To gather the best wild locations in the UK to visit, we pulled together a longlist of over 100 nature based locations from across the UK, judging them against two sets of criteria which were used to gauge both their 'visitor rating' and 'wildness'. The average of these visitor rating scores and wildness scores were then used to give a final score out of 100 that determines the best, undiscovered, wild locations (lesser known locations of natural beauty that are perfect for an adventure).
Our longlist of nature based locations was compiled by using travel listicles that featured wild locations or places of natural beauty. The full list of sources can be found in the sources tab.
To gather the visitor rating scores for each location in the list, the following metrics were used. For each they were then given a score, the average rating receiving a score 100, then those above the average rating receiving a higher score and those below the average rating receiving a lower score.
1. Google Rating - Google.co.uk
2. TripAdvisor Rating - Tripadvisor.co.uk
To then gather the wildness score for each location in the list, the following metrics were used. For each they were then given a score out 100, with the highest number receiving 100 and the lowest 0.
1. No. of Google Reviews - Google.co.uk
2. No. of TripAdvisor Reviews - Tripadvisor.co.uk
3. UK Search Volume - SEMRush.com
4. No. of Instagram Location Tags - Instagram.com
5. No. of Instagram Posts for Main Hashtag - Instagram.com
Finally, using the nationalparks.uk website to compile a list of the 15 national parks found within the UK, we used the below metrics to also create an index of the most popular national parks. With each ranking more highly the higher the amount of figures it had for said metrics.
1. Google Rating - Google.co.uk
2. No. of Google Reviews - Google.co.uk
3. No. of TripAdvisor Reviews & Opinions - Tripadvisor.co.uk
4. UK Search Volume - SEMRush.com
5. No. of Instagram Location Tags - Instagram.com
6. No. of Instagram Posts for Main Hashtag - Instagram.com
7. No. of Domestic Tourism Trips* - Statista.com
All data was collected during the following dates: 07/06/2021 - 11/06/2021
*Please note for the New Forest and Northumberland National Parks, visitor figures were sourced from their respective websites instead as the Domestic Tourism Trips data set was missing their figures. These sources can be found in the sources tab.
To see the full data set, click here.