Isle of Wight Self-Guided Walking Tour 2024/2025

You’re welcome to check in from 4pm onwards. 

Accommodation: Freshwater Bay House (D)

Check out the Discovery Point Library at the country house – stocked with maps, walks and local area information.

For stays of 3 nights, you will have 2 days at your choice.

For stays of 4 nights, you will have 3 days at your choice.

Accommodation: Freshwater Bay House (B, L, D)

Enjoy a leisurely breakfast before making your way home. (B)

Enjoy some relaxed, peaceful walks along the coast, see some well-known landmarks or visit the quaint villages in the Isle of Wight.

• Alum Bay to the Needles – 2 miles
• Tennyson Monument – 3 miles
• St Catherine’s Down – 3 miles
• Yarmouth to Freshwater Bay – 3 miles
• Freshwater Bay to Yarmouth – 3 miles
• Alum Bay to Freshwater Bay via the Needles – 3 miles

Some longer walks on inland and coastal paths. Experience the true flavour of the island as you follow these varied routes.

• Compton Bay – 5 miles
• The Pepperpot & Gore Cliff – 5 miles
• St Boniface Down – 5 miles
• Compton Down – 7 miles
• West Yar Valley – 7 miles
• The Needles – 7 miles

For those who love to stride out with some longer routes following the coastal path and inland trails.

• Shorwell to Freshwater Bay – 8 miles
• Shorwell to Freshwater Bay via the Coast – 10 miles
• Tennyson Trail – 10 miles
• West Wight Circuit – 12 miles
• Brighstone and SW Coast – 13 miles
• Wight’s Highest Hills – 15 miles

Just off the coast of Southern England, the Isle of Wight is a delightful haven away from the bustle of the
mainland, easily reached by ferry or even the world’s only commercial hovercraft service (foot passengers
only). Broadly diamond shaped, the island is 25 miles long and 15 miles wide. This makes it ideally sized for a week’s walking and exploration.

Freshwater Bay is a small semi-circular cove at the foot of the garden of Freshwater Bay House. There is a
pebble beach here and sandy beaches approximately 3 miles away at Totland Bay or Colwell Bay. Shops and banks are located in Freshwater village, about 30 minutes’ walk away. The house is located at the foot of Tennyson Down, a popular walking route which leads to The Needles and Alum Bay.

The small harbour town of Yarmouth is located three miles north of Freshwater Bay; either a 10-minute drive or a pleasant 1-hour walk away, following the path of the River Yar. It can also be reached using the ‘Needles Breezer’ open-top bus. Yarmouth has a selection of small shops and pubs, and there’s always a bustle of activity around the harbour. Yarmouth’s Tudor castle is also worth a visit.

Queen Victoria’s island residence, managed by English Heritage, is located near East Cowes at the north of the island. Enjoy the lavish interiors and take time to explore the extensive grounds which slope down to the Solent. Osborne House is about 40 minutes drive from Freshwater Bay. During the main season (May to Sept) we offer an excursion to Osborne on most Wednesdays.

A fine medieval castle situated near Newport in the heart of the island. The castle’s most famous ‘resident’ was King Charles I, who was imprisoned here after the English Civil War. Walk around the impressive walls and visit the castle’s famous well where donkeys are used to raise the water using a large treadmill. Carisbrooke Castle is around 20 minutes’ drive from Freshwater Bay and can also be reached direct using the number 12 bus. Alternatively, it is possible to walk here right from the door of Freshwater Bay House by following the Tennyson Trail (approx. 9.5 miles).

Alum Bay is world-famous for its multi-coloured sand cliffs where 21 different shades of sand have been
naturally created from various minerals. There is a chairlift down the cliff to the beach which gives amazing views of the sands and across the Solent. On the cliff top there are various other visitor attractions including a glass-blowing workshop and obligatory sand shop where visitors can fill glass ornaments with their choice of sand. Alum Bay can be reached on foot directly from Freshwater Bay house or on a 15-minute ride by public bus.

Step back in time and ride this vintage steam railway from Wootton to Smallbrook Junction. The railway has a particularly historic collection of locomotives and rolling stock, including many wooden 4-wheeled carriages dating from the the 19th Century. The main station is at Havenstreet where you’ll also find a museum and the line’s workshops. The Isle of Wight Steam Railway is about 45 minutes’ drive away from Freshwater Bay. It can also be reached by local bus, via Newport.

The Blackgang Chine fantasy theme park is a big hit with children of all ages. Attractions include Cowboy
village, ‘Fantasyland’, maze and the giant snakes and ladders. Adults may also enjoy the maritime exhibition and working sawmill. Blackgang is 20 minutes’ drive from Freshwater Bay and in summer can be reached using the ‘Island Coaster’ bus.

The island’s rich climate enables Mediterranean and sub-tropical plants to prosper. Enjoy magnificent floral displays and relaxing gardens based on geographical parts of the world at Ventnor’s Botanical Gardens and keep an eye out for the garden’s resident wall lizards. Ventnor is 30 minutes’ drive from Freshwater Bay and in Summer can be reached using the ‘Island Coaster’ bus.

This Grade I listed windmill is the only surviving windmill on the Isle of Wight, now managed by the National Trust. It was built around 1700 and closed in 1913. It has four floors to explore and most of its original machinery is still in situ. The windmill was famously painted by JMW Turner in 1795. There are some lovely countryside walks near the windmill which sits on the Bembridge and Yar River Trail in the east of the island about a 45-minute drive away from Freshwater Bay House.