Near Aberdeen South (Cove) test centre
Rated demanding from its real manoeuvre load, 22 roundabouts and 20 turns across 77 navigation steps.
This is an independent 18.6 km practice loop near Aberdeen South (Cove) test centre, taking roughly 20 min to drive. It is NOT an official DVSA examiner route, the DVSA does not publish those, but it uses the same local roads and junction types an examiner is likely to choose.
On this route you’ll practise independent driving and sustained concentration. Driving it a few times before your test builds the muscle memory that frees up attention for observation and decision-making on the day.
The loop is anchored by 5 catalogued landmarks, including schools, stations, parks and shops, so you can navigate it from recognisable features rather than a memorised turn list. Rehearsing it in this way means that on test day the area already feels familiar, and your attention is free for the traffic rather than the map.
Whatever the route, your practical test follows the same national shape: an eyesight check, a couple of vehicle-safety questions, around forty minutes of general driving, one reversing manoeuvre chosen by the examiner, and roughly twenty minutes of independent driving following signs or a sat-nav. Practising on roads like these is how you make each of those elements feel routine rather than new.
Treat this route as practice, not a script. The value is not in repeating one fixed sequence but in getting comfortable with the road types, speed changes and junction patterns of the area around Aberdeen South (Cove) test centre, so that whatever order your examiner chooses on the day, none of it is unfamiliar. Drive it a few times, focus on smooth observation and planning, and it becomes one more stretch of road you already know, which is exactly the kind of preparation that turns nerves into confidence.
If you are practising with a supervising driver rather than an instructor, take it steadily: agree the manoeuvre spots in advance, keep to a comfortable pace, and stop to talk through anything that felt rushed. And remember the basics that apply on every road, mirrors before any change of speed or direction, signals in good time, and a following distance that gives you room to react. Those habits travel with you long after the test is passed.
What you’ll actually do on this loop, counted from its turn-by-turn directions.
This route helps you practise:
The full 77-step drive on real, named roads (about 19.1 km). An indicative practice loop, not an official DVSA route — the roads and junctions are real, the sequence is a rehearsal.
Drive northeast.
8 m
Turn right.
20 m
Turn left onto Moss Road.
Moss Road56 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Moss Road.
38 m
Exit the roundabout onto Moss Road.
Moss Road150 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto Gateway Drive.
24 m
Exit the roundabout onto Gateway Drive.
Gateway Drive148 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Wellington Road.
89 m
Exit the roundabout onto Wellington Road.
Wellington Road243 m
Turn right onto Cove Road.
Cove Road101 m
Keep right to stay on Cove Road.
Cove Road511 m
Keep straight to stay on Cove Road.
Cove Road515 m
Keep right to stay on Cove Road.
Cove Road256 m
Keep straight to stay on Cove Road.
Cove Road108 m
Keep straight to stay on Cove Road.
Cove Road306 m
Turn left onto Colsea Road.
Colsea Road47 m
Turn right to stay on Colsea Road.
Colsea Road77 m
Turn right to stay on Colsea Road.
Colsea Road168 m
Turn right onto Stoneyhill Terrace.
Stoneyhill Terrace163 m
Turn right to stay on Stoneyhill Terrace.
Stoneyhill Terrace114 m
Turn left onto Colsea Road.
Colsea Road68 m
Keep left to take Cove Road.
Cove Road346 m
Keep right to stay on Cove Road.
Cove Road256 m
Keep left to stay on Cove Road.
Cove Road588 m
Keep left to stay on Cove Road.
Cove Road120 m
Keep left to stay on Cove Road.
Cove Road107 m
Keep right to stay on Cove Road.
Cove Road313 m
Turn right onto Wellington Road.
Wellington Road462 m
Turn left onto Wellington Road/A956.
Wellington Road422 m
Keep left to stay on Wellington Road/A956.
Wellington Road104 m
Keep left to stay on A956.
A956174 m
Turn right to take the A92 ramp towards Kincorth/Garthdee/Aberdeen.
Stonehaven Road2.8 km
Make a right U-turn to stay on Stonehaven Road/A92.
Stonehaven Road781 m
Turn left onto Nigg Way.
