Best road trips in the UK and Ireland

The UK and Ireland reward driving only outside the cities. Between London, Edinburgh, York, Bath, Oxford and Cambridge the train is quicker and you avoid parking entirely. Hire a car for the legs where the railway thins out: the Scottish Highlands and Skye, the Causeway Coast in Northern Ireland, Cornwall, the Lake District and Snowdonia.

Five routes cover most first trips. Each is a loop or a one-way run that starts and ends at a railhead or airport, so you can pick the car up when you need it and hand it back before the next city.

Ireland is a separate trip, not a detour. The Wild Atlantic Way runs about 2,500 km down the west coast from Donegal to Cork and needs a week or more on its own. Northern Ireland's Causeway Coast is the part that pairs with a UK itinerary.

You need a full driving licence from your home country, held for at least one or two years depending on the rental company. Most US, Canadian, Australian, New Zealand and EU licences are accepted directly for a short visit; some renters ask for an International Driving Permit as backup, so check before you fly. UK and Irish licences work everywhere on the island.

If you have never driven on the left, the first hour is the hard part. Start on a quiet road, not in central London or Dublin. An automatic costs more than a manual and is worth the premium if you are not used to a clutch on the wrong side.

This page is for self-drive trips of two nights or more. If you have three days in the Highlands and no car, a small-group tour from Edinburgh or Inverness covers the same ground without the driving.

Fix the railheads first. Decide which cities you will reach by train, then hire the car for the gap between them. Inverness, Glasgow, Edinburgh, Belfast, Exeter, Penrith, Chester and Manchester all have rental desks and sit at the start of a good route.

Then set daily distance. On single-track Highland roads and Cornish lanes, 150–200 km is a full day once you stop for views, lunch and a castle. On motorways you can do 400 km, but that is a transfer day, not a road trip.

Book accommodation before the car in May–September. Highland, Skye and Cornwall beds sell out months ahead, and the car is the easy part to change. For Skye, the bridge is free and the ferry from Mallaig is the scenic alternative; both need a booking in summer (check).

Leave slack. Weather closes mountain passes and ferry sailings, and a single-track road with passing places can add 30 minutes to an hour over the map estimate.

Car hire in 2026 runs about £30–60 per day for a small manual in low season, and £60–100 or more in July and August or for an automatic. A week is usually cheaper per day than three days. Fuel is sold by the litre; a 500 km route in a small car uses roughly £45–60 of petrol or diesel (2026 estimate). Motorway tolls are rare in the UK — the M6 Toll near Birmingham and some crossings are the exceptions — while Ireland has tolls on parts of the M50 and M1 (check current rates).

Parking is the cost people forget. City-centre car parks run £10–25 for a day, Highland and coastal car parks £2–6, and some popular spots charge by the hour in summer. Overnight hotel parking is often £10–20 extra.

Time: two nights is the floor for any route here. Three nights is comfortable. The Highlands and Skye need three to five because the distances between sights are long and the roads are slow. Add a full day at each end for pickup, drop-off and the train back to a city.

Skip the car for London, Edinburgh, York, Bath, Oxford, Cambridge and central Belfast. Congestion charges, low-emission zones, one-way systems and parking costs make driving a liability there. Trains between these cities are frequent and advance tickets are much cheaper than walk-up fares.

Skip it in August on Skye and in Cornwall, when the roads and car parks are at their worst; May, June and September give the same scenery with less traffic. In winter, Highland passes can close and daylight is short — plan shorter days and check conditions before setting out.

Skip it if you are not comfortable on the left. A guided small-group tour of the Highlands, the Causeway Coast or the Ring of Kerry costs more per day but removes the driving, the parking and the insurance excess.

Ireland is a separate decision. The Wild Atlantic Way is a week-long trip of its own; do not bolt it onto a UK route unless you have ten days or more.

Pick by season and by how much driving you want. The Highlands and Skye give the biggest scenery and the slowest roads. The Causeway Coast is the shortest and pairs with Belfast. Cornwall is about coast and food. The Lake District and Snowdonia are for walking, with short hops between valleys.

If you have one week and want one route, take the Highlands and Skye, flying into Inverness and out of Glasgow or Edinburgh. If you have four days, take the Causeway Coast from Belfast, or Cornwall from Exeter.