Isle of Wight - 5 days cycling

A great first day's ride takes you from the busy suburbs of Ryde and Cowes, to the beach resort of Gurnard and then through the pastoral elegance inland, winding through Newtown and some beautiful small villages before rolling into Yarmouth, a pretty, historic seaside town. On the way, the big attraction is Queen Victoria’s Osborne House. Newtown was the original capital of the island, it was attacked by the French in 1377 and never recovered. Finally, we push into the old town of Yarmouth with its small pier and castle as well as an attractive square and church.

A bike ride full of beauty with some hills, including an optional couple of steep hairpins up to the New Battery at The Needles Park. From there you can go no further, but it is a magnificent spot for views of the teeth-like stacks jutting out of the headland. 

The second half of the day is a bit easier with fast country roads, narrow winding lanes and pretty villages such as Brighstone, with some thatched cottages. Finally returning nearer to the coast, you arrive at the village of Chale underneath St. Catherine’s Down with its medieval lighthouse. 

The final day of cycling on the Isle of Wight is an interesting hilly mix of downs cycling and coastal stretches towards the end of the day. The route avoids the big tourist resorts of Ventnor, Shanklin and Sandown, opting for attractive hilly inland riding. This continues until you reach Bembridge where you pass around the estuarine harbour where there are a couple of venues to enjoy fresh crab or lobster. Then you are pedalling inland around pretty St. Helens with its harbour. The last few kilometres are a relaxing roll into Ryde along the coast road, before climbing back into town to deliver your bike to the shop and return to your overnight accommodation.

After breakfast make your way to the pier to catch your return ferry to the mainland.