Best staycations for electric vehicles – some more remote than you expect

Newquay has been crowned the best UK staycation location for electric vehicle owners looking to escape the city this summer, according to a comprehensive new study.

The sunny and popular South West coastal hotspot ranked highly for ease of access to EV charging points, as well as having a high volume of hotels offering EV charging for guests.

Sunny Scarborough in East Yorkshire also ranked highly on the list, followed by the rural town of Grassington in the Yorkshire Dales.

The findings come from a new comprehensive report by used car dealership Big Motoring World.

Their ranking started with a list of tourist friendly destinations, before digging into data on the number of EV charging points, EV-friendly hotels, and registered garages in each place, to create a definitive guide to the best UK locations to visit this summer if you drive an EV.

They created variations of their top ten lists focused on coastal locations, and also more rural spots outside of major cities.

The top UK EV-friendly destinations (outside of cities):

1. Newquay, Cornwall (71%)
2. Scarborough, North Yorkshire (61%)
3. Grassington, Yorkshire Dales (59%)
4. Drumnadrochit, Scottish Highlands (51%)
5. Falmouth, Cornwall (49%)
6. Llanberis, Snowdonia (47%)
7. Anglesey, Wales (46%)
8. Keswick, Lake District (38%)
9. Brockenhurst, New Forest (37%)
10. Isle of Skye, Scotland (36%)

With the hugely popular Boardmasters fast approaching in August, it’s good news for anyone heading to Newquay in Cornwall in their Tesla or other EV.

The popular coastal gem was found to have a massive 627 public EV charging points in total.

The research also found there are at least 20 hotels offering EV charging in Newquay.

Nearby Falmouth also ranked highly in fifth place overall.

Surprisingly, rural and remote locations were found to offer better accessibility for EV drivers than drivers might assume.

The town of Grassington in the Yorkshire Dales made it into the top three overall, thanks to North Yorkshire holding the record for the highest volume of EV chargers available to tourists, at 664.

Not far behind and making up the rest of the top five is Drumnadrochit in the Scottish Highlands, ranking fourth.

A true remote haven, it’s easy to think travellers would be cut off from the world here, however the research found there is generally good EV accessibility.

Like to be beside the seaside? Here’s where you need to go

While it may be rare, when the sun does make an appearance there are few things Brits love more than a trip to the seaside. Getting caught without charge after a day at the beach is never going to be ideal, though.

Looking solely at locations with a beach or seafront, Edinburgh comes out on top followed by another appearance from Newquay, then Liverpool.

In this ranking, we see larger cities appear, typically with a better infrastructure for electric vehicle charging, so they’re usually considered a safe bet.

The top UK EV-friendly seaside destinations (all):

1. Edinburgh (78%)
2. Newquay, Cornwall (71%)
3. Liverpool (67%)
4. Brighton (62%)
5. Scarborough (61%)
6. Cardiff (51%)
7. Newcastle (49%)
8. Anglesey, Wales (46%)
9. Aberdeen (45%)
10. Isle of Skye (36%)

If you are looking to escape the hustle and bustle of the city, Big Motoring World also found the best seaside location for electric vehicles away from the big cities:

The top UK EV-friendly seaside destinations (non-city only):

1. Newquay, Cornwall (71%)
2. Scarborough (61%)
3. Anglesey, Wales (46%)
4. Isle of Skye (36%)
5. Llandudno, Wales (34%)

For those planning a UK getaway with an electric vehicle this year planning in advance is essential. Ian Hajyzamanali, Head of Marketing, at Big Motoring World said: “Just like being caught short with an empty tank, ending up stuck somewhere with no charge and no charging point nearby is a sure-fire way to ruin a great staycation.

“Before heading off on your break, set aside some time for research to work out whether your destination has what you need for your electric vehicle. If you find it’s a little lacking, don’t panic. Our advice would be to choose a route where you can access plenty of charge en route, then consider limiting the amount you’re driving whilst you’re there if you’re concerned about running out of charge.”