UK Motorhome Stopovers

This is our listing of officially approved (non-campsite) overnight stops, and service points.

Before making plans to stay at any of these please read the note at the bottom of this page.

Please help us!
Have you stayed at any of our listed stopovers? Let us know what they were like, send us a photo, give us GPS coordinates! Send us information about new stopovers, they must be officially approved - photograph any signs or let us know the owners/local council details so that we can contact them. Please use our contact form

For news on UK Motorhome stopovers see our Stopover News page

For general information on stopovers (also known as aires) see this page

We encourage anyone using official motorhome stopovers to mention the facility when patronising local businesses, and if appropriate, write/email to the local council, thanking them for providing the service.

Prices, where given, are the latest ones reported to us, they may not be up to date.

Scroll down the page for entries for Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales

Tintagel car park

King Arthurs Car Park, Tintagel L et's hope we will soon see more like this!

CHESHIRE

Chester
Little Roodee Car Park
Overnight fee £4.60 valid till 9am but additional ticket can be purchased for daytime parking. No facilities at the moment but toilet disposal and fresh water are planned. Short walk south east of the city centre. Just off the A483 Grosvenor Road, by the river.

CORNWALL

Tintagel
King Arthur's Car Park, opposite The Old Post Office, Fore Street
Large level carpark in centre of Tintagel town, easy access for 6m+ M/H. Reasonably secluded at far end of carpark.
Officially licenced for motorhomes to stay overnight
£3 for the night (4.00pm to 10.00am approx)
No services
Public toilet block in the car park closes at 10pm

Tintagel - NEW ADDITION July 2009
Merlins Car Park. In Fore Street behind Merlins Cave shop, entrance almost adjacent to the one for King Arthur's car park. Cost £3.50 overnight, £2 all day. Surface is gravel, with a grass overflow area.

Marazion
Kings Road car park.
Small car park close to the town centre and right on the sea front. Overnight parking is allowed for £4. No services. Owners of large motorhomes would be wise to check the availability of spaces before attempting to drive into the town, the car park is often full during the day.
Note that the large car park (Folly Field) on the edge of the town does not allow overnight stays.

COUNTY DURHAM

Darlington
Chesnut Street car park, off Northgate (A167).
This is a commercial vehicle overnight park, Darlington Borough Council have confirmed to us that motorhomes may stay overnight here and have not indicated that there are any restrictions. 24 hour pay and display, the charge between 8am and 6pm is £4.00, the overnight charge is another £4.00 between the hours of 6pm and 8am. No facilities.

DEVON

Barnstaple
Fishleigh Farmhouse Foods, Fishleigh Barton, Umberleigh, EX37 9DZ.
On the A377 6 miles South of Barnstaple. Camping & Caravanning Club CS (members only) but has a 'stopoff' service for all motorhomers, allowing filling with fresh water, and emptying waste water and toilet, £3. No other facilities. Farm shop and restaurant on site.

Putsborough Sands (southern end of Morte Bay)
£15/night weekdays, £18/night weekends and Bank holidays
Fresh water, public toilets
map

Teignmouth
Eastcliff Beach Car Park and Dawlish Warren Car Park
Overnight parking of motorhomes is free of charge from 6pm - 9am. Day time charges apply - the maximum stay in any one period is 48 hours.

EAST YORKSHIRE

Hull - NEW ADDITION June 2009
Priory Park lorry park (map) (visitor report)
Motorhomes are permitted to stay overnight for a fee of £8 ( plus £2 refundable deposit for entry card). Price includes electric hookup. Toilets and showers on site. 24 hour security, CCTV. May be noisy with trucks entering and leaving at all hours.
The lorry park is right next to the A63 at the Hessle exit and adjacent to the Park & Ride car park. Sainsburys and Aldi nearby.

HAMPSHIRE

Aldershot
Parsons Barracks Car Park, and the Peabody Road Car Park, North Camp.
Rushmoor Borough Council have confirmed that motorhomes may park overnight in these car parks. From 18:00 users are required to purchase a pay & display ticket costing £1.00, this covers the vehicle until 09:00 the following morning.

GLOUCESTERSHIRE

Cotswold District Council have confirmed that motorhomes may stay overnight at the lorry parks in Cirencester and Tetbury, they have not indicated that any restrictions apply.

