Exmoor by roof tent

By the Overlanding.info team · Updated 24 October 2026 · Sources checked 24 October 2026

Build a three-day break around Dunster, Dulverton and Lynmouth, with a booked campsite providing the overnight base. This is our suggested road-touring itinerary, not an official driving route. The place names do not establish a suitable road between them or permission to camp at a visitor attraction.

Choose your campsite before ordering the days. If its location makes one outing awkward, leave that outing for another trip. There is no fixed mileage: measure the roads you actually intend to use, including the campsite entrance and the journey home. Compare other regions in the Routes hub.

A suggested three-day plan

Keeping the same pitch for both nights can reduce the administration of changing sites, but the tent still needs packing before every drive. Allow for that routine when estimating a day's available time. The first roof tent weekend guide helps turn these outing ideas into a manageable two-night plan.

Day one: Dunster without an overfilled arrival day

Use the National Park centre information to plan a Dunster information stop. The centre is at Dunster Steep, near the village, with pay-and-display parking below. Look at its opening calendar for your actual date rather than relying on a general map listing.

If you want to visit Dunster Castle and Watermill, plan that as a separate attraction visit. The National Trust lists different opening arrangements for the castle, gardens, watermill and other facilities. Choose the parts you want to see before deciding whether they fit arrival day.

The Trust directs drivers to the parkland entrance from the A39 and says there is no vehicle access from the village via Castle Hill. Follow its current arrival instructions. Its parking is limited, with restrictions on caravans and trailers; check your actual vehicle combination before adding this stop. Village parking and property parking have separate conditions.

Read the accessibility information if anyone needs a step-free or less steep visit: the property includes steep routes, steps and uneven surfaces. Ask about the specific areas you want to reach rather than assuming an indoor attraction removes those concerns.

Keep a clear decision point: if the visit would leave too little time for campsite check-in and a first setup, shorten the outing. Put food, waterproofs and the booking confirmation where they can be reached without unloading the whole boot.

Day two: Dulverton and an optional riverside outing

Dulverton can be an information-and-supplies day rather than a sequence of remote stops. Its National Park centre is at Exmoor House on Kemps Way. Check the centre page before relying on staff or displays: as checked on 24 October 2026, it lists a winter closure from 2 November 2026 to 19 March 2027. This is a dated centre notice, not a statement that the town closes for winter.

If Tarr Steps fits your chosen roads and conditions, treat it as an optional outing with its own access check. The official Tarr Steps walk page currently says the circular route cannot be completed because Hinds Pitt footbridge upstream is closed. The path closure register records structural failure and no known reopening date. Do not follow an old circular-walk download through the closure.

The Authority describes there-and-back options on either side of the river, returning the same way without crossing at the closed bridge. Read the current notice and map before choosing an outing. Do not improvise a river crossing to join the ends of the old circuit.

The walk page also describes a descent from the main car park that must be climbed again on return, plus uneven stone-and-earth surfaces and exposed roots along the main walk. It distinguishes a limited riverside access option from the rougher remainder. Review those details against your group's needs; a photograph of the stone bridge does not show the whole approach.

Keep Dulverton alone as a useful shorter day if the riverside plan does not suit the weather or access requirements. A booked campsite does not oblige you to complete every suggested stop.

Day three: Lynmouth before the journey home

The National Park centre at Lynmouth Pavilion is on the Esplanade by the seafront, beside the cliff railway. The centre lists exhibitions and a lift for wheelchair access. Check its opening and accessibility information separately from any railway ride or longer coastal walk you might add: this itinerary includes neither a railway operating guarantee nor a cliff-path assessment.

As checked on 24 October, the centre lists daily winter opening with Christmas Day and Boxing Day exceptions. Refresh the calendar for your date. This differs from Dulverton's seasonal closure, so keep a separate record for each stop.

Pack down and meet the campsite's checkout requirements before departing. Then decide how much time remains for Lynmouth and the drive home. For a southern or eastern homeward journey, it may be more practical to put Lynmouth earlier in the trip and finish elsewhere. Plan the road journey around your loaded car and current conditions rather than trying to preserve this day order.

Separate the car park from the overnight pitch

The Authority's parking information distinguishes its own sites from car parks run by councils, the National Trust and other landowners. Its parking-permit terms exclude overnight parking and camping; a permit is also no guarantee of a space. Check the operator and signs for each actual stop.

For example, the Authority lists its Exmoor House parking availability as weekends only. Do not treat a nearby car park with a similar name as the same facility. At Valley of Rocks, the Authority explicitly distinguishes its car park beside the public conveniences from others under separate management. Check those details if extending the Lynmouth day.

The Park's visitor guidance directs camping and motorhomes to designated sites. Ask a campsite whether it accepts a car with an opening roof tent, then confirm the pitch category, ladder footprint, surface, access route and vehicle movement arrangements. Neither a parking ticket nor a generic camping listing confirms that booking. Use the roof-tent campsite booking checklist to record the answer.

Keep a practical trip record

Save the campsite's recommended final approach and compare height restrictions with a physical measurement of the travelling setup; the vehicle height calculator helps organise the figures. If a navigation suggestion introduces an unsurfaced shortcut, resolve its status using the green lanes guide before including it.

Before each outing, review the Met Office warnings and local forecast. Follow the Highway Code's adverse-weather guidance when deciding whether to travel in rain, wind or reduced visibility. Choosing a shorter town visit does not automatically make the road journey suitable.

For each day, write down the parking operator, current opening or closure notice, chosen outing, shorter alternative and latest campsite return or departure time. Keep the confirmation date with each entry. Use the guide to plan your overnight stops for a wider structure; the drying guide helps plan what happens to a damp tent after the trip.

Check with the source: these references were checked on 24 October 2026. Refresh opening calendars, path notices, weather and campsite confirmation before travelling. This guide does not approve an individual campsite, road or walk.

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