Near Monmouth test centre
Rated challenging from its real manoeuvre load, 9 roundabouts, 17 turns and 5 signalled junctions across 29 navigation steps.
This is an independent 78.6 km practice loop near Monmouth test centre, taking roughly 40 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.
Along the way you'll meet St. Thomas's Square. Knowing the approach, lane and exit at each one before you arrive is the difference between a planned manoeuvre and a last-second reaction, and last-second reactions are where avoidable faults come from.
On this route you’ll practise multiple roundabouts, dual-carriageway joins, national-speed roads, 20 mph zones, changing speed limits, residential manoeuvres, busy a-roads and independent driving. 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 20 catalogued landmarks, including pubs, churches, stations and named junctions, 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 Monmouth 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:
Road mix
The full 88-step drive on real, named roads (about 78.6 km). An indicative practice loop, not an official DVSA route — the roads and junctions are real, the sequence is a rehearsal.
Drive northeast.
22 m
Turn left.
12 m
Turn left onto Old Dixton Road.
Old Dixton Road154 m
Enter St. James' Square and take the 2nd exit onto St. James' Square/A466.
St. James' Square54 m
Exit the roundabout onto St. James' Square/A466. Continue on A466.
A466195 m
Turn left onto Priory Street/B4293. Continue on B4293.
B4293723 m
Turn left onto Blestium Street/B4293.
Blestium Street134 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto Blestium Street.
14 m
Exit the roundabout onto Blestium Street.
Blestium Street217 m
Turn right.
1 m
Make a right U-turn.
1 m
Turn left onto Blestium Street.
Blestium Street218 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto B4293.
25 m
Exit the roundabout onto B4293.
B4293162 m
Turn right onto Cinderhill Street/B4233.
Cinderhill Street188 m
Enter St. Thomas's Square and take the 1st exit onto St. Thomas's Square/B4233.
St. Thomas's Square24 m
Exit the roundabout onto St. Thomas's Square/B4233. Continue on B4233.
B4233147 m
Turn left onto Wonastow Road.
Wonastow Road638 m
Turn left onto Link Road.
Link Road910 m
Turn right onto Portal Road/B4293. Continue on B4293.
B4293876 m
Keep right at the fork.
38 m
Turn left.
13 m
Turn left onto B4293.
B42931.1 km
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto B4293.
30 m
Exit the roundabout onto B4293.
B429392 m
Turn left to take the A40 ramp.
A401.7 km
Enter the roundabout and take the 4th exit onto A40.
157 m
Exit the roundabout onto A40.
A4011.1 km
Take the Raglan exit.
A40902 m
Turn right.
37 m
Turn right onto A40.
A40257 m
Take the exit.
A4011.5 km
Enter the roundabout and take the 4th exit onto A40.
157 m
Exit the roundabout onto A40.
A40932 m
Turn left onto A466.
A466247 m
Move left onto Staunton Road/A4136.
Staunton Road5.2 km
Turn left onto Wellmeadow.
Wellmeadow80 m
Turn right onto Reddings Lane.
Reddings Lane105 m
Turn left onto Wellmeadow.
Wellmeadow89 m
Turn right onto Staunton Road/A4136.
Staunton Road5.2 km
Turn left onto Redbrook Road/A466.
Redbrook Road706 m
Turn left onto Wyesham Avenue.
Wyesham Avenue373 m
Turn left onto Wyesham Road.
Wyesham Road309 m
Turn right onto Hillcrest Road.
Hillcrest Road110 m
Turn right to stay on Hillcrest Road.
Hillcrest Road28 m
Make a right U-turn to stay on Hillcrest Road.
Hillcrest Road28 m
Turn right to stay on Hillcrest Road.
Hillcrest Road222 m
Turn left onto Justin's Hill.
Justin's Hill211 m
Turn left.
71 m
Turn left.
158 m
Turn left.
90 m
Turn right onto Justin's Hill.
Justin's Hill146 m
Turn left onto Highmeadow.
Highmeadow232 m
Turn left onto Blake Street.
Blake Street65 m
Turn left to stay on Blake Street.
Blake Street20 m
Make a right U-turn to stay on Blake Street.
Blake Street20 m
Turn right to stay on Blake Street.
