North and north-east beauty spots named in top 20 scenic walks in the UK

With the end of the stay-at-home rule, long walks along the most scenic locations across the north and north-east are back on the cards.

Many will be keen to stretch their legs this weekend thanks to the promise of good weather and the chance to move freely around Scotland.

From today, people can get to see friends and family and travel for recreation and exercise, when it was previously only allowed for essential purposes.

Best scenic walks in UK

Ahead of the busy weekend, a recent survey by Save on Energy showed the north and north-east bagged top spots on Trip Advisor’s recommendations for best scenic and coastal walks.

Scotland’s highest-rated walk is Quiraing on Skye, placing third in the UK with an average TripAdvisor rating of 4.5 out of five.

Stonehaven’s Dunnottar Castle walk followed closely, ranking as the fifth best walk in the UK with a rating of 4.79 out of five.

For those keen to journey further afield than the north and north-east: Culzean Castle and Country Park, on the Ayrshire coast, ranked 11th with a score of 4.59, and Calton Hill in Edinburgh with a rating of 4.55, landed the 16th spot.

Weekend of freedom

It is anticipated there will be a surge of visitors to various beauty spots across the country.

For the first time this year, people will be leaving their local authority areas for recreation purposes and, as a result, more rangers will be on patrol at the Cairngorms.

A statement on the Cairngorms National Park website said there will be traffic management in place at Linn of Dee and Glen Muick.

Visitors are advised that once the car parks have become full, no entry signs will be placed and staffed.

With visitors returning this weekend popular places are likely to be busy – to help keep everyone safe there will be traffic management in place on the Linn of Dee and Loch Muick access roads @MarLodgeNTS @Balmoral_Castle #PlanAhead #CairngormsTogetherhttps://t.co/NueF4pAJse

— Cairngorms (@cairngormsnews) April 15, 2021

Cars will be allowed entry on a one-in, one-out basis. This will be managed by Balmoral Estate and NTS Mar Lodge staff.

This is done to ensure that the single-track roads do not get overloaded with parked cars, which may cause safety issues.

Walkers and climbers travelling by car may have to set off early or consider going somewhere less populated.

The statement added: “Please plan ahead and have a plan B – check out our Community Paths and Trails webpage to find alternative places to walk in the Park. Information on businesses can be found at VisitCairngorms.”

People are also being reminded that no overnight stays are permitted, therefore wild camping is not allowed and all accommodation is shut.