NC500 caravan park wins a nine-month season after 50 years

A seafront caravan park on the North Coast 500 has won permission to open for nine months of the year, ending a seven-month season fixed in the mid-1970s. Highland Council has approved a Section 42 application at Gruinard Bay Caravan Park in Laide, Ross-shire, so the park can operate from the beginning of March to the end of November inclusive. For static and lodge owners anywhere in the UK, the story is a reminder that season dates are not only a marketing choice. They often sit in planning conditions and the site licence, and they can shape how appealing a park feels to buyers and guests.

This post follows the Ross-shire Journal report (28 September 2026) and Highland Council's published delegated decision. It does not turn one Wester Ross consent into a rule for every coastal park.

What Highland Council approved

Gruinard Bay Caravan Park had been restricted to operating between April and October inclusive since 1976. The park lodged a planning application to vary that historic condition, citing sustained and growing demand linked to the North Coast 500 route and the value of shoulder-season visitors.

Highland Council planning officers approved the application under delegated powers. The decision notice summarised in the council's delegated decisions list (decision date 23 September 2026) records:

• Application reference 26/03169/S42 (Section 42).
• Description: application under Section 42 to vary Condition 5 of Planning Permission 1975/616/RC.
• Location: Gruinard Bay Caravan Park, Laide, Achnasheen, IV22 2ND.
• Applicant: Gruinard Bay Caravan Park (Dale Irving named as the park contact on the decision list).
• Decision: The Highland Council Grant Permission.
• Case officer: Shanshvi Naik.

The practical effect, as reported by the Ross-shire Journal, is that the business can now operate from the beginning of March until the end of November inclusive. That adds two months to the previous seven-month window and creates a nine-month season.

Dale and Kristina Irving, as quoted in the Journal, said the move would support "long-term business sustainability, enabling continuous reinvestment into high-quality site infrastructure and local employment."

Why officers called it a modest change

Planning officer Shanshvi Naik's published reasoning, as quoted in the Journal, is worth reading carefully if you own on a season-limited park. Key points included:

• The two-month extension was considered a modest amendment responding to increasing tourism demand while improving the viability of the existing tourism use.
• The proposal did not involve any intensification of the established use.
• Extending into the shoulder seasons would help accommodate visitors when Highland demand remains strong, and would help distribute visitor activity over a longer period.
• Impacts were considered negligible. There was no physical expansion of the site, and no change to the scale, character or nature of the existing use.
• The site already had established infrastructure (access, water, drainage, waste collection and site management), so the longer season was not expected to place a significant additional burden on local services.
• Because no layout or appearance changes were proposed, officers saw no material impact on landscape character.

In short, the council treated this as a calendar change to an established use, not a new caravan park by another name.

What season limits mean for owners and buyers

Season length is easy to overlook when you fall for a view. It should sit near the top of any buying or selling checklist.

Planning conditions. Many parks have operating months written into historic permissions. Changing them usually needs a formal variation (as here, a Section 42 application), not only a management decision.

Site licence. Local authority site licences can also set opening periods. Planning and licensing should be read together. Do not assume one document overrides the other without checking.

Pitch agreement. Your licence agreement with the park may restate season dates, closed periods, and rules about staying or visiting out of season. Those clauses affect how you use the home you own.

Buyer appeal. A longer lawful season can make a park more attractive to guests and to purchasers who want spring and autumn breaks, especially on routes such as the NC500. That can support demand. It does not automatically raise every private asking price.

Fees and services. A longer season can mean more months of activity on site. Whether that changes fee structures is a separate contractual question. Do not invent a link that your agreement does not make.

If you are buying, ask for the planning decision notice, the current site licence, and the pitch agreement before you commit. If you are selling, be ready to explain the true open season clearly. Surprises on closed months are a common reason buyers pause.

Soft takeaway for owners watching season news

Gruinard Bay's consent is local, specific and limited to varying one historic condition. It is still a useful prompt for anyone owning on a park with a short season, or considering a purchase on the NC500 and similar routes: check the calendar in the paperwork, not only in the brochure.

If you own a static caravan or lodge and you want a free, no-obligation sense of value while you weigh season length, fees and location, Static Caravan Buyer is happy to talk it through. We aim to make contact within 24 hours and, where we can proceed, to make an offer within 48 hours. Those are response aims, not guarantees. Payment is made on collection day before the caravan is loaded.

Call 0800 644 5000 or visit staticcaravanbuyer.com for a free, no-obligation valuation.

Key takeaways

• Highland Council has granted permission for Gruinard Bay Caravan Park in Laide to operate from March to November inclusive, ending an April to October limit dating from 1976.
• The decision (26/03169/S42, 23 September 2026) varies Condition 5 of Planning Permission 1975/616/RC under delegated powers.
• Officers described the change as modest, with no physical expansion and negligible infrastructure impact.
• The park cited NC500-related shoulder-season demand and long-term reinvestment and local employment.
• For owners and buyers, season dates often sit in planning conditions and the site licence. Check them before you buy or sell.

Static Caravan Buyer Team