The best beaches on the NC500

The best beaches on the NC500: 16 stops in drive order

The best beaches on the NC500 are Mellon Udrigle, Balnakeil and Achmelvich for white sand and clear water, Dunnet Bay for families and surfers, and Sango Sands for the view from the clifftop. There are sixteen worth stopping for in all, and this guide lists them in the order you reach them driving clockwise from Inverness, with a note on parking, facilities and dogs for each. The water is 8 to 14 degrees in summer, so swimming is for the hardy; the views are for everyone.

Most of these beaches are on the west and north coasts, most have a small car park and no facilities, and almost all take dogs. Use this alongside 25 of the best stops on the NC500, the NC500 route map for the drive times between them, and the North Coast 500 guide for everything else.

1. Rosemarkie Beach

On the eastern edge of the Black Isle, twenty minutes north of Inverness. Sandy, easy to reach, family-friendly, with good walking along the shore toward Chanonry Point and its dolphins. Not the most dramatic beach on the route but the easiest one to start with. Good cafe, decent parking, dog-friendly.

2. Applecross Bay

A shallow crescent of sand below the village of Applecross, reached by crossing Bealach na Bà or the coastal road from Shieldaig. The water is clear. At low tide the beach extends a long way out. Not a swimming beach for most people but a perfect spot to walk, read or sit with a coffee from the nearby cafes.

3. Red Point

Off the beaten track even by NC500 standards. Take the B8056 off the A832 near Gairloch and follow it to the end, where the road terminates above a red-sand beach with views across to Skye. Almost always empty. Bring food because there is nothing at the car park. Walk along the beach and you can reach a ruined fishing station.

4. Gairloch Beach (Big Sand)

Actually three beaches. The main Gairloch Beach is sheltered and good for families. Big Sand, five minutes north, is longer and wilder. Firemore beach sits in between. All three face west, which makes them excellent for sunsets. If you are staying in Gairloch for the night, an evening walk here is reason enough to book.

5. Mellon Udrigle

One of the finest beaches on the loop. A crescent of white sand looking out across Gruinard Bay to the Summer Isles. Crystal-clear water. A ten-minute diversion off the main A832 north of Laide, down a single-track road to a small car park. Walk the full length of the beach. On a clear day the view to the islands is unforgettable. No facilities.

6. Gruinard Bay

A broader bay than Mellon Udrigle, with three separate beaches you can access from the main road. Pink-tinged sand, clear water, and Gruinard Island (with its unfortunate wartime history as a biological weapons testing site, now long decontaminated) sitting in the middle of the bay. Good for a quick stop with views. Fewer crowds than Mellon Udrigle.

7. Achmelvich

On the Stoer peninsula, reached by a five-mile single-track road off the B869. A small, perfect bay of white sand and turquoise water, popular with kayakers in summer. The Shore Caravan Site sits directly behind the beach and makes this one of the only beach-front campsites on the route; see campsites along the NC500. Arrive early in peak season: the small car park fills fast.

8. Clashnessie Bay

Just north of Achmelvich on the same B869 loop. Smaller, quieter, often empty. The sand is pink-white, the water clear. A small waterfall a short walk behind the beach is an easy add-on. If Achmelvich is busy, Clashnessie is the obvious alternative.

9. Oldshoremore

Twenty minutes north of Kinlochbervie on a dead-end road. A genuinely remote beach: white sand, clear water, grass-topped machair behind the dunes, and essentially no one there. If you have an extra half day in the Durness area, the drive out to Oldshoremore (and the neighbouring Sandwood Bay, a four-mile walk-in from Blairmore) is one of the best things you can do on the NC500.

10. Balnakeil Beach

A mile-long curve of white sand ten minutes from Durness, with a ruined church at one end and a view to Cape Wrath across the bay. Some of the cleanest water you will find anywhere in Britain. Walk the length of the beach in one direction and then continue round the point to Faraid Head if the weather allows. Very few facilities. Dogs welcome.

11. Sango Sands

On the edge of Durness village, a clifftop beach with a clear cove below. Easy access from the campsite at the top (also in our campsites along the NC500 guide), then a set of steep wooden steps down to the sand. The view from the clifftop is one of the best on the north coast, and aurora watchers favour this spot in winter.

12. Armadale Bay

This is a remote, sandy beach on Scotland's north coast (Sutherland). Known for its quiet, dramatic setting with high dunes, it is popular for surfing, paddling, and coastal walks. Access is via a path from a nearby car park, passing over fields and a small bridge.

13. Dunnet Bay

A two-mile sweep of sand running south from Dunnet Head toward Castletown. One of the largest beaches on the NC500 and one of the easiest to access. Popular with surfers. The beach is backed by dunes that protect the small village of Dunnet behind. Park at the northern end. Good facilities at the Seadrift visitor centre.

14. Sinclair’s Bay

A wide sweep of white sand north of Wick, with a ruined castle at each end: Sinclair Girnigoe on the cliffs to the south and Keiss to the north. Long enough that you will have most of it to yourself, backed by dunes, and one of the few beaches on the east coast that can hold its own against the west. Park at Reiss or at the Keiss end.

15. Dunbeath Bay

A shingle and sand cove where the Dunbeath Water meets the Moray Firth, with the old harbour at the bottom and Dunbeath Castle on the cliff above. It is a stop rather than a beach day: twenty minutes for the harbour, the heritage centre and the walk up the strath that Neil Gunn wrote about, then back on the A9.

16. Brora Beach

Two miles of golden sand and dunes running north from the village alongside the golf course. Seals haul out at the river mouth, dolphins pass offshore, and the rocks at the north end are known for Jurassic fossils. Quiet even in August, with parking by the golf club and the village shops five minutes away. Good sunsets over the hills behind.

Which beach for which purpose

• Best for families: Rosemarkie, Gairloch, Dunnet Bay, Brora and Armadale.

• Best for solitude: Red Point, Oldshoremore, Clashnessie, Dunnet Bay and Brora.

• Best for views: Mellon Udrigle, Balnakeil, Sango Sands, Achmelvich and Brora.

• Best for swimming (for the hardy): Achmelvich, Balnakeil.

• Best for dogs: Dunnet Bay, Rosemarkie, Gairloch.

• Best for surfing: Dunnet Bay (reliable waves, surf school nearby).

• Best for sunsets: Gairloch, Big sand and Brora.

Practical notes

• Water temperatures sit between 8 and 14 degrees in summer. Bring a wetsuit if you are serious about swimming.

• Highland weather is unpredictable. A beach that is perfect at 10am can be rain-lashed by 2pm. Stop when the weather is right.

• Most of these beaches have no facilities. Bring water, food and a bin bag for rubbish.

• Dogs are welcome on virtually all NC500 beaches. Check for seasonal bird nesting signs at Balnakeil and Dunnet Head in spring and early summer.

• Midges can be bad on still, warm evenings from mid-June to mid-September. Repellent helps.

• Parking is limited at the more remote beaches. Arrive early or late to avoid the rush.

If beaches are your main reason for doing the NC500, consider basing yourself in two places rather than moving every night. Gairloch or Ullapool for the west, Durness for the north. See our NC500 accommodation guide for suggestions. For more on what else to see along the way, browse our 25 best stops on the NC500.