OK just a thought at the mo but with the possibility of Euro road trips being a tad difficult this year, I was looking into the possibility of the NC500.
Obviously knowing nothing of the route it would be good if there was a tour that included stops at popular places (as I would probably drive straight past the best bits 
) as well as pre booked hotels.
So, any recommendations / advice.
Thanks in advance.
Del
Haha, youâre in luck! A few folk on here have done the NC500, so lots of advice on-hand. Itâs also, my home-stomping ground 
Which direction would you be starting from? East or West?
Also, thereâs a couple of ways to do it. You can drive it through in a (more or less straight line) and stop as you go, or the better way in my humble opinion, is stay somewhere and spend a few days really exploring a particular area or two. It really depends how you want to divvy up your time, but what I will say is, itâs not a place to zoom through. Us Caithnessians take life at a very sedate pace!! 
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If your on Facebook Theresa few groups with great info
There is an NC500 tourist website also with stops and accommodation details.
You could physically drive the whole thing easily in 2 days so its what you make it really. The route is the route more or less.
Thereâs a book by Charles Tait that covers it in detail and provides far more than you could cover in say a week.
I wrote a short article for the area newsletter, short enough to paste in here. If you go after 1 June and before mid-September Iâd set off (or return) via the Black Isle so as to make use of the Cromarty-Nigg ferry. I would perhaps spend a bit of time there if youâve never been. Bear in mind we started from the south of England, so we had 9 nights away altogether.
Scotlandâs North Coast 500 â Should you do it?
We did. Here are a few thoughts that might help those considering it. Itâs not a diary, but if you would like to know exactly where we stayed then weâll be happy to give you details.
How long does it take? If you want to enjoy it and visit places along the way, take your time. We had no trouble covering the route mileage in four days, but we could happily have taken longer and stopped to stare a bit more. Four full days meant three overnight stops en route. We chose Bettyhill, Lochinver and Gairloch, bookended by a night in Nairn before we started, and a final night in Inverness itself.
Getting there. Youâll probably want at least one overnight stop before you start the 500 proper. We made twoâ one in North Yorkshire, and another in the city of jam, jute and journalism, partly to see its new museum, the V&A Dundee. Both stopovers allowed us to take in great drives in the Dales, border country, and the Cairngorms. From Dundee we headed north via Braemar and Tomintoul â a lovely drive and more fun than the A9 which has just too many lorries, not to mention the average speed cameras.
Accommodation. If you want to B&B, as we did, then especially with a convertible youâll want safe parking close at hand. This isnât difficult in the sparsely populated areas but itâs trickier in Inverness. We found a reasonably priced hotel there, with car park, for our final night but parking was one reason we started our 500 from Nairn â a sturdy fishing village about 15 miles further east on the Moray firth, where we also found the best accommodation of our trip, as it turned out. Oh, and book early!
Which way round? The NC500 âbookâ goes clockwise. We chose the opposite, because we were less familiar with the west coast and wanted to look forward to it for a bit longer. It worked well â we did enjoy the west coast the most.
Route options and places to visit. Weâd suggest a short diversion south of Lochinver into the Ruhba Mòr peninsula; we went as far as the cafĂŠ at Polglass. Youâll have to backtrack, but there are lovely views of the Summer Isles on that road. Do of course traverse Bealach na BĂ , the Pass of the Cattle. The road around the coast to Applecross is a bit rustic, but that and the pass itself will be no trouble with your agile chariot.
Our Castle of Mey visit felt like a bespoke tour, with few visitors. We also liked the Strathnaver Museum at Bettyhill with its story of the Highland Clearances. Consider some time on the Black Isle to look for dolphins off Chanonry Point (best when the tide is coming in).
Or not. Do your own research and make sure you see what you want to see. Unexpected discoveries are a joy, and we regularly change our plans, but if there is something you really wouldnât want to miss, allocate time.
When to go. We chose May, between the Bank Holiday weeks. The roads then were not too busy and we met relatively few motorhomes. High season visitors say it is much busier then. Also, if you want to do it, sooner is probably better â the 500 seems to increase in popularity every year.
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Me and the Obergruppenfuhrer are going to do it next year, maybe we could all use your gaff as a stopover, you know, free meals, a bed for the night and a never ending supply of free alcohol. Oh â â â â Iâve just remembered, youâre a sweat and you donât do free.
