Tag: Isle of Wight holidays

  • We’ve Booked A Holiday

    Yet again we are returning to the Isle of Wight for our summer holiday and our first as a family of four. I’m very excited. We’ve had great holidays at Park Dean Resorts Landguard Holiday Park on Eastern side of the Island but this time we are changing things up and staying North at Thorness Bay.

    We’ve booked an extra wide caravan for this trip because we need the space with a pushchair, cot and highchair clogging up the space. As well as the need for more clothes, nappies and all the extra’s that an, at the time, eight month old baby will need. It was a great price thanks to the recent January sale and a low deposit so we were able to secure it nice and quickly. I’m really excited. Ideally I wanted one of the beautiful lodges with a hot tub however we’ve had to choose our dates carefully with Adam’s work so that he can take minimal time off. It’s also during term time because it was hundreds of £’s cheaper but still in July where kids are mostly doing things like sports day and it happens to fall on a week Evie has an inset day which helps avoid her missing too much actual learning.

    Beach and Sea from Sandown, Isle of Wight

    We’ve not had a chance to visit the north side of the island before so I’m looking forward to going to the Alpaca farm and pizzeria. We will be closer to Newport which has a big soft play area and hopefully Adam will be driving so we can have access to a car rather than relying on the train, ferry and taxi’s for our trip. It also means we can do our self catering shop at Aldi rather than the on site shop which is usually quite expensive.

    We are trying to keep it a secret from Evangeline so that we can surprise her as she will be getting a week from school. We are hoping to get there a little earlier even if our caravan isn’t ready so we can start using the facilities and entertainment earlier than we usually would. Hopefully we will be swimming every day, getting down to the little private bay area and making the most of the local attractions too. If we do have a car sorted by then and Adam has passed his driving test we’re hoping to drive down to the South of the island too as it will be much easier than doing the route by bus.

  • Top 7 things to do on Isle of Wight

    Top 7 things to do on Isle of Wight

    What is Isle of Wight like?

    The Isle of Wight is an island of the coast of Hampshire with direct ferry access from Southampton and Portsmouth. It’s very easy to get to and for me, it’s like another little world. We had our first family holiday there with Park Resorts in October 2014 despite living in the county for the majority of my life. I want to introduce my daughter to plenty of different places that I never went to as a child, especially places quite local to home. My partner used to visit the Isle of Wight a lot as a child and loved each of his trips there. As it’s part of England, of course it has our beautiful British weather but it also has lots of wildlife, beaches, hills and fun attractions for families. It’s a really beautiful place and features lots of exciting things to do.

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    Getting Cosy in our Caravan

    We stayed in Shanklin when we stayed with Park Resorts and it was a great holiday. We were there for a week and took advantage of seeing as many sights as we possibly could which can be tricky without a car. There are plenty of bus routes around the Island throughout the summer but this dwindle down in the colder months and the train only runs from Ryde down to Shanklin. As you can come over by passenger and car ferry having access to a car is really helpful as it means you can see a lot more if the Island without relying on public transport. When we went in October the train was running fine down to Shanklin however the buses were a little less frequent. We were still able to use the bus transport to get to Newport.

    7 Things To Do On Isle of Wight

    Top Attractions for Families

    Isle of Wight Zoo

    We had an amazing time at the Isle of Wight zoo after a walk along the beautiful coastline from Shanklin all the way up to Sandown. It was a really long walk but we enjoyed exploring the zoo and seeing all the animals there. Zoo’s are always great for families and a chance to get up close and personal with the animals.

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    Owl & Monkey Sanctuary

    This is located near Newport and is a large, open space. It was incredibly quiet when we went due to the rain but it was a really lovely place and a great chance to see a huge variety of monkeys and owls in all their enclosures. Throughout the day lots of demo’s go on and on our visit we had a lot of chats with the keepers who were very knowledgeable. They also had some very tasty cream teas in the on site cafe.

    Coastline and Beaches

    When we visited the tide was right in and splashing up the sides of the path however there was a great stretch of coastline which is beautiful to walk across in the sunshine and plenty of midway stops for ice cream. Shanklin to Sandown has plenty of sandy bays for a quick play.

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    Robin Hill Adventure Park

    This is one place we will be heading to on our next holiday to the Isle of Wight, it sounds beautiful and is a place my partner absolutely loved to go to as a child. Plenty of attractions, animals and places to explore all over the national park.

    Blackgang Chine

    The place of imagination, according to their website, and my partner. This was another big hit for him as a child and a place I think my daughter will absolutely love. Definitely on our destination wish list.

    Isle of Wight Attractions & Events

    Shanklin Chine

    This was one of my favourite places to visit on our trip. It’s a beautiful walkway filled with trees, beautiful flowers and waterfalls. We really loved it and my daughter firmly believes it’s a place to look for fairies.

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    Isle of Wight Festival

    If you love music festivals then the Isle of Wight has one every year and it’s such a beautiful place it’s worth going and making a holiday out of it. You can camp or stay in some of the nearby hotels.

    Where is your favourite holiday and what do you love to do as a family?

    Cuddle Fairy

     

     

     

     

     

     

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