Cirencester - NEW ADDITION June 2009
Old Cricklade Road lorry park
Cost: £6.20

Tetbury- NEW ADDITION June 2009
Hampton Street lorry park
Free

HEREFORDSHIRE

Herefordshire County Council have confirmed that overnight parking of motorhomes is permitted in the following car parks 'as long as no nuisance is caused'. Both are frequently used for overnight parking by lorries.

Hereford
Merton Meadow Car Park
Close to the centre of town next to the Hereford United football ground.
Car charges apply: £0.80 per day, free from 6.00 pm to 8.00 am. Toilets available (close at 6.00 pm)
Height barriers are closed on Saturday and Sunday nights, between 7.00pm and 7.00am. Motorhomes may still stay overnight, but will be unable to enter or exit the car park between those hours.

Leominster
Broad Street Car Park
Close to the centre of town, off the A44 (Broad Street).
No charge. Toilets available (close at 6.00 pm)

KENT

Canterbury
Kingsmead Coach Park.
Fresh water available, grey and black water dump facilities (ground level) on payment of the parking fee of £5 for 12 hours. Unlimited spaces. Overnight stays tolerated (despite the signs). The site is fenced (we are given to understand that the gate is never closed) and has CCTV surveillance.

New Dover Road Park & Ride car park
Fresh water available, grey and black water dump facilities (ground level) on payment of the parking fee of £2.50 per day (includes bus fare). 24 spaces. Overnight stays tolerated.

Dover
Marine Parade (map)
Motorhomes may park on Marine Parade for up to 12 hours. Free after 6pm. No services

Union Street Car Park (Dover Harbour Board) (map)
Motorhomes may park here at the following rates (2007):
Up to 4 hours £1.50
4 to 8 hours £2.50
8 to 24 hours £5.00
24 to 48 hours £8.00
48 to 72 hours £10.00
No services.
For both of these stops access is via The Esplanade off the A20 roundabout (see maps) NOT the eastern end of Marine Parade

Folkestone
Folkestone Harbour (map)
Motorhomes may use the harbour truck parking area. Cost £6 per night. There is a drivers’ rest room with showers and toilets. The womens shower/toilet facilities are reported to be good but the mens seems to suffer from having to cater for up to 100 truck drivers....
Follow signs to 'Harbour'


LINCOLNSHIRE

Boston - NEW ADDITION June 2009
St Johns Road coach and lorry park
Boston Borough Council have confirmed that motorhomes may stay overnight at the coach and lorry park. It is required that a booking is made in advance by contacting the Boston Economic Development Officer, Ian Martin, on 01205 314587 (07920722023 out of office hours). The stay is limited to a maximum of 24 hours and is free.

Lincoln - NEW ADDITION Dec 2008
Tentercroft Street (off High Street - LN5 7DB) and Lawn (Union Road - LN1 3BU) car parks
Overnight stays permitted at owners' risk. Overnight fee £1.50 (6pm - 8am). Toilets available at Tentercroft (close 6pm).

NORTH YORKSHIRE

Guisborough - NEW ADDITION Nov 2008
Fountain Street East car park
Two motorhome parking bays within the car park. The designated area for the motorhomes is within the coach parking bays.
Maximum permitted stay 18 hours (6.00pm to midday the next day). Cost £5. No services.
Normal daytime parking arrangements are unaffected for those not wishing to stay overnight.

OXFORDSHIRE

Abingdon
Rye Farm Pay & Display car park.
On the A415 going south from Abingdon, on the left hand side just across the river bridge. The car park has a separate section for HGVs and coaches. Vale of White Horse District Council have confirmed that motorhomes may park in this section overnight.
May be busy with HGVs. No services. Public toilets across the road. Short walk into town for shops, restaurants, pubs, etc
Parking fee: £3.50 for a maximum of 24 hours. Motorhomes pay the car rate not the HGV/coach rate.