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Haha, sadly Iâm not up there anymore, am trapped in Fife/Edinburgh although I plan on re-building my familyâs home. However, I can recommend a lovely lady who has a beautiful holiday home. I can give you her number if you like? Itâs surrounded by forest and fields right in the middle of Caithness.
That sounds very nice, if you could send me her details that would be great.
We havenât been up to Scotland since 2009, so we are going to do the NC500 then possibly the year after we will go to Harris and Lewis with the Landy and our camping gear for how ever long it takes, as we are retiring at the end of June. 
No worries pal, will drop you a PM and if you want any ideas for places to go, feel free to drop me a wee line anytime
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Book your accommodation in advance, give yourself at least 7 days to cover the full route. Plan on covering around no more than 80 miles in one day so book the accommodation accordingly spaced.
Most places will offer B&B but you will need food en route. We slipped up a couple of times in wanting hot food upon arriving in a small village or hamlet and nothing was open (late in the day) so grab food when you can earlier. Must say this only applied to part of the route, the northern most part.
Doesnât matter which way you go round, weâve done both, itâs equally fantastic.
Keep you tank topped up as you see a filling station, itâs not so much as a worry really just keep an eye on it.
Keep to a decent safe speed especially on the single track roads and let any speedier stuff pass. Allow time to stop and soak in the views, not forgetting that passing places are just for that, not for taking a break in. Give way to others on the narrow roads, some may not take this line though and can be annoying. Beware also there could be animals on route too.
Above all enjoy yourselves, itâs a great country.
We spend around 3 weeks when weâve visited Scotland, the NC500 was just a part of our holiday. Youâll need many many more visits to cover seeing the country, so just plan what you can see on route. Going back to discover other places will be a must.
We had to cancel last yearâs trip so looking forward to our next, maybe next year now.
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Lol, thereâs a 24hr Tesco superstore in Wick and late-open Co-op in Thurso 
Great pics, though
Ah ken that wee bit.
One of my favourite âjust going for milk dearestâŚhonestâ stops. 
Good time to do the NC500 will be soon after lockdown is relaxed. That way there will not be too many Dutch and German campervans to contend with. I took 14 days to do the circuit in a few years ago and recommend you spend more time on the West coast as there is so much to see.
Thatâs no good if youâve passed it, the pub youâve booked doesnât do food on a Sunday evening or the local shop shut at 4pm.
We visited Wick Tesco for a few bits n bobs hoping for something substantial later.
We stayed at a farmhouse in the past at Armadale, no TV, no internet, cheese and ham for breakfast, it was actually bliss. There still are folk that live like it on the route, donât get me wrong they do have running water and electricity.
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Haha, aye, I love going back home purely for the fact that I have a legitimate reason for not answering anyone
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WOW what a response. Loads of info and help, have found a site with interactive map and although have only spent half an hour looking at routes I think its safe to say âbook earlyâ its seems pretty straight forward plotting hotels with a few hours between them allowing time to explore take non direct routes but hotels already booking up.
Thanks again for all advice, the research continues 
PM me your email and I can send you a copy of my guide, which a lot of friends and acquaintances have used . I first went up there in 1984 and have been revisiting ever since . In a way , its popularity is its own worst enemy (I 've driven for an hour and never seen a single car - not any more ) but it is still fabulous , and the scenery can be heart stopping . Top tip - donât follow all the route (thereâs better ways ) and donât start in Inverness !
Hereâs Loch Assynt
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Shattered dreams here: I thought this was a road for NCâs and Abarth 500âs onlyâŚ
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In normal times, that was December 2019 I started to book the Scotland holiday, it would have been for May the following year. Was getting a few knock backs on places weâd booked the previous time weâd done the NC500. So as I was struggling to find reasonably priced accommodation for May we decided to delay going until the September. We found doing that we got what and where we wanted and at a price we wanted to pay too.
So we found places booking up very quickly, 6 months in advance, if left any later you just have very expensive places left or somewhere reasonable way off piste that just takes time out of your day to get to.
I guess everywhere now will be much more expensive, we did a few Airbnb places along with booking direct with the a few, saves a few bob here and there, depends on your budget.
I wanted to book a place in Dorset for later this year, a self catering apartment for 7 days. Itâs now as expensive for 4 nights as it was for 7 back in September 2019. Having a rethink on that one.
Keep an eye on the midge situation and be prepared to be overtaken at speed by just about any " local " on his daily commute or the tesco delivery truck