Camper van in Scotland for 7 days in late September

Hi, Pat,

Are the two days in Glasgow and two days in Edinburgh included in your seven days? If so, that leaves you only three days to tour Scotland.

Personally, I'd advise against hiring a camper van. It will be colder (and most likely wetter) in late September. Plus, if you're heading up to the Highlands and/or Islands, a lot of the roads are narrow, and if you don't have a lot of experience driving a camper van, it would take a lot of the fun out of your travels. It's also possible that some of the smaller campsites will close by late September. Additionally, a camper van would be a real headache in Glasgow and Edinburgh.

Over a week's time, you probably wouldn't be that much ahead financially by hiring a camper van. If you were touring for a few weeks, especially in high summer, then you'd definitely come out ahead. Your best bet would be to hire a car, which will give you more flexibility in where you can travel, and stay in B&Bs or small hotels.

Best wishes,

Mike (Auchterless)

p.s.: Don't let your travel agent plan your itinerary, unless he or she has spent considerable time in Scotland.

Thank you, Mike. No, the 7 days is the leisurely touring around idea and then we have 2 days each in Glasgow and Edinburgh on either end of the 7 days. I was thinking 'not' to have a vehicle in either city. So maybe pick the car up in Glasgow (we fly in to Glasgow from Halifax, Nova Scotia) and drop it in Edinburgh, or if that's not possible, take it back to Glasgow and then go by train to Edinburgh. We would fly from Edinburgh to Prague.

The other thing about the van idea is that we were thinking we could be flexible about where we stay on any given night. If we were touring by car, would we have to make sure that all accommodations were booked in advance, do you think?

I'm looking at RS 15 day tour of Scotland as a guide, even though we'd have around 11 days.

Thanks again,
Pat

A camper van usually has no toilet or shower, so you will need to book into a campsite each night. A larger motor home will have a bathroom but will be less manoeuvrable on the narrow Scottish roads and will use more fuel. Both will use far more fuel than a car. Are you used to driving in the UK? Most motor homes are manual not automatic.

Many car parks, especially at supermarkets and in town centres have height barriers, so you will not be able to enter with a motor home. You would be OK with a camper van.

Although, technically you can rough camp in Scotland, many authorities are trying to stop this practice and some have introduced bans.

Motor homes and camper vans all have central heating, so you will not be cold. If it rains, the sound of the rain on the roof can be very loud at night and may keep you awake. I have a caravan and can vouch for how loud this can be! If the weather is reasonable, you may find that sites are busy, but there should be some capacity, but not on Skye - when I was there in mid May, the campsites all had “no vacancy” signs out. Many camp sites close at the end of September.

My guess would be that by the time you hire a motor home and pay for the diesel and sites, then it would work out the same or more expensive than hiring a car and staying in B & Bs, cottages or hotels. A car should manage 50-70 mpg, whereas a motor home will average 25-30 mpg. Diesel in the UK currently costs just under £6 per gallon. Unleaded petrol for a car is about £5.40 per gallon.

Hi again, Pat,

I think that Jennifer's point about the camper van not having washing/toilet facilities is very valid. Even though you'd be warm enough at night, it would not be particularly enjoyable to get up in the middle of the night to go to the toilet block/dry toilet/Portaloo. Unless you're at T in the Park! :)

I'd still go with the car. You should have no problem picking up in Glasgow and dropping of at Edinburgh with no one way drop off charge. Be sure to pick up and drop off at the airport locations. It'll be a lot easier on your nerves!

Be sure to check all your options. Camper vans have come a long way from those uncomfortable little things of the 1970s and 1980s. Many have several mod cons. But you still need to consider where you're going in Scotland. If you're heading north and west of the Caledonian Canal, you'd be better off with a car. If you're just sticking to main roads, you could be okay with a camper.

One of the things that we most enjoy about traveling about Scotland is watching BBC ALBA in our lodging. Even though most of the programming is in Gaelic, it's still worthwhile for the music. We would certainly miss that in a camper van, unless one of the mod cons is a telly!

If you're traveling in late September, you shouldn't have too much trouble finding accommodation on the fly. Most B&Bs don't shut down for the season until mid-October. If you have a definite idea of your itinerary, it wouldn't hurt to make advance reservations at one or two B&Bs. The exception would be Skye, and possibly Mull. They have become major tourist destinations, and advance booking is pretty much essential.

Don't rule out hostels/bunkhouses. Many have twin or double bedded rooms, all with H&C, and some en-suite. My wife and I are somewhat older than you are, and we've recently enjoyed bunkhouses on Skye, Eigg, and Rum.

Hope all of that helps. I envy your home. Wish I lived in NS!

Mike (Auchterless)

I agree with all the key points made by Mike and Jennifer.

However, I just want to make one point about 'rough camping' or 'wild camping' as it is sometimes known. There is an Outdoor Access Code that applies in Scotland. It applies to non motorised access. Here is a little extract.

"Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2003 & the Scottish Outdoor Access Code - Enjoying Scotland's outdoors responsibly
Part One of the Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2003 gives the public rights of responsible access to most land and inland water in Scotland for recreation, education and going from place to place. The Act clarifies, for both access takers and land managers, where you can go and what you can do. It applies to anyone who takes non-motorised access and includes walkers, cyclists, horse riders, canoeists, etc. "

It's this Act and Code that people use to justify wild camping as there is a section in the Access Code that talks about what is permitted in terms of camping. Access Code - Camping

Part of that section states: "Access rights extend to wild camping. This type of camping is lightweight, done in small numbers and only for two or three nights in any one place. You can camp in this way wherever access rights apply, but help to avoid causing problems for local people and land managers by not camping in enclosed fields of crops or farm animals and by keeping well away from buildings, roads or historic structures. Take extra care to avoid disturbing deer stalking or grouse shooting. If you wish to camp close to a house or building, seek the owner's permission. Leave no trace by:
◾taking away all your litter
◾removing all traces of your tent pitch and of any open fire (follow the guidance for lighting fires)
◾not causing any pollution."

So confusion arises because people believe they can wild camp in motor homes and camper vans, using the Access Code as justification, without realising that the Access Code specifically excludes anything related to motorised transport.

So to cut a long story short - you cannot legally wild camp in Scotland in a camper van/motor home. Illegal and inconsiderate camping of this type has already led to bans on bringing camper vans to some small islands Tiree and Colonsay for example, and based on the waste (human and general garbage) I see lying around here on Skye in places used by these vans during the season, I hope that one day that ban will extend to Skye.

Sorry for what might look like a bit of a rant, but I think it is important the people know the rules. Obviously camper van companies won't tell you this!

If you do decide to rent a van, please use proper camp sites, that have the facilities for you to dispose of waste properly.

Best wishes
Jacqui

I had planned to do the camper van thing when we visit Scotland this spring, but I have decided against it based on two factors: 1) I HATED driving a regular car (mid-size sedan with automatic transmission) on the "wrong" side of the road in Ireland, and 2) I almost equally hated driving a camper van (Fiat Ducato, which had a shower and a chemical toilet) on the right side of the road in Germany, Austria and Switzerland. The Ducato was way too big for me. I can't bear the idea of driving that or even the much smaller VW van on the "wrong" side of the very narrow roads in Scotland. We'll be on the train.

Thank you all so much for the valuable input! We have decided to go with a car rental and B&B or hostel accommodation along the way. Thanks for reminding me of the hostel option, Mike. Some years ago, my daughter and I stayed in hostels in Italy and were quite comfortable.

Just to reassure Jacqui, we are used to pack in/pack out, leave-no-trace camping here in Nova Scotia and would certainly behave the same way in Scotland. In our parks and beaches in Nova Scotia, we are required to pitch tents only on prepared tent pads, even in the backcountry island sites, and we are only permitted to hike on designated trails. I would never consider parking a vehicle on beaches or fields. But I get your point that there are always people, everywhere, who don't follow the rules.

And, Mike, anytime you plan to visit Nova Scotia, don't hesitate to get in touch!

Pat

If you are new to driving on the left side of the road and are a new driver to roads in Scotland I would hesitate to experience the roads in the highlands for the first time in a camper. The roads, although well maintained, are often very narrow and bordered by curbs, stone walls, and often hedges. For me it would be an extreme stress and as the driver would take away some of the joy of viewing the awesome scenery. I struggled in Scotland but improved over my two weeks there and then my second trip to the area, that time in Ireland, I was more relaxed but would have missed too much by worrying about cruising in a large vehicle. I also would be concerned about finding parking in popular spots because most of the spots for parking over there seem to be designed for smaller vehicles including out of the way trail head locations. So sorry to be a downer hope this word of caution helps with your decision making. Oh here is a great site for tracking down hikes. https://www.walkhighlands.co.uk/ as well as a good site for road trip planning. http://www.theaa.com/route-planner/index.jsp I visited Nova Scotia and up to Cape Breton this fall and the driving there was very easy for me compared to my times in Scotland, Skye, and Ireland.

I will also throw in by late Sept the nights will long..so bnb and a pub meal beats campervan

Wow Pat. Nova Scotia sounds wonderful. I think we could learn much from your area.
Best wishes
Jacqui

Jacqui we visited your beautiful isle in a campervan and "free camped".
We actually hired a Spaceship, a tarago van rather than a big camper van and drove it around UK and Ireland for 7 weeks.
Mostly we paid to stay in sites with facilities (also in the driveway of a few friends) but had to rough it plenty of times. Our first night on Skye we ran out of daylight up north near a place called Hangladder (spelling?). We simply pulled onto a small dirt track off the road. It dipped a bit so we were not very visible. We were off early in the am.
We also spent a night at a pub in Sligachan before parking at the Raasay ferry carpark for the night. We took the ferry the next day.
On Raasay we parked up next to some abandoned work buildings well out of everyone's way.
We paid to use showers at a hostel in Portree and at Raasay House.
Other free nights. A big carpark in Glen Nevis so I could get an early sart running up Ben Nevis.
One in a forest near Oban. It had a designated area. We went to the Oban aquatic centre for a swim and shower next morning.
The carparks of a couple of pubs in the Lake District.
The carpark of a 13 th C priory in Ireland. The facility we planned on staying in was locked and abandoned. We were driving in heavy rain and spotted a sign, figured there would be a carpark...
South Stacks in Wales after driving off the Irish Ferry at midnight.
A carpark at a beach near Harlech.
A carpark at the entrance to a forest walk in Lancashire. Bank holiday and nothing available.

I think our small van parked in these locations caused no offence. We left nothing behind, arriving late and leaving early.

Camper van Beethoven is an American rock band, formed in Redlands, California, in 1983.

Just sayin'

Mike (Auchterless)