Caravan Parks In Shetland | MOTORHOMEingLife

The main way is the NorthLink overnight car ferry from Aberdeen to Lerwick, which takes roughly twelve hours and sails nightly, sometimes calling at Kirkwall in Orkney on the way. You drive your caravan or motorhome straight onto the vehicle deck, and cabins are available for the crossing. Space for larger vehicles and cabins books up fast for the summer, so reserve months in advance. The alternative is to fly into Sumburgh Airport and hire a campervan on the islands, which avoids the long crossing but means you cannot bring your own outfit. Either way, once you land the island roads are quiet and easy to drive.

Yes. Every licensed site in Shetland has electric hook-up, and by regulation they all offer at least four hook-ups. Scalloway Caravan Park at Asta provides electric hook-up along with fresh water, grey water disposal and a chemical toilet disposal point, and Cunningsburgh Touring Park is a fully serviced four-star site with a heated facilities building. Levenwick and the other community sites offer electric hook-up too. Because Shetland can be cold and windy even in summer, a reliable electric supply for heating is genuinely useful, so it is worth confirming the amperage and facilities when you book, particularly at the smaller community-run sites where the setup can be more basic.

The nearest licensed sites to the Lerwick ferry terminal are all in the south of the Mainland. Scalloway Caravan Park at Asta is only about ten minutes drive away and makes an ideal first-night base, with electric hook-up, water, grey water disposal, a chemical toilet disposal point and recycling. Cunningsburgh Touring Park in the South Mainland is a little further, roughly twenty minutes out, and is a four-star serviced site good for a longer stay. Bridge End in Burra Isle is another nearby option. Landing off an overnight crossing, it is reassuring to have a proper pitch within easy reach, so these southern sites are the sensible choice for your arrival.

Yes, and it is one of the best parts of a Shetland trip. The inter-island ferries run by Shetland Islands Council carry motorhomes and caravans to Yell, Unst, Whalsay, Bressay and most of the other islands, with the only exceptions being the small-boat services to Foula and Fair Isle. The crossings are short, frequent and cheap, and you book them online at ferry.shetland.gov.uk or by phone. This lets you take the rig all the way up to Unst, the most northerly inhabited island in Britain, with its puffin cliffs at Hermaness. Building the inter-island hops into your plan opens up far more of the archipelago than the Mainland alone.

Honest answer: cool, windy and changeable all year. Shetland sits between the Atlantic and the North Sea, so wind is the constant, blowing hard even on fine summer days, and rain can arrive at any time. Summer highs are modest, around 14°C, but the great compensation is the daylight, with the simmer dim in June giving near-round-the-clock light. Winter is dark, wet and stormy with fierce gales. Whatever the season, pack proper warm and waterproof clothing, choose sheltered pitches, and be prepared for ferry disruption when the wind gets up. The weather is part of the character of the place, and the light between the squalls can be extraordinary.

No, Shetland does not have a national park designation, but that does not mean a shortage of protected wild places or public access. The islands have superb RSPB reserves at Sumburgh Head and Hermaness, national nature reserves, and open access land under Scotland’s generous outdoor access rights, so you can walk the coast and cliffs freely. Shetland is also notably more relaxed about responsible motorhome overnighting than the busy mainland honeypots. So while there is no national park badge, the combination of wild public coastline, seabird reserves and open moorland gives the islands the same outdoors character, alongside the licensed private caravan parks and touring sites.

For summer, booking your first-night pitch is wise, especially the sites near Lerwick, because you arrive off an overnight crossing and want somewhere sorted. Beyond that, Shetland’s licensed sites rarely fill the way mainland honeypots do, so you have decent flexibility to travel around the weather and the ferries. The far more important booking is the NorthLink ferry from Aberdeen, which you should reserve months ahead for summer, particularly with a motorhome. Around the Up Helly Aa fire festival in Lerwick in late January, accommodation is tight, so plan ahead if you come for that. Many sites close over winter, so check they are open off-season.

The licensed sites are your main service points. Scalloway Caravan Park, for example, has a chemical toilet disposal point, grey water disposal and fresh water, and the other licensed sites offer similar facilities, so you empty and refill at your pitch or the site’s service point. Propane and gas exchange are found in Lerwick, which is also your best bet for fuel, supermarkets and any repairs. In the outer islands and far corners, shops and fuel are sparse, so stock up and top off in Lerwick before heading out. Because the driving distances are short and the sites well spread, planning your tank and resupply stops is straightforward once you know the layout.

