Grampian Transport Museum welcomes motorhomers

The Grampian Transport Museum in Alford, Aberdeenshire, has set up a new scheme to welcome motorhomers. 

Motorhomes and campervans which arrive before museum closing times (open seven days a week from March to October) can book in for their visit the following day and will then be allowed to camp inside the secure museum grounds overnight free of charge.

The museum currently has no campsite facilities so you will have to be fully self-contained, but it will be quiet, secure and close to local shops and eateries if required.

The initiative is the brainchild of museum curator Mike Ward, who said: “We know that our museum is recognised as one of the best of its type in Scotland and it attracts visitors from far and wide. There used to be nearby camping facilities but in recent years we have observed more and more motorhomes staying overnight in the public car park outside the museum then coming in to visit us the following morning. This isn’t ideal and as we have extensive grounds we thought ‘Why not give access to those visitors who want to come and see us?’, and so we are going to try this for the 2019 season.

"There are no size restrictions getting in and out of the grounds and, although we have currently no camping facilities, it would be much quieter and more secure than wild camping in the car park. If it proves popular we could develop facilities in future years once we know what people would like to see there. We anticipate this will prove popular and strongly advise ringing ahead on 01975 562292 between 10am-5pm if you would like to take advantage of this offer.”

The museum is one of the top visitor attractions in the North East of Scotland and is a popular stop-off point for visitors to Royal Deeside, the Castle Trail, the Whisky Trail and the new NE 250 driving route. Exhibits include cars, motorcycles, cycles, horse drawn carriages, wagons and all forms of road transport, including a locally owned 1963 Bedford Dormobile Romany. The museum changes approximately a third of its exhibition every year so that there is always something fresh to see. It is also the only museum with the ‘Guy Martin Collection’ of some of his most fascinating machines.

Of special interest to touring visitors in the spring and autumn, Grampian Transport Museum links with many of the other top attractions in the area to offer the Aberdeenshire ‘Spring Rover’ and ‘Autumn Rover’ tickets for which you only pay the entry price of the issuing attraction and then can visit up to 3 of the others free of charge. The participants vary slightly but include The Museum of Scottish Lighthouses (Fraserburgh), Macduff Marine Aquarium, Braemar Castle, Royal Lochnagar Distillery, Balmoral Castle, National Trust for Scotland Fyvie Castle, Aberdeen Science Centre and The Gordon Highlanders Museum (Aberdeen).