Rules · country
Scotland wild camping: what the Outdoor Access Code actually allows
The short answer
Scotland is the one part of the UK with a statutory right of responsible access, and it covers lightweight camping in a tent, in small numbers, for no more than two or three nights in one place. It does not cover camping from a vehicle, and it does not override local byelaws in managed areas.
Source: Camping, Scottish Outdoor Access Code ↗ Checked 2026-07-19
What we have not verified
- The Loch Lomond and the Trossachs camping management byelaws are known to restrict camping in parts of that national park during the season, but we have not yet checked the current zones and dates against the park authority's own page. Treat this page as covering the national position only, and check locally before you rely on it there.
Scotland is genuinely different, and it is the reason so much English-language writing about “wild camping in the UK” is wrong. The Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2003 created a statutory right of responsible access to most land and inland water, and the Scottish Outdoor Access Code is the official guidance on what exercising it responsibly looks like.
What it covers
The Code’s camping guidance is specific: lightweight camping, in a tent, in small numbers, and for no more than two or three nights in any one place. The emphasis on lightweight and on moving on is not decoration. A right that is exercised as a semi-permanent pitch stops being the right the Act describes.
What it does not cover
It does not cover camping from a vehicle. A campervan parked overnight is not exercising access rights, whatever the internet tells you. It is parked, and that is a matter for the landowner or the roads authority.
The Code also asks you to stay away from enclosed fields of crops or farm animals, and to keep well clear of buildings, roads and historic structures.
Where it stops
Access rights can be modified locally. National park authorities in particular have used byelaws to manage camping pressure in specific places, which is why “it is legal in Scotland” and “it is legal here” are two different sentences. Check the local authority or park authority page for wherever you are actually going.