the A861 via Strontian to Salen Then take the B8007 to Ardnamurchan point.
Return back along the same road to Salen then re-join the A861 turning left. follow road to Lochailot where you will join the A830 here you can turn left to Mallaig or right to Fort William.
Give yourself plenty of time as some of the roads are not fast and there are loads of places to stop off and take in the views.
Thanks for the advice both suggestions look good… though the Northcoast500 looks somehat more intensive than I had envisioned.
Ideally I would rather not venture much further north than Edinburgh…as the trip home is already nearly 350 miles. So any suggestion for southern Scotland?..heading ultimately in a southerly direction !
Thanks again
My wife and I recently toured the Northumberland coast for a week, beginning from home in north Notts. We drove up the A1 to just north of Newcastle. We stayed at B&Bs in New Biggin, then Sea Houses, near Berwick then up to Edinburgh. We followed the coast to Berwick then the day after Storm Doris we cut inland to route over the highest hills south of Edinburgh. It’s an interesting and scenic route. You could drive it in the reverse direction, seeing as you might want to finally use the A1 to get to Cambridge.
Thanks, looks ideal !.. any particular B&Bs you would recommend/avoid ?
Me again! As I live in Northumberland, do just that. Come with from Edinburgh over Carter Bar, cross the Yes at Cold stream, turn East for the cost through Ford, check ride times for Holy Island then back south hugging the coast to Warkworth and you can take on five Norman castles. Enjoy!!
Typo weird: Yes should be Tweed??
EC,
We stayed at the following (reverse order).
Malmaison Edinburgh EH6 7BZ. TEL. 01312851478. A bit tired, but well placed and not too expensive. About five minutes walk to Ocean Terminal, where the Royal Yacht is on display (well worth a visit). Hotel has its own free car park round the back. We didn’t buy breakfast there as it seemed expensive compared to other places and we don’t like big breakfasts! About 15 mins from the castle by bus ride @£1.60.
The Old Church, Hornciffe, TD15 2XW. Tel. 01289382928. Just a few miles south west from Berwick upon Tweed. A lovely, recently converted building, very well appointed with a mezzanine floor, where you eat, the guest rooms are on the ground floor. The breakfast choice is amazing and was even talked about in the local pub, the Fisher’s, where we had an excellent evening meal at a good price. The village is very small, a cul-de-sac.
Springwood, South Lane, Seahouses. NE68 7UL. TEL. 01665 720320.
We couldn’t praise this one highly enough! A lovely, relatively new and large house, with private parking, well away from the main road. The room (Bamburgh room) was large and very high quality. The view was great, looking over the owners’ fields full of horses (they also have a riding school) with the sea in the distance. If you want to walk on a lovely unspoilt beach, this is the one! We walked south of Sea Houses. The owners are very friendly and thoughtful, for example my wife is on a gluten free diet. She came back to find a specially baked cake in the room, made just for her. Some nice pubs in Seahouses, btw.
There are a few nice roads around Edinburgh, some of which I’ve driven with the five, some with my old Punto. I discovered a great little route the other day which is smashing fun. It starts in North West Edinburgh and takes you on a big loop around West Lothian and back to the pentlands regional park for lunch at The Steading:
Thanks everyone !.. now just waiting on a collection date !