For such a small population, Shetland packs in remarkable sights. Jarlshof at Sumburgh is a layered archaeological settlement spanning the Bronze Age to the Vikings, and nearby Sumburgh Head is an RSPB reserve with puffins by the lighthouse and whales offshore. Mousa Broch, reached by a small boat, is the finest-preserved Iron Age broch anywhere. St Ninian’s Isle has a spectacular sand tombolo, and Lerwick offers the excellent Shetland Museum and the famous Up Helly Aa fire festival in January. Add the northern cliffs at Hermaness on Unst, the beaches, and the Norse and knitwear heritage, and you have far more than a week’s worth of touring across the islands.

Shetland is considerably more relaxed about responsible motorhome overnighting than the busy mainland Highland routes, thanks partly to low traffic and a welcoming attitude. That said, the respectful and practical approach is still to use the licensed sites, which are cheap, well spread and equipped with the disposal facilities you need. If you do stop off-grid on a quiet stretch, be discreet, park considerately away from homes and passing places, be completely self-sufficient, and take every scrap of waste away with you. Scotland’s access rights are strongest for tents and lightweight campers, so treat roadside motorhome stops as a privilege to be earned through good behaviour rather than an automatic right.

Given the effort and cost of getting there, we would not go for less than four or five days, and a week or more is better. The overnight ferry each way eats into a short trip, and there is a lot to see, from the archaeology and seabird cliffs of the South Mainland to the northern isles of Yell and Unst, which need their own inter-island ferry hops and a night or two to do properly. A relaxed plan might be a few nights in the south for Jarlshof, Sumburgh and Mousa, then a few nights working north. Rushing Shetland in a couple of days means spending most of your time on ferries rather than enjoying the islands.

May to August is the prime window. That is when you get the mildest weather, the famous long daylight of the simmer dim, and the seabird cliffs at their busiest, with puffins present at Sumburgh Head and Hermaness from roughly April into early August. June is glorious for light, with barely any true darkness. Spring and early autumn are quieter and cheaper but cooler and windier. Winter is for the hardy, dark and stormy, though the Up Helly Aa fire festival in late January is a genuine spectacle and there is a real chance of the northern lights. For a first visit and the best all-round experience, aim for June or July.

The islands themselves are surprisingly affordable, but getting there is the big cost. The licensed sites are cheap, with electric hook-up pitches often around £15 to £26 a night, and the inter-island ferries are inexpensive, so day-to-day touring costs little. The major expense is the NorthLink crossing from Aberdeen, where a motorhome plus cabins for a family adds up quickly, so book early for the best fares and treat it as the headline cost of the trip. Fuel is a touch dearer this far north, but the short driving distances keep the overall bill modest. Overall, once you have paid to get there, Shetland is good value.

The main way is the NorthLink overnight car ferry from Aberdeen to Lerwick, which takes roughly twelve hours and sails nightly, sometimes calling at Kirkwall in Orkney on the way. You drive your caravan or motorhome straight onto the vehicle deck, and cabins are available for the crossing. Space for larger vehicles and cabins books up fast for the summer, so reserve months in advance. The alternative is to fly into Sumburgh Airport and hire a campervan on the islands, which avoids the long crossing but means you cannot bring your own outfit. Either way, once you land the island roads are quiet and easy to drive.

Yes. Every licensed site in Shetland has electric hook-up, and by regulation they all offer at least four hook-ups. Scalloway Caravan Park at Asta provides electric hook-up along with fresh water, grey water disposal and a chemical toilet disposal point, and Cunningsburgh Touring Park is a fully serviced four-star site with a heated facilities building. Levenwick and the other community sites offer electric hook-up too. Because Shetland can be cold and windy even in summer, a reliable electric supply for heating is genuinely useful, so it is worth confirming the amperage and facilities when you book, particularly at the smaller community-run sites where the setup can be more basic.

The nearest licensed sites to the Lerwick ferry terminal are all in the south of the Mainland. Scalloway Caravan Park at Asta is only about ten minutes drive away and makes an ideal first-night base, with electric hook-up, water, grey water disposal, a chemical toilet disposal point and recycling. Cunningsburgh Touring Park in the South Mainland is a little further, roughly twenty minutes out, and is a four-star serviced site good for a longer stay. Bridge End in Burra Isle is another nearby option. Landing off an overnight crossing, it is reassuring to have a proper pitch within easy reach, so these southern sites are the sensible choice for your arrival.

Yes, and it is one of the best parts of a Shetland trip. The inter-island ferries run by Shetland Islands Council carry motorhomes and caravans to Yell, Unst, Whalsay, Bressay and most of the other islands, with the only exceptions being the small-boat services to Foula and Fair Isle. The crossings are short, frequent and cheap, and you book them online at ferry.shetland.gov.uk or by phone. This lets you take the rig all the way up to Unst, the most northerly inhabited island in Britain, with its puffin cliffs at Hermaness. Building the inter-island hops into your plan opens up far more of the archipelago than the Mainland alone.

