- Overview
- Day-by-day itinerary
- Photos
Why choose this route?
Link Perthshire woodland with Aviemore, Grantown and a taste of the Moray coast. Choose a walk and an independent food stop each day, with distillery visits as optional bookings.
Speyside & Moray — good for: A trip with a clear food-and-drink identity, plus walks and coastal alternatives for non-whisky drinkers. The compromise: The driver cannot join a tasting and drive onward. Distillery geography and rural transport need planning before booking several visits.
Cairngorms — good for: Good for families who want activities and short outings; several lower-level alternatives to exposed hill routes. The compromise: The drive north is substantial, and a forest base does not make the mountain plateau an easy walk. Some familiar blog routes are currently closed.
Your route at a glance
Pink markers show the itinerary’s day areas. Tap a marker for its name, or open the stops in Google Maps. Ferry crossings and road journeys need separate checks for your travel dates.
- Renfrew — collection / return
- Day 1: Pitlochry
- Day 2: Aviemore
- Day 3: Grantown-on-Spey
- Day 4: Elgin and Moray coast
A glimpse of the places
Photo: Caroline Legg · CC BY 2.0. Resized for display.
Your 5-day plan:
- Day 1: Pitlochry
- Day 2: Aviemore
- Day 3: Grantown-on-Spey
- Day 4: Elgin and Moray coast
- Day 5: Return to Renfrew
4 nights away. Open the daily plan below for the food, activity and overnight choices.
Itineraries
Day 1
Pitlochry
Collection: Allow for the 14:00 handover in Renfrew before starting this day. Choose an evening stop that fits the campsite’s check-in time.
Explore the town and woodland, or make Blair Castle’s grounds your main stop. Blair Atholl is a practical base for the next A9 leg.
Make it work: A whisky tour is an optional booking; the driver must remain alcohol-free.
Day 2
Aviemore
Choose Loch Morlich’s beach or an open Rothiemurchus woodland route as the main outing. Keeping one base gives you time outside the van instead of another evening transfer.
Make it work: October 2026 check: FLS reports wildfire-related closures affecting Ryvoan Pass / An Lochan Uaine. Do not follow older blog routes into closed areas.
Day 3
Grantown-on-Spey
Use Grantown’s shops and nearby woodland as a slower day between longer transfer legs. Add a booked Speyside visit only if it leaves time for the walk.
Make it work: A driver-free distillery day works best from one base, with transport arranged in advance.
Day 4
Elgin and Moray coast
Choose Elgin’s heritage or a coastal village such as Portsoy; do not try to cover the entire Moray coast in one afternoon.
Make it work: If tomorrow is handback, move south after the outing. This is a longer transfer day, not another northern overnight.
Final-night plan: Finish the outing early enough to move south. Use a booked Perthshire pitch such as Invermill Farm or Blair Castle Caravan Park. This transfer is part of today’s driving; extend the hire if you want to stay here tonight.
Day 5
Return to Renfrew
Today is the return journey, with standard handback by 12 noon. Check live traffic, allow time to refuel and arrive at the agreed return point. Optional sightseeing and cafés come after the return only, unless a later handback has been agreed.
Food: Breakfast in the van before leaving your final pitch keeps the morning flexible. Sleeping: No overnight pitch is included for this final hire day; book an additional night if extending.
