Curlethney Hill

The walk up Curlethney Hill rewards you with proper views across Aberdeenshire, and on a clear day you can see right across the landscape - no crowds, no nonsense, just a genuine hilltop experience near Cookney. It's the kind of summit that doesn't get overrun because there's no visitor centre or café, which suits some walkers perfectly and bores others rigid.

You're looking at maybe an hour or two depending on your fitness and how long you dawdle at the top, though locals clearly use it for quick evening strolls too. The terrain is straightforward rather than technical, so it's fine for families who don't mind a bit of uphill graft, and the kind of thing keen walkers will tick off without breaking a sweat. On a grey day it's forgettable, but catch it right and you've got something worth the effort.

Parked near Cookney, it makes sense as part of a broader Aberdeenshire walking trip. The holiday parks at Stonehaven - particularly the Queen Elizabeth Park site with its five-star rating - and Deeside Holiday Park both sit within easy striking distance if you're basing yourself in the area for a few days. Stonehaven's only four miles away, so you could easily combine this with coastal walks and the town itself. There's no admission charge as far as I can tell, and it's the sort of place you just turn up to - proper free-access Scottish hillwalking.