8th September 2025 – 22nd September 2025
Blair Atholl
There’s not much that I haven’t already said about this site. It’s still one of our favourites. The location is just superb for walking which we love to do. We managed over 50 miles in 5 days this trip. Even the autumnal weather didn’t detract from the wonderful scenery. We also managed to see the pipe band procession through Pitlochry on the day of the Pitlochry Highland Games. A Scottish pipe band in the confines of urban streets really does stir the soul – although the dog wasn’t that keen.
Here are a few photos :
Dunbar
After a week or so, we checked the weather forecast for the next few days. Rain and winds from the south west and heading north. We decided to stick with the north east coast (furthest from the rain) and headed down to Dunbar. It’s not our first time here. We were there in 2021 (blog link) and stayed at the Dunbar Camping and Caravanning Club Site south of the town. This time we stayed here – Belhaven Bay, which is north of the town and sits next to a glorious 4km of sandy beach.
The site facilities were good, with individual bathrooms in a reasonably modern block. My only slight criticism is that the water temp was set below the temperature I normally select at home. Which gave me the impression of a luke warm shower, but that’s probably just me.
Dunbar itself is a characterful little place with a huge history. It has been a harbour for over a thousand years and had a castle/fort for over 500. The guns from the old battery now reside on the battlements of Edinburgh Castle. The whole place has a nice clean and relaxed atmosphere. A place we felt very comfortable in. In addition the kiosk on the harbour serves a superb haggis and sweat chilli panini.
Here are a few photos :
Berwick-upon-Tweed
One place I had never been, but everyone has said is definitely worth a visit is Berwick-on-Tweed. This was our next stop down the north east coastline.
We stayed at the club site in Spittal which in south of the town but within walking distance. The site is not a personal recommendation, but there is simply nothing else around. It sits next to the north east mainline railway tracks, so unless you are very lucky you will hear the trains thundering past at regular intervals. The facilities, as with most club sites now, are set up for minimum maintenance and lowest cost. As a result you have to walk long distances to find the bin store for rubbish, the showers are all push button and only slightly above cold, and for this you have to pay £43 per night. It’s getting past a joke now at club sites. Many pubs will give you a parking space for free if you eat there, so you are effectively playing £35 per night (subtracting for electricity/ shower use) to a club for something the pub is giving you for free. Private sites with more fascilities like pools and restaurants offer much greater value for money now.
As with Dunbar, Berwick-on-Tweed of full of history and atmosphere with its 3 bridges, harbour and battlements. It is also quite close to Bamburgh and Lindisfarne so we had to spend a day visiting Bamburgh Castle and walking along the beach from Lindisfarne to Seahouses. We could have stayed longer if it wasn’t for the poor site we were on.
Here are a few photos :
Whitby
We enjoyed Whitby the last time we visited (previous blog link). This time we stayed at the Whitby Holiday Park on the Abbey side of Whitby and within easy walk of the Abbey, and the town, along the cliff top path. Unfortunately our visit this time was cut short by the weather which finally caught up with us, but while we were there we did get time to have a good mooch around the town before the rain started.
The site was very nice having it’s own bar and restaurant with large spacious pitches and a great toilet block.
Here are a few photos :
Round trip distance 795 miles according to google maps.