SOMERSET

Weston-super-mare - NEW ADDITION May 2009
The Locking Road car park accommodates overnight parking. Motorhomes which fit in a car bay pay £5.00 (24 hour), otherwise the coach/lorry fee will be payable and you will need to park in a lorry/coach bay: £6.00 (24 hours). Barrier closes at approx 06:00pm every evening. It will automatically let you out as you approach it. If you enter the car park after this time you will need to pay at the machine attached to the barrier.
The signage to this car park does state NO OVERNIGHT CAMPING, NO CAMPERS etc but occassional (one night only) campers are tolerated as long as there is no cooking, no washing, no alchohol etc etc.

SUFFOLK

Bury St Edmunds
Ram Meadow Car Park
Off Cotton Lane to east of town centre, near Abbey Gardens.
5 dedicated motorhome spaces, £1.20 per day, Overnight parking is permitted for one night. This is at no extra cost, although anyone staying after 8am should buy another ticket (£1.20) for that day. Public toilets nearby.

Ipswich
Old Cattle Market car park, Portman Road - NEW ADDITION July 2009
Ipswich Borough Council is currently operating, for an experimental period, a motorhome overnight parking facility in this car park.
The cost is currently £6, allowing overnight parking from 1800hrs to 0800hrs the following morning. Offer only available Mon-Fri eves. Car park must be cleared by 0800hrs when normal P&D/season ticket parking takes place. Motorhomes still parked past this time limit may be subject to a PCN. Parking not allowed Sat/Sun nights as car park used for other purposes. Daytime parking is available at the Park & Ride car parks. If making a special trip please contact the Council Parking Services on 01473 432426 to confirm availability.

Orwell Crossing Lorry Park (website) - NEW ADDITION June 2009
Privately run lorry park, on the A14 Eastbound at Nacton, near Ipswich. Postcode: IP10 0DD
Motorhomes are welcome, we understand that the overnight fee is £14 but are unsure if this applies to private vehicles as well as trucks, there is a separate truck parking area. See the website for full details of the facilities offered.

Northern Ireland

CO. ANTRIM

Ballymoney
The Anglers' Rest, 139 The Vow Road, Ballymoney

The aire at Broughshane

Broughshane (Aire de Service)
Houston Mills.
Follow the brown tourist signs to Houston Mills (at the Larne end of the village)

Antrim
The Ramble Inn
236 Lisnevenagh Road, Antrim, BT41 2JT

Carrickfergus (Aire de Service)
Harbour Car Park, Carrickfergus
Tokens from the Tourist Information Centre, Unit 4 Heritage Plaza, 11 Antrim Street, BT37 7DG Tel. 028 9335 8000 and Marina Office, 3 Quayside, BT38 8BJ Tel 028 9336 6666

Whitehead (Aire de Service)
Blackhead Path Car Park, Whitehead
Tokens from Bentra Golf Club, Slaughterford Road, Whitehead, BT38 9TG, Tel 028 9337 8996

CO. DERRY

Coleraine
Brown Trout Golf and Country Inn 209 Agivey Road, Aghadowey, Coleraine BT51 4AD

Eglington
Decks Bar & Restaurant 1 Campsie Business Park McLean Road, Eglington, BT47 3XX

CO. DONEGAL

Killybegs
Ringfort Inn Darney, Bruckless, Killybegs

CO. DOWN

Newtownards
Daft Eddy's Restaurant, Sketrick Island Newtownards Co Down BT23 6QH

Killyleagh
Ringdufferin Country Club Ringdufferin Road, Toye, Killyleagh, BT30 9PH

CO. FERMANAGH

Ballinamallard
Ballinamallard United Football Club Ferney Park, Ballinamallard BT94 2HH

ABERDEENSHIRE

Fettercairn
Bowling Club car park - no details available

MORAY

Tomintoul
Car park of Tomintoul Bowling Club, Lecht Drive, Tomintoul.
Off the B9008 Tomintoul to Dufftown road. From Dufftown or Lecht Ski area turn left into Lecht Drive just before the village.
From Grantown on Spey, turn left in Tomintoul at sign for Dufftown and Lecht Ski area, then immediately right into Lecht Drive.
The standing area is level hard core
Overnight parking of motor homes £5 per night per vehicle. Pre-booking preferred
Drinking water available. Toilets, including disabled, on site.
Shops within 200 yards
More info: sales@whiskycastle.com

ANGLESEY

Lligwy Bay
The two car parks for Lligwy Bay, just north of Moelfre, allow overnight stays for a fee of £8
OS Grid Ref: SH 492 873 GPS: 53° 21.683'N 4° 16.004'W (beware narrow lanes)
OS Grid Ref: SH 496 870 GPS: 53° 21.532'N 4° 15.667'W (easier access to this one, which also has toilets)

POWYS

Powys County Council are one of the UK's most motorhome-friendly councils and have confirmed the following provisions for motorhomes to stay overnight.

