A Trip to the Isle of Wight

The Isle of Wight is hands down one of the most beautiful of England’s counties that I have ever visited. I went for the first time back in 2022, predominantly for the festival but also to spend a few days seeing the Island and all it has to offer. Last week I returned with my sister in tow for a few days and it is safe to say that a third trip will be on the cards in the future. 

Getting There

First, let's talk about travel to get there. The ferries from Southampton port run to East Cowes on the island pretty much every hour- they aren’t massively expensive and are honestly the most efficient and easy form of public transport I’ve ever used to get somewhere. 

Being in Hull, the drive to Southampton is the longest part of the journey, taking between five and six hours traffic depending, but the ferry crossing itself takes just an hour and there are plenty of places to sit, chill and enjoy something to eat and drink whilst you do so. 

The first time I visited, I stayed in Bembridge on the east side of the island, and this time didn't stray too far away from there, setting base in Shanklin at The Q hotel. 

Shanklin itself is a small but pretty coastal spot with a beautiful esplanade and beach to enjoy when the weather allows you to. We were super lucky visiting in this temperamental June to have been blessed with sun and warmth on every day we visited, so lots of time was spent walking around the beach area. 

Shanklin is also home to the beautiful Shanklin Chine gorge which is inexpensive to walk around and an incredibly pretty walk. Saying that, the whole island is filled with stunning walks and public footpaths, especially coastal paths. 

Day One 

On our first full day, we started with a wander around Shanklin, before heading to Sandown, just ten minutes or so up from Shanklin to see the animal rescue sanctuary. We are both animal lovers so this was a no brainer, and somewhere that I hadn’t been on my previous island visit. 

The sanctuary is small but cute and we had a lovely time seeing the animals and learning about the work they do. It was fairly expensive to get into, given how small it is, but well worth a visit as all the money goes to a good cause. 

After this, we headed over to Ventor to explore the beach and this one definitely did not disappoint. The clouds were slightly out but the beach itself was still stunning, and we sat there for a good couple of hours just relaxing and I had a lovely swim in the sea too.

Just down from the beach is a gorgeous coastal path walk that takes you to all these little rock pools and that’s where we headed next- it was truly gorgeous though the walk was a challenge in the sun! 

On our return to the hotel we made plans to visit this little Italian restaurant that we saw on our previous evening in Shanklin. It was heaving when we saw it which we took as a good sign and wow the food did not disappoint. I had one of their specials that night- a crab penne pasta with a pate and Abi had a pizza which looked just as good as mine. The restaurant was called Pavoratti’s and was clearly popular with the locals, with lots of people coming in and chatting with the owner and staff. 

The sky had well and truly cleared by this time and it was looking like a gorgeous sunset was upon us, so we drove about twenty minutes up to Culver Down- a chalk down that, due to its high position, offers stunning pretty much 360 degree views of the island and surrounding water, especially at sunset. 

I love a sunset anyway but this was especially spectacular and we got there just as it was going that glowy orange, watching it until it disappeared which, surprisingly, didn’t take that long at all. 

Day Two 

This day was probably the one I was most excited for, because, due to it being the best day for weather, we had planned a trip to the very western point of the island to The Needles. 

This was definitely the longest drive right to the other side of the island, about 40 minutes, but it is so worth it. I actually visited The Needles the last time I visited the Isle of Wight and knew I had to take Abi to see it. 

The Needles are three stacks of chalk in a row that rise out of the sea, and to get down to the coast where they are you have to take a chair lift down to the sea front, where you can then get on a boat that takes you right out to the Needles and the lighthouse that stands proudly with them. 

The chair lifts look precarious but they are good fun, just don’t look down ha. The views take your mind off the fact that you are dangling in the air- they are simply stunning. Once down on the bay we decided to get on one of the boats, that was quite inexpensive, and had a tour out to the landmark, hearing about their history and the condition of them and the surrounding cliffs today. 

The trip out is well worth doing, and the guides on the boats are so knowledgeable so it is incredibly interesting to hear more about what you are looking at. Plus, if you love the water like I do, going out on the boat and watching the water sparkle under the sun is equally as spectacular. 

If you thought the chair lift down was bad, wait until you go back up…not my favourite part of the day but it is over quickly. Again, don’t look down! 

We had planned to visit Freshwater and go and sit on the beach, but due to numerous road closures and the heat making us slightly impatient when it came to finding somewhere to park, we instead decided to head back to Shanklin and sit on the beach there for the rest of the afternoon, reading our books and having a swim. 

We decided to stay down there for dinner too and ate at one of the waterfront pubs which had surprisingly good food, and of course enjoyed a gin whilst we looked over at the water. 

Day Three 

Today was our last day on the island which I was definitely upset about- something about the weather being so perfect and sunny and being surrounded by water just makes me feel so much at peace and it’s lovely. 

We had a final wander around Shanklin and on the beachfront in the morning before packing up and heading into Cowes which is just a few minutes away from where we were catching the ferry home later that day. 

Cowes is absolutely beautiful and I can’t believe that I haven’t been here properly before. It is super quaint and full of pretty shops and lovely places to eat that are also all surrounded by water, and this is a place we chose to sit and have a final coffee, before heading over to East Cowes to catch the very quiet ferry home. 

There is almost so much to do in the Isle of Wight that you need multiple trips to do it all, and even though this is the second time I have visited, I will definitely be going again.