Nigg Way182 m
Turn right onto Boyd Orr Avenue.
Boyd Orr Avenue247 m
Turn right onto Boyd Orr Place.
Boyd Orr Place55 m
Turn left to stay on Boyd Orr Place.
Boyd Orr Place13 m
Make a right U-turn to stay on Boyd Orr Place.
Boyd Orr Place13 m
Turn right to stay on Boyd Orr Place.
Boyd Orr Place55 m
Turn left onto Boyd Orr Avenue.
Boyd Orr Avenue122 m
Turn left onto Clerk Maxwell Crescent.
Clerk Maxwell Crescent135 m
Turn right to stay on Clerk Maxwell Crescent.
Clerk Maxwell Crescent86 m
Turn left onto Nigg Way.
Nigg Way64 m
Turn left onto Stonehaven Road/A92.
Stonehaven Road1.2 km
Keep left to stay on Stonehaven Road/A92.
Stonehaven Road107 m
Keep left to stay on Stonehaven Road/A92.
Stonehaven Road243 m
Keep left to stay on Stonehaven Road/A92.
Stonehaven Road105 m
Keep left to stay on A92.
A921.7 km
Take the Findon Junction exit towards Portlethen/Findon/Marywell.
102 m
Take the ramp on the right towards Portlethen/Findon/Marywell.
302 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 3rd exit towards A92/Aberdeen/Portlethen/Duffshill.
94 m
Exit the roundabout towards A92/Aberdeen/Portlethen/Duffshill.
165 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Cookston Road.
34 m
Exit the roundabout onto Cookston Road.
Cookston Road407 m
Turn left onto Mosside Avenue.
Mosside Avenue414 m
Turn right onto Haremoss Drive.
Haremoss Drive188 m
Turn right to stay on Haremoss Drive.
Haremoss Drive15 m
Make a right U-turn to stay on Haremoss Drive.
Haremoss Drive15 m
Turn left to stay on Haremoss Drive.
Haremoss Drive188 m
Turn left onto Mosside Avenue.
Mosside Avenue414 m
Turn right onto Cookston Road.
Cookston Road402 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit.
56 m
Exit the roundabout.
165 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit towards Marywell.
26 m
Exit the roundabout towards Marywell.
56 m
Keep left at the fork.
644 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 3rd exit onto Wellington Road.
41 m
Exit the roundabout onto Wellington Road.
Wellington Road395 m
Keep left to stay on Wellington Road.
Wellington Road427 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Gateway Drive.
87 m
Exit the roundabout onto Gateway Drive.
Gateway Drive230 m
Exit the roundabout onto Moss Road.
Moss Road150 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Moss Road.
35 m
Exit the roundabout onto Moss Road.
Moss Road56 m
Turn right.
20 m
Turn left.
8 m
You have arrived at your destination.
Directions for the Aberdeen South (Cove) · Residential practice loop loop. Always drive to the road and conditions you see, not the list — signs, signals and other traffic take priority.
These are the real named features along the loop, straight from our route catalogue. Use them to recognise where you are and to anticipate the hazard each one brings, not to memorise a fixed order.
Expect busier traffic, pick-ups and pedestrians around these.
Watch for 20 mph zones, crossings and children near these.
Pedestrian crossings and parked cars are common nearby.
Frequent stop-start traffic and pedestrians, keep your speed down.
Local junctions
Take each junction on its merits, good observation, clear signalling and the right speed on approach. Rehearse the sequence so nothing surprises you on the day.
Navigate by these 5 catalogued landmarks rather than a memorised turn list, an indicative loop, not an official DVSA route.
Cove Bay Kindergarten
Start near Cove Bay Kindergarten.
Cove Court
Continue to Cove Court.
Charleston Forest Park
Continue to Charleston Forest Park.
Flyover
Continue to Flyover.
Ewing Motors
Finish back near Ewing Motors, completing the loop.
26 roundabouts · 7 turns
35 roundabouts · 7 turns
30 roundabouts · 15 turns
14 roundabouts · 16 turns
This route is 18.6 km and takes about 20 min to drive at a steady learner pace. It is an independent practice loop near Aberdeen South (Cove) test centre, not an official DVSA route.