Honest answer: cool, windy and changeable all year. Shetland sits between the Atlantic and the North Sea, so wind is the constant, blowing hard even on fine summer days, and rain can arrive at any time. Summer highs are modest, around 14°C, but the great compensation is the daylight, with the simmer dim in June giving near-round-the-clock light. Winter is dark, wet and stormy with fierce gales. Whatever the season, pack proper warm and waterproof clothing, choose sheltered pitches, and be prepared for ferry disruption when the wind gets up. The weather is part of the character of the place, and the light between the squalls can be extraordinary.

No, Shetland does not have a national park designation, but that does not mean a shortage of protected wild places or public access. The islands have superb RSPB reserves at Sumburgh Head and Hermaness, national nature reserves, and open access land under Scotland’s generous outdoor access rights, so you can walk the coast and cliffs freely. Shetland is also notably more relaxed about responsible motorhome overnighting than the busy mainland honeypots. So while there is no national park badge, the combination of wild public coastline, seabird reserves and open moorland gives the islands the same outdoors character, alongside the licensed private caravan parks and touring sites.

For summer, booking your first-night pitch is wise, especially the sites near Lerwick, because you arrive off an overnight crossing and want somewhere sorted. Beyond that, Shetland’s licensed sites rarely fill the way mainland honeypots do, so you have decent flexibility to travel around the weather and the ferries. The far more important booking is the NorthLink ferry from Aberdeen, which you should reserve months ahead for summer, particularly with a motorhome. Around the Up Helly Aa fire festival in Lerwick in late January, accommodation is tight, so plan ahead if you come for that. Many sites close over winter, so check they are open off-season.

The licensed sites are your main service points. Scalloway Caravan Park, for example, has a chemical toilet disposal point, grey water disposal and fresh water, and the other licensed sites offer similar facilities, so you empty and refill at your pitch or the site’s service point. Propane and gas exchange are found in Lerwick, which is also your best bet for fuel, supermarkets and any repairs. In the outer islands and far corners, shops and fuel are sparse, so stock up and top off in Lerwick before heading out. Because the driving distances are short and the sites well spread, planning your tank and resupply stops is straightforward once you know the layout.

For such a small population, Shetland packs in remarkable sights. Jarlshof at Sumburgh is a layered archaeological settlement spanning the Bronze Age to the Vikings, and nearby Sumburgh Head is an RSPB reserve with puffins by the lighthouse and whales offshore. Mousa Broch, reached by a small boat, is the finest-preserved Iron Age broch anywhere. St Ninian’s Isle has a spectacular sand tombolo, and Lerwick offers the excellent Shetland Museum and the famous Up Helly Aa fire festival in January. Add the northern cliffs at Hermaness on Unst, the beaches, and the Norse and knitwear heritage, and you have far more than a week’s worth of touring across the islands.

Shetland is considerably more relaxed about responsible motorhome overnighting than the busy mainland Highland routes, thanks partly to low traffic and a welcoming attitude. That said, the respectful and practical approach is still to use the licensed sites, which are cheap, well spread and equipped with the disposal facilities you need. If you do stop off-grid on a quiet stretch, be discreet, park considerately away from homes and passing places, be completely self-sufficient, and take every scrap of waste away with you. Scotland’s access rights are strongest for tents and lightweight campers, so treat roadside motorhome stops as a privilege to be earned through good behaviour rather than an automatic right.

Given the effort and cost of getting there, we would not go for less than four or five days, and a week or more is better. The overnight ferry each way eats into a short trip, and there is a lot to see, from the archaeology and seabird cliffs of the South Mainland to the northern isles of Yell and Unst, which need their own inter-island ferry hops and a night or two to do properly. A relaxed plan might be a few nights in the south for Jarlshof, Sumburgh and Mousa, then a few nights working north. Rushing Shetland in a couple of days means spending most of your time on ferries rather than enjoying the islands.

May to August is the prime window. That is when you get the mildest weather, the famous long daylight of the simmer dim, and the seabird cliffs at their busiest, with puffins present at Sumburgh Head and Hermaness from roughly April into early August. June is glorious for light, with barely any true darkness. Spring and early autumn are quieter and cheaper but cooler and windier. Winter is for the hardy, dark and stormy, though the Up Helly Aa fire festival in late January is a genuine spectacle and there is a real chance of the northern lights. For a first visit and the best all-round experience, aim for June or July.

The islands themselves are surprisingly affordable, but getting there is the big cost. The licensed sites are cheap, with electric hook-up pitches often around £15 to £26 a night, and the inter-island ferries are inexpensive, so day-to-day touring costs little. The major expense is the NorthLink crossing from Aberdeen, where a motorhome plus cabins for a family adds up quickly, so book early for the best fares and treat it as the headline cost of the trip. Fuel is a touch dearer this far north, but the short driving distances keep the overall bill modest. Overall, once you have paid to get there, Shetland is good value.