The UK's most scenic road trips for stunning views and wild landscapes – including a rival to the NC 500
Enjoy the journey as much as the destination
Playing into the increasingly-popular 'slow travel' movement, a road trip is the perfect way to appreciate the journey as much as the destination.
With a view round every corner and the chance to stop off on your own terms, road trips are a wonderful choice for nature lovers with an adventurous spirit.
And the UK's diverse landscape – with its rugged coastlines, sublime mountain passes, inland highways and beautiful rolling hills – is the perfect backdrop for these long and leisurely car journeys.
We've rounded up some of the best stretches of open road that parallel sea and sand, and wind through mountains and valleys, covering all corners of the UK – from the Highlands of Scotland and Northern Irish coasts, to the Devon countryside and Welsh mountains.
This selection includes trips that range from a couple hours to a few days, so there's something for everyone. All you need to do is pack up the car...
Wild Atlantic Way
This spectacular coastal driving route winds 1,600 miles from Donegal to County Cork, looping around ancient woodlands, over windswept moors and through pristine valleys, revealing some of the Emerald Isle’s more hidden gems en route. It's also a great alternative to the increasingly popular NC 500.
Begin your journey on the Inishowen Peninsula, where you’ll find the country’s most northerly pub, Farren’s Bar, known for an exceptional seafood chowder. South of Inishowen lies Glenveagh Castle, a fairytale fortress with romantic Tuscan gardens and Italian Terrace, where classical busts play peekaboo between azaleas and astilbes. Nearby, the town of Donegal offers a chance to shop from independent Irish-owned businesses. Visit Hanna Hats, a traditional hatmaker, where patchwork headwear and flat caps are hand-stitched from Donegal tweed. Back on the road, Achill Island, all secluded sandy coves, vertiginous cliffs and peat bogs, offers a glimpse of the epic landscape featured in The Banshees of Inisherin. Journey further south to reach Killary Fjord, on the border between County Mayo and County Galway. Ireland’s only natural fjord is an idyllic spot for boat trips, kayaking or diving, all set against a dramatic mountain backdrop. For one of the country’s most breathtaking natural wonders, drive from Doolin, a pretty village widely regarded as the home of Irish music, to the majestic Cliffs of Moher, which rise up to 214 metres above the Atlantic.
The final stop is The Old Head of Kinsale, offering a slice of maritime history. At the Lusitania Museum, in the Old Head Signal Tower, visitors can learn the tragic story of the RMS Lusitania, sunk by a German U-boat in 1915.
North Coast 500 - Scotland
This circular route offers up spectacular Highland scenery along 516 miles of (sometimes single track) road. Starting and finishing at Inverness Castle, it travels along some of the most northerly coastal highlights, including the Black Isle, Muir of Ord, John O’Groats and the Applecross Peninsula. You don’t have to drive the whole way to feel the Highland spirit…but you’ll want to. Seduced by a roll of rugged Munros, castles, whitewashed hamlets and sandy beaches that glow golden against the dark denim North Sea when the sun breaks through, it’s easy to clock up the miles – although accommodation is minimal en route, so book ahead.
The palette of flinty stone and sea, deep green forest and huge pale skies is only improved by mist or glowering clouds. The North coast 500 is great route to do in autumn – when you’ll likely have the road to yourself, give or take a jaywalking stag or Highland cow.
Cheddar Gorge – Somerset
Drive toward Cheddar Gorge, 10 miles south-west of Bristol in the heart of the West Country and you’ll hit the UK’s bucolic version of the Grand Canyon. Here, the earth looks as if it has been ripped up by a curious giant, with sheer limestone cliffs sliced 400m deep by glaciers - and cradling the three-mile stretch on both sides. It’s a twisty, fairly demanding drive, especially when you’re trying to gaze up at the weathered crags and rock formations at the same time, so take it slow – and preferably out of season if you can to avoid snailing along in a jam.
If you want to see things from another perspective then take a pitstop and your sandwiches to the high top of the Gorge, accessible by public footpaths on both sides, for a panorama of the Mendip Hills – if you use the gravel parking in the Upper Gorge, east of The Pinnacles parking is free.
