The Isles of Scilly offers a huge range of activities to choose from, or a place to sit and relax while you soak up the atmosphere of the archipelago. Island hopping, wildlife trips, watersports, cycling, horse riding and dining out are just some things you can do on Scilly. For inspiration and to help plan your trip click on the links below to look at what each island had to offer and visit the official Isles of Tourism page 'Visit Isles of Scilly'.

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To many, the pleasure of a holiday is spontaneity and freedom which works well on Scilly in that very few activities need pre-booking. However…in recent years the restaurants have been getting increasingly booked up for evening meals and we strongly recommend that if you want to eat out some evenings you should book well in advance.

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To get you started, here are some perfect days for our family on Scilly. Of course there are too many amazing places and eateries to mention them all so make sure you go off-piste and find your own favourites too!:

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St Mary’s part 1: You need at least one day to potter around the island. Perhaps a walk round the garrison walls to start the day, or some shopping in Hugh Town, before taking the coastal path up to Juliet’s Garden for lunch with a view (of course stopping at galleries on the way – you’ll spot plenty of Peter Smith’s work on the walls of Wingletang). In the afternoon some of us might sail or paddleboard at Porth Mellon and some might relax on Porthressa whilst the children paddle, scramble around rockpools and hunt for shells. Tom will try to fit in a round of golf at the most picturesque of courses, and after a busy day we’d probably settle on takeaway fish and chips for supper.

 

St Mary’s part 2: Hiring bikes is always a favourite activity, that way it takes no time to get up to the perfect views from Bronze Age Bant’s Carn, and it’s worth the walk down to the white sands of Bar Point. Continuing the cycle round the top of the island we love to eat lunch at Carn Vean café (the best ploughman’s ever) before spending the afternoon swimming and seal spotting at Pelistry. Cycling back via Old Town you can pop into a few more galleries – if you like some of the pottery at Wingletang then don’t miss John Bordeaux’s place! Tea looking over Old Town Bay, or some amazing cake from Longstone Lodge & Cafe if you’re not still full of lunch, is a good way to round up the day.

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St Mary’s restaurants – there are lots to choose from in addition to those mentioned above! Our current favourite is On the Quay, which has a great atmosphere and amazing cocktails. For a bit of posh you can’t beat Star Castle and for something more relaxed, just a stone’s throw from Wingletang, Dibble and Grub is delicious and right on the beach.

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Island Hopping on the glorious traditional open-decked tripper boats is easy and one of the most fun aspects to a holiday in IoS.  Boats go daily and the exact timings are displayed on boards next to the Atlantic hotel, and on the quay (usually leaving about 10.15am or 2pm, and returning at either 3.45pm or 4.45pm). There are also a range of trips to see wildlife, Bishops Rock lighthouse, and supper boat trips to the off-islands. You can buy tickets at the time of travel from the kiosk on the quay and there’s no need to book ahead.

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St Agnes: All the islands are special to us, but St Agnes is especially so as it’s the location of Wingletang Down, that our house is named after. St Agnes is both rugged and pretty, with an iconic white lighthouse  and stunning views over the Western Rocks towards America. High points for us are the sandbar beach, the walk over to Troytown Farm for an incredible locally made ice-cream, and a pint or glass of white with a view at the Turk’s Head pub. St Agnes is also the destination for our favourite evening boat trip – a sunset walk, pub supper and looking out for phosphorescence in the dark water on the way home.

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Bryher: This is a beautiful, small island and the setting for Michael Morpurgo’s amazing book ‘Why the Wales Came’. In good weather, and with the right tides, you can sometimes combine half a day on Bryher with a visit to Samson, which is uninhabited. And at a few very low tides each year you can walk from here over to Tresco. When we go to Bryher we love to wander over to Rushy Bay and visit Richard Pierce’s studio and the Bryher gallery. As well as Richard’s beautiful paintings they sell lots of other lovely art and craft (including textiles by the brilliant Holly Woodman who made us an amazing lino print of Wingletang which is featured on the placemats at the house, amongst other things). We’d usually have some lunch at the Hell Bay hotel, or Olivia’s Kitchen, and then perhaps pick up some fish to cook back at Wingletang on the way to catch the boat home.

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Tresco: This privately-owned island has a different atmosphere to the other off-islands, but it is no less beautiful or fun-filled. It is also home to the world-famous Abbey Gardens which are well worth a visit, and some great history at Cromwell’s and King Charles’s castles. Some of our favourite Scilly views are from the beaches on the north-east of the island overlooking Tean and St Martins – and there’s no better place to enjoy them than from the terrace of the Ruin Beach Café. Tresco is usually a beach day for us as there are so many amazing bays to choose from with soft, white sand and crystal clear water. If the boat back is leaving from Carn Near Quay, make sure you leave plenty of time to walk there as it’s always further than you think!

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St Martin’s: We often choose our best weather day to go to St Martin’s because of childhood memories of sunny picnics on Great Bay – an expensive stretch of white sand that is perfect for sandcastle building and swimming. Due to the tides you are typically dropped off at one end of the island and collected from the other, but the walk is no chore as you almost fall into the postcard views across the archipelago. If you need a reason to drag yourself off the beach at the end of the afternoon, then a cream tea at Polreath café is pretty persuasive.