Our Highland Honeymoon

A trip around the Scotland North Coast 500.

We knew we wanted to have a little adventure after all the excitement of the wedding, and thanks to all of your contributions to our honeymoon fund we were able to make it a trip to remember. Following Atkinson family tradition, we decided to honeymoon in Scotland, and in Green family fashion, we decided to do it by campervan.

Tuesday morning after the wedding we packed everything we could fit into the car and began the journey up to Edinburgh.

After a stopover at a B&B in Shap for the night and a fly by visit to the castle, we collected the campervan from Big Sky Campers in Edinburgh on a cold and wet Wednesday morning.

With absolutely no plans made we set off towards the NC500 starting point in Inverness. For our first night in the van we stopped at Glenmore Campsite in Aviemore (recommended by the van hire guy).

Unfortunately it rained heavily the entire first day and night so we didn’t get any photos but in the morning we stopped at nearby Loch Morlich to plan our next moves.

We decided to take a diversion to see Loch Ness before heading to Inverness, because it seemed a shame not to visit while we were in the area.

After a stop at the tourist centre we found a good spot on Dores Beach at the north point where you can see all the way down the loch.

No sign of the monster but we did pick up a souvenir from lifelong Nessie Hunter Steve Feltham who lives in a shack looking out across the loch from Dores Inn car park.

Finally we reached the starting point in Inverness and we spent our first night roughing it at Torvean Car Park, one of the designated overnight car parks on the Highland Motorhome and Campervan Scheme.

We were rewarded in the morning when the sun came out and, after stocking up on supplies at Inverness Tesco, we set off early to our first destination on the route - the town of Dornoch.

We arrived early and headed straight for the coast where Bonnie was very pleased to find a beautiful sandy beach.

Most of the day was spent soaking up the charm of Dornoch. Highlights included a freshly made lobster roll, Cocoa Mountain hot chocolates and visit to a Thompson Bros Distillery.

After Dornoch, we headed straight north to the town of Wick.

There wasn’t much going on in the town itself but we stayed the night at Wick River Campsite which has the best facilities of any campsite we visited.

Scotch was consumed in the van that night.

The next morning we made a beeline for John o’ Groats. Got the photo with the sign and then watched some cyclists finishing their rides while we ate tattie scones in the cafe. Delicious!

Next, we stopped at Dunnet where we walked on the beach and saw some surf lessons, before heading to Dunnet Point, the true most Northerly point of the mainland where we watched some seals on the rocks below.

We continued along to the town of Thurso, were we stopped for another beach walk. Bonnie was pleased.

We stopped next at Melvich beach for a third and final beach walk of the day, and one of our favourites beaches of the trip.

Our campsite for the night had one of the best views overlooking the beach.

After a morning walk on Strathy beach, we hit the road once more and covered a long stretch of the dramatic north coast. Our next stop was the famous Smoo Cave in Durness - a vast sea cave carved into the limestone cliffs.

Although we couldn’t take the dinghy tour to see the hidden waterfall with Bonnie, we still ventured inside and marvelled at the eerie beauty of the cavernous entrance.

Next, we doubled back slightly, having spotted Ceannabeinne Beach on the drive in. Often regarded one of the most beautiful beaches on the NC500, it didn’t disappoint—white sands, turquoise waves, and a backdrop of rugged hills made it feel almost tropical. It’s also a popular surfing spot.

Bonnie approved.