Isle of Wight Holidays

The Isle of Wight is the perfect place to enjoy a holiday at any time of year. The island scenery is very diverse and varies from sandy beaches through wooded glades to bracing hills. There are fascinating attractions for all ages. and plenty of sporting facilities but the island has always been that special place for a great beach holiday.

The Isle of Wight is famous as a summer holiday destination, being the UK sunshine record holder year after year. Consequently there is a wide variety of holiday accommodation available to suit all tastes and budgets.

What to do on your Isle of Wight Holiday

There is much to do on the Isle of Wight in all seasons and all weathers. If you are looking for that adrenaline rush there is surfing, sailing, paragliding, horse riding, quadbikes and rib rides in the Solent. For those seeking quiet and relaxation there are many historic buildings and museums, secluded hillsides and beaches to explore. For family holidays there are many attractions for the children from adventure parks to a dinosaur museum, you can even hunt for fossils yourself along the island's famous fossil coast or just relax on the sandy beaches or try your hand at watersports. Click the links to explore...

Cycling on the Isle of Wight

The Isle of Wight is the ideal place to head if you enjoy cycling, on or off-road. If you venture "over the water", you'll love the riding. Off road, its a real mixed bag of chalky descents, rocky/rooty singletrack, hellish climbs - in fact, you name it, we've probably got it! On road, we have miles of quiet country lanes and small roads to potter along. Whether on or off road, there is also a wealth of great pubs and cafes along the way for refuelling and plenty of cycle friendly accommodation to be had. See the Cycling the Wight

Walking on the Isle of Wight

The Isle of Wight is a wonderful place if you like walking in the fresh air. The scenery is magnificent and you can vary your walks as the mood takes you, sometimes on the high ground with wonderful views, sometimes the sea-shore along the sand or amongst the rocks. Being an island, whichever way the wind is blowing you can always select a sheltered walk.  See Walk the Wight

Sailing on the Isle of Wight

The Isle of Wight is world-famous for sailing and yachting. It is steeped in history and was one of the originating locations for the sport of Yacht Racing. The Yacht Club was founded in 1815 and now more famously known as The Royal Yacht Squadron. Between the Isle of Wight and the mainland of England lie the waters of the Solent. This area of varied coastline and fierce tidal streams has been the breeding ground for world-beating sailors and is the home for many cruising yachtsmen. The Solent is about 20 miles from end to end, varying in width from about 3 miles to less than half a mile by Hurst Castle.This wonderful playground is sheltered from the swells of the English Channel by the Isle of Wight and it is populated by all sorts of pleasurecraft during the summer months - from sleek ocean racing yachts, to pocket cruisers, from canoes to the world's fastest powerboats. When these are added to the commercial shipping, tankers, containers ships and ferries from Southampton and the might of the British Navy from Portsmouth, it is a truly remarkable spectacle.
See Sailing on the Isle of Wight

Sporting activities on the Isle of Wight

The Isle of Wight is ideal for many outdoor sports.It has the home of yachting at Cowes and is a favourite location for hang and paragliding and mountain biking. See a list of sporting activities on the Isle of Wight

Isle of Wight Pubs and Eateries

There is much to do on the Isle of Wight in all seasons and weathers. See a list of pubs and eateries on the Isle of Wight

Isle of Wight Geology and Fossil Hunting

The Island's beaches are the best places to collect fossils and as many of these are located in the Island's Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty fossil collecting here is a special and enjoyable experience at any time of year . What's more, the cliffs are constantly subject to erosion by wind and waves so there is always something new to find. However, due account must be taken of the tides and weather to ensure that you are not cut off or swept out to sea and it is important that nothing is done which might damage the Island's geological and palaeontological heritage. So, be safe and follow the Geologists' Association's Geological Fieldwork Code. See Fossil Hunting

Isle of Wight Beaches

Below is a list of beaches on the Isle of Wight and their general location.

South-East Coast

Sandown Bay
Shanklin Beach
Ventnor Beach
Whitecliff Bay

South-West Coast

Compton Bay
Atherfield Beach
Freshwater Bay

North-West Coast

Alum Bay
Totland Bay
Colwell Bay
Norton Beach
Gurnard Bay
Cowes Parade

North-East Coast

Ryde Beach
Appley Beach, Ryde
Seaview Beach
Priory Bay
St Helens Beach
Bembridge Beach

Places of Interest

There are hundreds of Isle of Wight attractions to visit on your holiday. Our places of interest page lists just some of them.

Where to stay on the Isle of Wight

Many of the Isle of Wight hotels are situated along the sunshine coast of Sandown and Shanklin and are aimed at beach holidays and family holidays. For the business or leisure traveller there are hotels located in all the main towns of the island. See our Isle of Wight map for location details.

Isle of Wight bed and breakfast accommodation ranges from large catered businesses that in times past would have been known as hotels, but are now called bed and breakfast accommodation if they do not offer an evening meal, to small farmhouses and family homes that offer bed and breakfast in their own home.

For holidaymakers seeking Isle of Wight self-catering accommodation the choice is from superb converted barns in wonderful country surroundings, to holiday cottages, to bijou holiday chalets right by the beach, ideal for that family holiday with small children. Many of the self catering chalets are on holiday parks that offer swimming pools, restaurants, entertainment and shops.

For holidaymakers bringing their own accommodation there are many camping and touring parks, from simple tent sites by the sea to award-winning touring parks with all facilities.

So whatever holiday accommodation you are looking for you can find it in our Isle of Wight Guide, established in 1996. We have an accommodation search on every page so just select the type of holiday acccommodation you are looking for and the area you wish to stay and we will list all the matching accommodation.