A road-trip guidebook is built differently from a country guide. It is organised by route instead of by town, with how long each drive takes, where to stop, and what to do when you get out of the car. That makes it the better buy once you have decided to drive and want to know where.
The books below fall into three groups. Itinerary collections, like Lonely Planet's Best Road Trips Great Britain, give you many drives to choose from. Single-route guides cover one famous drive, such as Scotland's North Coast 500, in depth. And specialist guides, such as one for campervans and motorhomes, are written around how you travel.
Check the edition year before you buy. Opening hours, prices and campsites change faster than roads do, and two of the Irish guides below are 2020 editions. For wider choices, see our travel guides shelf and our comparison of UK travel guidebooks.
Our Picks
8 books1
Lonely Planet Best Road Trips Great Britain : Detailed Itineraries | Travel Like a Local | Insider Tips | Covers Edinburgh, Bath, Cambridge, Welsh Mountains and more
by Lonely Planet, Tasmin Waby, Isabel Albiston, Oliver Berry, Joe Bindloss, Fionn Davenport, Belinda Dixon, Anthony Ham, Damian Harper, Anna Kaminski
Paperback
Lonely Planet's collection of 36 drives around Great Britain, from three-day escapes to three-week adventures. It ranges from the Welsh mountains to Stonehenge and the Scottish moors. A sensible first choice if you want a choice of routes for the whole country rather than one drive.
2
Camping Road Trips UK : 30 Adventures with your Campervan, Motorhome or Tent
by Caroline Mills
Paperback
Caroline Mills's 30 road trips across the UK and Jersey, written for campervans, motorhomes, cyclists and campers. The publisher notes that it won Travel Guide Book of the Year 2023 from the British Guild of Travel Writers. The best fit here if where you sleep matters as much as where you drive.
3
Lonely Planet Journey North Coast 500
by Lonely Planet, Neil Wilson, Mike MacEacheran
Paperback
Lonely Planet's volume on the North Coast 500, the 500-mile loop around the north of Scotland, from 2025. It offers inspiration, ideas and planning tips for the route. A good choice if you want to understand the drive and its history before you plan the days.
4
The Rough Guide to the North Coast 500: Compact Travel Guide with eBook
by Rough Guides
Paperback
The Rough Guide to the North Coast 500 is a compact, practical guide with factual travel tips and structured lists of the main sights, as well as some lesser-known places off the route. It includes itinerary suggestions and a free eBook, which makes it handy for planning on a phone.
5
North Coast 500 : Where to Eat and Stay Official Guide
by Collins Maps
Paperback
The Collins Maps official guide to where to eat and stay on the North Coast 500. It is a food and accommodation guide, not a route guide: the publisher describes it as pointing to chefs, hotels, pubs and local food along the 500-mile loop. Pair it with one of the route guides above.
6
Lonely Planet Best Road Trips Ireland
by Lonely Planet, Fionn Davenport, Isabel Albiston, Belinda Dixon, Catherine Le Nevez, Neil Wilson
Paperback
Lonely Planet's 34 road trips around Ireland, from two-day getaways to two-week adventures, including the Wild Atlantic Way and the Ring of Kerry. A broad, country-wide collection for a first drive around the island.
7
Lonely Planet Galway & the West of Ireland Road Trips
by Lonely Planet, Belinda Dixon, Clifton Wilkinson
Paperback
Seven road trips through Galway and the west of Ireland, with advice on the places you pass through. It is a regional guide for visitors to the west coast, and the publisher highlights traditional folk music along the way. This is a 2020 edition, so check current details before you rely on it.
8
Lonely Planet Cork, Kerry & Southwest Ireland Road Trips
by Lonely Planet, Neil Wilson, Clifton Wilkinson
Paperback
Lonely Planet's road trips for Cork, Kerry and the south-west of Ireland, including the Ring of Kerry. It gives a more detailed regional treatment than the country-wide Ireland guide. This is a 2020 edition, so check current opening times and prices.
Frequently Asked Questions
For a choice of routes across the whole country, Lonely Planet's Best Road Trips Great Britain has 36 drives from three days to three weeks. If you are travelling by campervan or motorhome, Camping Road Trips UK is written for that.
Lonely Planet's Journey North Coast 500 and the Rough Guide to the North Coast 500 both cover the route, the Rough Guide in a compact format with a free eBook. The Collins official guide covers where to eat and stay.
Lonely Planet's Best Road Trips Ireland covers 34 drives across the island. For the south-west and the west coast, there are regional editions for Cork and Kerry and Galway.
The routes themselves change slowly, but opening hours, prices, campsites and ferry times do not. As a rule, treat a guide more than a few editions old as a source of ideas rather than an exact plan, and check key details online before you set off.