Atlantic Highway – Devon/Cornwall
Despite the hint of Americana about the name, this 170-mile route through Devon and Cornwall is no fast-zipping freeway. Rather this pretty former trunk road was named after a train line that once followed the coast here - and was made for happy dawdling rather than speed. It’s not even a fully sea-hugging stretch either.
At points, the route, which starts in Barnstaple in Devon, winds leisurely inland. Alongside, sheltered bays are hidden from view by high wildflower filled hedgerows or shimmering barley fields. Nevertheless, you're only a right-hand turn from Exmoor in Devon, King Arthur’s melancholic ruins at Tintagel and the Cornish seaside towns of Bude, for surfing, and the bobbing rhythms of seafood marina Padstow, on the way. The road pops out to meet the sea properly at Newquay – and from here on there’s only Lands End to go to reach the southernmost tip of England.
Causeway Coastal Route - Northern Ireland
This is Northern Ireland’s most popular driving route, and with good reason. The 80-mile stretch from Londonderry to Belfast takes in some of Mother Nature’s finest coastal handiwork. This includes the Big Three: the Glens of Antrim, Binevenagh cliffs and the Causeway Coast, home to Dunluce Castle.
The World Heritage Site of Giant’s Causeway also lies along here, an otherworldly collection of 40,000 basalt columns stretching out into the sea. However, there are plenty of other ways to enjoy the drive without the inevitable crowds and tea shops.
In half an hour on any given stretch, you’ll pass photo-worthy views, tiny villages and frothing ocean. Shorter picturesque circuits off the main route, such as the road to Dungiven from Limavady or the one that heads to Ballymoney from Coleraine, offer an even gentler experience.
Tourist Trophy route – Isle of Man
As Great British Drives go, the Isle of Man is better known for two wheels than four - the 37-mile circular loop hosts the annual Tourist Trophy (TT) motorcycle race in the first week of June. But it’s also enjoyable at less adrenaline-pumping speeds in a car on the same 38 miles of public roads that the race runs on from the capital Douglas.
We suggest doing it anticlockwise if you want the best views from the driver’s seat. Tackle mountain passes, hairpin bends and stretches like the infamous Ballamodha straight - cruising through splendid scenery that could pass for Cornwall, Wales or the Highlands if you squint. Other optical illusions include Magnetic Hill where, it is said, you can’t tell whether you are driving up or down hill. You can see why the wide black and white racing kerbs remain here all year round. But you’ll be too busy enjoying scenic viewpoints such as Maughold Head or Niarbyl Bay to put your foot down too much.
Snake Pass – Peak District
Driving in the Peak District is a treat for the eyes whichever way you go, but head along this route between Glossop and Ladybower reservoir, across the Pennines, and you’re on top of the world. Ok, you’re really only 512 metres above sea level at its highest point, but it’s enough to offer panoramic views of the National Trust’s High Peak Estate that stretch the eyes and the mind - particularly as you descend into Glossop from where you can see to Manchester and beyond on a clear day.
The short 20-minute route winds like the eponymous reptile (the pass is in fact named after the Snake Inn pub found along this stretch) through moorland speckled with heather. If offers up tight bends, adverse cambers and elevation changes that make it a challenging drive – but one with a spectacular pay off, especially if you go at sunrise or sunset.
Buttertubs Pass – Yorkshire
Take the high road in the Yorkshire Dales with a drive through Buttertubs Pass, a spectacular moorland route that runs between the town of Hawes in Wensleydale and Thwaite in Swaledale. The route gets its unusual name from the limestone potholes in the rock face, which local legend says were used by local farmers to keep their butter cool in on the way to market.
It’s not a long drive; five and a half miles, and 10 minutes at most, although it possibly feels a lot longer if you are one of the many cyclists that wend their way up the steep incline The pass even featured as one of the first climbs of the 2014 Tour de France. Reach the summit and you’re rewarded with rolling views of the road as it disappears into the distance, bisecting huge views of the surrounding valleys and fells.
The Road to the Isles – Scotland
The romantic name of this stretch is well-founded – a 45-mile scenic route from Fort William to Mallaig, that leads you into the Highlands, around deep, still lochs and through heathery hills. In places, the route takes you past spectacular sea views out over the Small Isles, as well as the Isle of Skye and the remote wilderness of the Knoydart peninsula – particularly beautiful under a streaked peach and royal blue sunset.
