chatter_ann

We have decided to have 5 weeks traveling in a camper van in Great Britain and Ireland. All we've done so far is set the dates. We are more interested in seeing a variety of areas and scenery and doing some walking than just visiting lots of castles and "typical" tourist sites.
We've already ear marked Ben Nevis in Scotland and 5 days in the London area so any suggestions would be appreciated

Nonconformist

I'd look at: the Lake District ; north Wales for ditto; Cornwall; Dorset (not as well known to Americans, I believe, but very pretty countryside; Yorkshire; the Scottish borders/Northumberland; East Anglia (for a contrasting landscape).

sheila

You will get greater freedom in the wilder parts of the country, and that means west and north. Options include Orkney, Sutherland, the Outer Hebrides, Skye, Mull and Iona, Islay, Wester Ross, the Cairngorms, Dumfries and Galloway,the Yorkshire Moors, Wales (someone can narrow that down) and the West Country from Somerset to Cornwall.

I would avoid the lake District because it's so crowded, and the Borders because they have closed in vistas.

But I'm jealous

janisj

I would not try to squeeze in Ireland. Ireland is wonderful - but you'd really need 2 full weeks there to even scratch the surface. Travel in the scenic W/SW is very slow - and slower yet in a camper van.

Where are you picking up/returning the caravan? There are MANY areas of the UK that you will love But a meander generally down the west-ish side of GB (the Highlands/Islands, Hadrian's Wall, Lake District, Peak Dist., Wales, Somerset, Dorset, Devon, Cornwall) would be a VERY full five weeks. And that doesn't even take into account that you may have to do a loop itinerary to return the van to the starting point.

Adding in Yorkshire Dales and moors and East Anglia would then be possible.

tell us a bit more - especially where you are starting from and if your hire agency allows 1-way rentals. 5 weeks will work for the UK but trying to fit in Ireland will really cut back what you can see/do.

If possible - I'd do London at the beginning of your trip and collect the van when leaving the city -- or do London at the very end and turn the car in before going into the city.

chatter_ann

Thanks for the feedback great to have a starting point on some places to research.

We are collecting the van in London and returning it there at the end - so thought to have a bit of an explore there prior to getting the van, then some more after returning it. Possibly a total of 5 full days but would appreciate comments on this.

As we are Australians we are used to travelling 100's of kms per day (sometimes even getting over the 1000) however understand this will not be possible in the UK

Does anyone know of web sites which may give guidelines of expected travel times between cities/towns?

janisj

off of the motorways, in scenic areas, in a campervan, plan on averaging 30-40 mph.

Aussies and Americans often think of UK driving holidays like back home. Just isn't possible.

If you must start and end in London - I personally think you'll need to decide between Northern Scotland or far SW England (Cornwall/Devon). You really won't have time for both areas.

Something like London > East Anglia > Yorkshire > Northumberland > the Borders > the Trossachs > the Highlands > SW Scotland > Lake District > North Wales > the Cotswolds > London would be a very full 5 weeks.

Or London > Kent > the South coast > Devon/Cornwall > the Cotswolds > N. Wales > Lakes > SW Scotland > Northumberland > Yorkshire > East Anglia > London would be doable.

Suelynne

Michelin has a site with very reliable U.K.travel times on it. In recent years we've spent two separate fortnights motoring around England and Wales [but staying in B&Bs], with some stretches on motorways getting from A to B but other days exploring via country roads. Being Australian we did need to adjust to not being able to cover vast distances quickly.
Our first trip was a loop up the M1 to the Peak District, then to North Wales, then down to Cornwall via the Cotswolds and Somerset, from Cornwall to East Sussex via Dorset and up to London. The second trip took in East Yorkshire, Durham, Northumbria to Carlisle, the Lakes, Dorset and East Sussex [repeating these for family reasons], thenOxfordshire and Berkshire. [I've previously been to other counties, including much of Yorkshire, and quite a bit of Scotland and Ireland but not driving myself.]
I can't see any reason why you can't see a good selection of places in five weeks. I think the biggest headaches would be driving a campervan on windy, narrow country roads and finding parking at your destinations. Parking is not just a problem in big towns; it can be just as difficult in villages and points between, which is surprising to Australians. I'll leave it to someone with UK campervan experience to comment before I tell you my favourite places, because most of them are hilly!

Craigellachie

For possible routes and travel times try theaa.com this is the site of the Automobile Association.

Their times are based on an average of 50 miles per hour on motorways and dual carriageways, 30 miles an hour anywhere else. With a camper van these are reasonable average speeds.

Beware though, if you are going to the far north, say beyond the Great Glen (the diagonal line between Fort William and Inverness). A lot of roads here are very narrow and you won't get anywhere near 30 mph. The AA website doesn't know this and will sometimes send you on ridiculous detours. Spend a few GBP on a decent road atlas (shops like Bargain Books or The Works sell last yer's atlases for peanuts) and stick to the solid red or green roads unless time really is not an issue.

OR you could just adapt to the pace of life in the north west. If you do, consider taking out insurance against never wanting to go home.

chatter_ann

Suelynne
We have relooked at our schedule and have exactly 30 days with the van outside London. It is only a small van i.e. 2 berth like a small delivery van so hopefully not too bad on narrow roads.
Do you think attempting England, Scotland, Wales & Irelend would be crazy in this period of time - we are more interested in the country scenery rather than lots of castles and museums.
My husband has done heaps of driving so wont be perturbed by the hills or windy roads
Thanks to all for your feed back much appreciated

janisj

you want to do 4 countries in 30 days in a campervan? Depends on whether you want to see and explore -- or do you want to rush around checking a lot of places off a list "been there, done that"

You are considering giving yourselves <b>1 week</b> per country. 1 week in Ireland a campervan willlet you explore maybe 2 or 3 counties in the SW. Certainly not enough to do any sort of circular route from Dublin &gt; west coast &gt; southwest &gt; Dublin.

And 1 week in Scotland in a campervan would give you enough time to maybe see the southwest &gt; Edinburgh &gt; Borders back to England. You would not have nearly enough time to get farther north since you'd have to drive back the length of the UK to drop off the van.

No matter how much you enjoy driving - you simple don't have enough time for 4 countries (or even three if one of them is Ireland)