Lighthouse Keeper’s Cottage - Stay next to a Lighthouse and explore the far North of Scotland

We are all different! Do you love room service? Or is camping your thing? Here is a  fun quiz to help you decide how to visit the North Highlands, with ideas and inspo for where to stay on the NC500.

Whether your idea of a good meal is a billycan of soup, fresh fish and chips, a home-cooked steak, or a gourmet meal, it’s all here on the NC500.

Planning ahead, or winging it?

1. I walk where the wind and the road take me, and sleep out in the wild
2. I make it up as we go along, so we can stop where we like, and skip the boring bits
3. I look for unique and off-beat places to stay, and book ahead to nab them early
4. Our holiday’s too important to mess up, I book my home from home well ahead – then I can relax and look forward to my getaway
5. The perfect B&B is hard to find, I like to book ahead
6. I like to keep it a bit flexi even though I know I’ll have less choice, I usually book a few days ahead

Meeting people, or going it alone?

1. I just want the company of curlews!
2. Sharing tips and advice with other holiday makers helps us find out where to go!
3. What part of “getting away from it all” isn’t clear? I want nature not natter!
4. We love having the time and the space to reconnect with each other!
5. It’s great getting advice from locals, they have insider tips on hidden gems!
6. It’s all about the craik!

Taking the kids

1. They’re great young walkers, and love the mountains too!
2. They’re tinies and don’t take up much room at all – their stuff on the other hand…!
3. There’s nothing like watching young ones discover nature for themselves!
4. Why do our kids take up SO MUCH space?
5. Ours have flown the nest, and we love the chance to take a break!
6. Family rooms are such a bargain!

Morning moments

1. Looking over the mountain tops show above the mist!
2. Waking up cosy and warm, but with the most amazing view!
3. Hearing the dawn chorus, with the sound of nature all around us!
4. Waking up after an amazing sleep -fresh air and comfy beds make for a good night’s rest!
5. The smell of breakfast wafting upstairs – I am hungry already!
6. There’s nothing – and I mean nothing – like hotel quality bedlinen!

What about eating?

1. Ramen noodles or cous-cous – sleeping under the stars is food for the soul!
2. We love to sit outside, and open a bottle looking over a wonderful view!
3. Using a mini-kitchen is all part of the away-from-home adventure!
4. We like to have big family meals and relax around a table!
5. The Scottish breakfast is the best – Lorne sausage and tattie scones for the win!
6. A full fry up – it’s the best cure for a hangover!

Laundry

1. Merino’s amazing!
2. Yes, we have a lot of stuff, but we can find somewhere on the road!
3. We like short breaks, so we do a wash when we get home!
4. The kids are mud magnets!
5. I do worry about that a bit – but I’m sure we’ll be fine!
6. We’ll pack what we need – we’ll be fine!

Best memories

1. The silence of the wilderness, pierced by the sound of curlews calling!
2. I can’t remember the name – but there was this amazing waterfall!
3. It was like living in Hobbiton for the weekend!
4. Laughter, board games with the kids, drinking loads of wine, reconnecting with the family!
5. Our sweet host couldn’t have made us more welcome!
6. The stories the old boy told in the pub – they don’t make ’em like that any more!

Answers – you’ll have guessed these already, but here goes

Mostly 1s – You’re a walker and camper

• Not all who wander are lost. You know how to wild camp without leaving a trace, and follow the Scottish Outdoor Access Code.
• If this is your first time, the downsides are blisters, and nowhere to soak in a bath.
• Remember, you can mix it up with bothies and youth hostels too.

Mostly 2s – You love your motor home or camper van

• The freedom to go where you want with most of the comforts of home – what’s not to love?
• If this is your first time, hire a vehicle you can reverse,  know how to use passing places, and dispose of grey and black water in facilities not public loos.
• Campsites offer great facilities like waste disposal, showers and laundries, and you’re helping the local community when you use them.

Mostly 3s – Off-grid’s the way to go – Why go away and stay in a place like home?

• You love pods, tree-houses, gypsy caravans, shepherds huts, yurts – anywhere a bit unusual.
• If this is your first time, bring your sense of adventure and some good walking shoes!
• The most unusual places get booked well ahead.

Mostly 4s – You want a cosy cottage or a home from home

• You like to spread out, and be comfortable. You love a cosy holiday cottage and a home-from-home.
• If this is your first time, check the facilities, and maybe bring a knife sharpener.
• Book ahead to secure your dates.

Mostly 5s – You love to stay in a Bed and Breakfast or Guest House

• Why go away and cook for yourself? You love to stay with a local and always opt for a B&B.
• If this is your first time, bring a hearty appetite and a friendly face.
• Book ahead, the days of turning up and finding a B&B are long gone.

Mostly 6s – Hotels, or rooms in a pub

• A meal, a drink, your bed, your breakfast – it’s all in one place. What could be easier?
• If this is your first time, have a wonderful stay.
• You are more likely to get a late booking in a hotel or pub, but these can book out solid over the summer too.

As you can see – there are all sorts of places to stay on the North Coast 500 – Venture North is a great place to find a lot of them.

All joking aside, please be very, very careful of fires: no-one thinks they’ll start a wildfire, but every year, people do. And ground-nesting birds and wild animals burn to death. Please also learn how to drive on single track roads: it’s not as obvious as you think! And leave nothing but footprints. If you are in a motorhome: never ever dispose of your grey or black waste outside or in the public loos.

The North Highlands are a magical place, please don’t be part of spoiling that magic.

About me

I am Ben, and I love welcoming guests to The Lighthouse Keeper’s Cottage at Noss Head. Of course I love a holiday cottage, but I also love staying in campervans, yurts and shepherd’s huts, pubs and hotels, B&Bs and guest houses. And – a million years ago – I even enjoyed staying in a tent!

Being human matters. This post was written by me, and not by AI.