Start out under the craggy eye of the UK’s highest mountain Ben Nevis, behind the town of Fort William, and head past the Caledonian Canal and the aqueduct at Glenfinnen, on which the the Jacobite steam train of the West Highland Line still runs to Mallaig. At the final destination, you can pick up a smoked kipper or two for breakfast – the fishing port of Mallaig is renowned for them - before catching a ferry on to Rum, Eigg, Muck, Canna or Skye.
Okehampton to Exeter – Devon
See the two sides of West and South Devon on this drive, taking in quintessential English countryside and Dartmoor’s wild beauty on the way. Starting in the town of Okehampton, this 40-mile route takes you south via the Lutyens-designed Castle Drogo and pretty Becky Falls before you hit Bovey Tracey - beyond which chocolate box hedgerows give way to granite tors and wooded valleys.
If you want to stretch your legs by climbing one of Dartmoor’s megaliths then head to Widdecombe-in-the-Moor, near which Haytor Rocks, and the less visited Hound tor further on, stand sentinel in the bleak grandeur. On a clear day you can’t quite see forever, but it’s close. Keep driving and you’ll reach the Roman city of Exeter in time for a pint of real ale and lunch at popular canalside pub, the Double Locks.
Bourton-on-the-Water to Chipping Campden – The Cotswolds
Trundling through the honey coloured, jumbled villages of the Cotswolds is a period drama of a drive; few bits of England remain such a perfectly preserved capsule of nostalgia. Tiny, bowed shop windows, wisteria-laden doorframes and immaculate village greens sit round every corner. Start your drive in Bourton-on-the-Water, cut through by the River Windrush which flows past around 100 Grade II-listed buildings, and head on to Stow-on-the-Wold, arguably the best known of Cotswolds market towns, or Moreton-in-Marsh; first given its charter in the 13th Century it still holds a market every Tuesday.
Ascending the hill above Broadway to Broadway Tower gives you the chance to enjoy a cup of tea and dramatic views over 16 counties - on a clear day you can see the Black Mountains and Birmingham. Finish in Chipping Campden described as the "most perfect high street in England"
Alnwick Castle to Lindesfarne Castle - Northumberland
Go castle to castle under Northumberland’s vast skies for a widescreen experience that feels far grander than a 26-mile drive. Start at Alnwick Castle, star of Downton Abbey and the Harry Potter movies, on the outskirts of the pretty town of Alnwick. The straight route will take you along almost empty roads bisecting fields that meet endless horizons. But, if you have time, it’s worth taking a winding detour to the coast on the way, popping out at Craster to walk the coastal path to Dunstanburgh Castle ruins or the pretty town of Seahouses. Lindesfarne, the “Holy Island” itself, sits at the end of a causeway from the mainland and, as a tidal island, can only be reached when the sea allows. You can drive on to it, but it can get jammed in high season and you might prefer to do the last bit of the journey on foot instead across the mud flats instead with a guide.
Black Mountain Pass – Brecon Beacons, Wales
This 22-mile stretch was a favourite route on Top Gear, but you don't have to drive the Black Mountain Pass across in the Brecon Beacons like The Stig. In fact, you’ll want to slow down on this challenging route, which connects Llandovery with Gwaun-Cae-Gurwen, to be able to enjoy some of the UK’s most memorable miles of twisting road – and avoid the free-roaming sheep with little road sense.
Spectacular, undulating views of the Tywi Valley lay beyond its coiled ribbon of asphalt - the drive is best done north to south, particularly to make the infamous ‘cuckoo turn’ hairpin easier. Either way though you’ll get to hear the sound of silence on the wind if you stop your engine and pause to absorb the space and rugged grandeur, against a backdrop of of the Black Mountain’s highest peaks, the Carmarthen Fans, in the distance.
Lizzie is the multiplatform editor at Country Living, where you’ll find her writing about unique property market finds and dreamy UK staycation spots. Her specialisms include interiors, property, wildlife, travel, slow living and more. Previously, she’s written for Metro, Evening Standard, Ideal Home, Woman & Home and various other home and lifestyle titles. Lizzie studied English Literature at University of Liverpool, where she also was a writer and editor for her uni paper.
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