Blake Street65 m
Turn right onto Highmeadow.
Highmeadow322 m
Turn left onto Wyesham Road.
Wyesham Road165 m
Turn right onto Wyesham Avenue.
Wyesham Avenue373 m
Turn right onto Redbrook Road/A466.
Redbrook Road706 m
Turn right onto Staunton Road/A4136.
Staunton Road120 m
Turn right onto Wyesham Road.
Wyesham Road977 m
Turn right onto Woodland View.
Woodland View184 m
Turn right onto Newland Way.
Newland Way159 m
Move right onto Woodland View.
Woodland View190 m
Turn left to stay on Woodland View.
Woodland View65 m
Turn left onto Wyesham Road.
Wyesham Road300 m
Turn left onto Wyesham Avenue.
Wyesham Avenue373 m
Turn right onto Redbrook Road/A466.
Redbrook Road706 m
Turn left to stay on A466.
A466247 m
Turn left onto A40.
A4010.2 km
Take the Raglan exit.
A40902 m
Turn right.
37 m
Turn right onto A40.
A40257 m
Take the exit.
A4011.5 km
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit.
18 m
Exit the roundabout.
39 m
Move left onto Dixton Road/A466.
Dixton Road667 m
Turn right onto Dixton Close.
Dixton Close62 m
Turn right to stay on Dixton Close.
Dixton Close273 m
Turn left onto The Gardens.
The Gardens421 m
Turn right onto Hereford Road/A466.
Hereford Road1.0 km
Turn left onto Oakfield Road.
Oakfield Road109 m
Turn left onto Agincourt Road.
Agincourt Road156 m
Turn left onto Highfield Road.
Highfield Road165 m
Turn right onto Hereford Road/A466. Continue on A466.
A4661.3 km
You have arrived at your destination.
Directions for the Monmouth · Route 8 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.
Decide your lane and exit on the approach to each of these, get set up early.
Expect busier traffic, pick-ups and pedestrians around these.
Useful navigation anchors on the loop.
Easy landmarks to navigate the loop by.
Frequent stop-start traffic and pedestrians, keep your speed down.
Multiple roundabouts
Approach in the correct lane, signal on the exit before yours, and keep checking your mirrors as you leave.
Dual-carriageway join
About 49.5 km of this loop is dual carriageway. Build your speed on the slip road, take an effective rearward observation, and merge without forcing other traffic to brake.
Changing speed limits
Limits change across this route (20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 70 mph). Watch for repeater signs and adjust early, examiners mark you down for carrying the wrong speed into a new limit.
Residential streets
Narrow residential roads mean parked cars, pedestrians and reduced visibility. Cover the brake, keep your speed down and be ready to give way.
Navigate by these 20 catalogued landmarks rather than a memorised turn list, an indicative loop, not an official DVSA route.
Castle Inn
Start near Castle Inn.
Church of St Thomas the Martyr
Continue to Church of St Thomas the Martyr.
Club
Continue to Club.
Green Dragon
Continue to Green Dragon.
Kings Head
Continue to Kings Head.
Monmouth Bus Station
Continue to Monmouth Bus Station.
Old Nags Head
Continue to Old Nags Head.
Punch House
Continue to Punch House.
Riverside Hotel
Continue to Riverside Hotel.
Robin Hood
Continue to Robin Hood.
St. Thomas's Square
Continue to St. Thomas's Square, taking the junction with good observation.
Overmonnow Garage
Continue to Overmonnow Garage.
Lidl
Continue to Lidl.
Mayhill Hotel
Continue to Mayhill Hotel.
Screwfix
Continue to Screwfix.
Topstak
Continue to Topstak.
White Horse Inn
Continue to White Horse Inn.
Morrisons Daily
Continue to Morrisons Daily.
Saint James
Continue to Saint James.
Monmouth Baptist Church
Finish back near Monmouth Baptist Church, completing the loop.
6 roundabouts · 19 turns · 5 sets of lights
4 roundabouts · 19 turns · 4 sets of lights
8 roundabouts · 13 turns · 5 sets of lights
9 roundabouts · 17 turns · 4 sets of lights
This route is 78.6 km and takes about 40 min to drive at a steady learner pace. It is an independent practice loop near Monmouth test centre, not an official DVSA route.