5 day road trip around the north, any suggestions?

[Alex@POD]

Hi all,

I'm planning a short road trip in a couple of weeks, leaving from Harrogate on Sunday late afternoon (probably) and returning Friday during the day. The only thing I have pinned is we want to visit Alnwick and eat in the treehouse restaurant.

I was thinking heading to Whitby, following the coast north to Alnwick, the across to the Lake District, then back to Harrogate through the Dales.

Apart from that, I have no idea what roads to use. I want something with nice scenery and not necessarily entertaining to drive, as we'll be in a camper, and we need to plan campsites to stay at as well.

So, what roads and campsites would you recommend for this? Are there any places I "must" visit on the way?

Thanks in advance.

[Alex@POD]

Thanks guys, I'll trace all that on a map and see if I can follow it all. From a cursory glance it's more or less where I was thinking of going so it's good to know!

I won't be going all that fast on the fast roads, in fact I'll probably join the bimbling tourists as I will be in a 1967 VW Camper...

[Alex@POD]

Well, we got back from our trip last friday, and apart from visiting Alnwick as per the OP, I didn't follow any of that... I was set to follow the route suggested, but the van was very slow, the steering very vague, the suspension very bumpy, it bump-steered like crazy... Great fun to drive, but my plan quickly became take the quickest route there! We didn't leave Northumberland much either, but had a great time all the same.