FORESTRY and Land Scotland (FLS) is trialling an extension of its popular ‘Stay the Night’ scheme to run over winter at some locations

Instead of closing at the end of October, around 24 car parks across Moray, Perthshire, Argyll, Stirlingshire the Borders, and Dumfries and Galloway have remained open for visitors in self-contained campervans and motorhomes looking for an overnight stopping place.

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The participating car parks are:

  • Moray - Winding Walks, Quarry Wood, Torrieston
  • Perthshire - Douglas Fir Wood, Drummond Hill
  • Argyll - Ardentinny Beach, Ardgartan, Honeymoon Bridge, Fearnoch, Achnabreac, Ariundle, Jubilee Point (Loch Eck)
  • Stirlingshire - Leannach (Duke’s Pass), Garadhban, Braeval, Pendreich
  • Borders - Innerleithen, Upper Cheviot, Lower Cheviot, Wauchope
  • Dumfries & Galloway - Naze car park (Ae), 7stanes car park (Dalbeattie), Kirroughtree, Black Loch (Galloway)

Stuart Chalmers, FLS’s national visitor services manager, said: “The feedback we have received from motorhome and campervan users for Stay the Night has been overwhelmingly positive.

“Being able to overnight in some of our car parks lets people enjoy a more leisurely pace on their travels.

“Many people love the experience of touring Scotland but don’t like having to rush between formal campsites. There are also those who prefer to tour in the winter months when the main holiday season is over and the landscape and scenery offer a very different experience.

“Some of our visitors have asked us to keep running Stay the Night car parks through winter, so this year we’re going to trial this at some of them and see how much demand there is for it.” 

The winter stop overs will be available on a first-come-first-served basis and the usual modest charge of £7 per stay, payable via RingGo by app or phone, will be in effect at the participating locations.

Stays are for one night only between the hours of 6 pm and 10 am, with no return visit for 48 hours.

Stay the Night is only open to visitors in self-contained motorhomes and campervans. FLS staff will check participating car parks to ensure that the rules are observed and, if necessary, remind people that tents beside cars, pop-up, pup or toilet tents - or any motorhome or campervan without its own toilet facility - are not permitted. Neither are generators permitted.

Full details including a list and location map of all the sites are available online.