Overnight parking (including cooking/sleeping) of motorhomes is permitted for 1 night in 7 at the following car parks.
Charges:
If the vehicle fits into a normal car bay then overnight parking from 6pm to 8am is free, if not the the large vehicles charge of £4.40 is payable at some car parks. Check the notice boards for the details of day parking charges.

Brecon
Promenade car park, and The Watton car park

Builth Wells
The Groe car park and Smithfield car park
Height barriers at both car parks are normally open, but are closed in early July until the end of July because of the Royal Welsh Show.
Entry to Smithfield car park is from either Brecon Road (opposite the entry to the Co-Op) or from Smithfield Road. The co-ords are 52.14751, -3.40321 . This is the parking area for the livestock market, it would be worthwhile parking well away from the auction sheds to avoid the possibility of a very early wake-up.

Crickhowell - NEW ADDITION June 2009
Beaufort Street car park

Hay-on-Wye
Oxford Road car park

Knighton - NEW ADDITION June 2009
Bowling Green Lane car park

Llanidloes - NEW ADDITION June 2009
Mount Street car park
£4.40 overnight charge for large vehicles

Machynlleth - NEW ADDITION June 2009
Maengwyn Street car park
Height barrier present, but it is normally open, keys for the barrier are held at the adjacent council toilets.
£4.40 overnight charge for large vehicles

Newtown - NEW ADDITION June 2009
Back Lane car park and Gravel car park
£4.40 overnight charge for large vehicles

Rhayader - NEW ADDITION June 2009
Dark Lane car park

Welshpool - NEW ADDITION June 2009
Berriew Street and Church Street car parks
£4.40 overnight charge for large vehicles

It should be noted that stopovers are NOT a substitute for campsites, they do not have the facilities or security of a campsite and are usually only intended for short stays, either as an overnight stop on a long journey, or as a base for a short visit to the local community and to make use of local facilities. They are for self-contained motorhomes only, i.e. you should not put anything outside the vehicle - no chairs, tables, barbecue etc. It should go without saying that waste water must NOT be dumped on the ground, or put down surface water drains. Many of these sites do not have disposal facilities, so rubbish, waste water and toilet disposal may need to be done at an alternative location.

Camping & Caravanning Club Motorhome Stopoff facility
The Camping and Caravanning Club have a facility at some of their sites for motorhomes to empty black and grey waste, and make use of on-site facilities for up to 3 hours, for a fee of £5.25.

The Club website has a list of the sites offering this facility here.

Unofficial stopovers

There are several listings of unofficial places to stop overnight to be found on the internet. We no longer give direct links to any of the listings because the thoughtless actions of some motorhome users has meant that some places listed are no longer usable. A Google search for 'motorhome stopovers' or 'motorhome wild camping' willl produce some results, but use them at your own risk.

Motorhome Parking
Details of motorhome parking facilities from all UK Councils can be found at www.motorhomeparking.co.uk
This is a very useful site which includes details of car parks where overnight parking is permitted, but it must be borne in mind that even where parking overnight is permitted, local bylaws may prohibit 'camping' or sleeping in vehicles.

Disclaimer:
It must be borne in mind that local authorities may change the regulations that apply to overnight parking, and users of any of the places listed should endeavour to ascertain whether overnight parking, sleeping, or cooking is currently permitted.

Whilst we endeavour, as far as possible, to keep this listing of places allowing overnight stays by motorhomes up to date, we will not be liable for any errors, omissions, or changes of local authority policy. If you do discover any errors or changes please let us know.

The inclusion of a location in this listing does not imply any recommendation by us, users must judge for themselves the suitability of any of the places listed.

Several lorry parks are included in the listing, bear in mind that these may not be located in the most attractive surroundings or be the most restful places to park overnight!