Small But Mighty!
Jersey may only be 9 x 5 miles at low tide (smaller at high tide!) but with over 300 miles of lanes and a 48 mile coastline there is much to see. Dividing the island into segments to do each day of your stay is a good way to see it all. Luckily, if you drop a pin in the map there’ll be something to do or see or somewhere to eat right there!
I’ve put my top five in each category to get you started.
Foodies
We love our food on Jersey and we are spoilt for choice when it comes to restaurants.
From pub grub to haute cuisine and pretty much everything in between there are plenty of discoveries to be made for the intrepid ‘Gastronaut’ (thank you Keith Floyd)
My Top Five?; The Cabin Beach Café at La Haule, Café Poste in Grouville, Entwhistles fish and chips from Gorey village eaten on St Catherine’s breakwater, The Ocean Restaurant at the Atlantic Hotel, a prepared lobster from the fish market with a bottle of wine and a baguette on any beach or seawall with a view.
Historical Sites
Jersey is positively littered with sites of historical interest and importance, most run by the Jersey Heritage Trust but a few under private ownership.
My Top Five? – The Jersey War Tunnels in St Lawrence, Hougue Bie in St Martin, Mont Orguiel Castle in Gorey, Elizabeth Castle in the bay of St Aubins and the Maritime Museum and Occupation Tapestry in St Helier.
Activities
Sand, Sea, Surf and Turf. You can be active from ‘A little bit’ right up to ‘WooHoo!’ depending on what you want from your holiday.
My Top Five? – Segway Rally at Les Mielles St Ouens, Kayaking with Jersey Kayak Adventures, Watersports (Boat rides, waterskiing, wakeboarding or banana rides) at Jersey Seasports Centre La Haule, golf at any one of our five challenging golf courses, parachuting with SkyDiveJersey.
Walking & Cycling
The coastal and cliff paths make for fabulous walking and the network of green lanes (15mph zones for traffic) which criss-cross the island make it easy to explore. The island has a series of valleys that run north to south which make travelling across the centre of the island quite demanding with lots of up and down.
There are myriad maps, booklets and guided tours and we are happy to talk you through and it pays to glance at the weather forecast before setting out.
My Top Five? – St Lawrence Loop walk from Villa d’Oro, Cycle to Corbiere Lighthouse along the old railway path, walk the Queen’s Valley reservoir, cycle the east coast from St Helier up to St Catherine’s, walk any section of the north coast cliff path – wow!
Doing Absolutely Nothing
Sometimes that’s just what you need to do on holiday – nothing.
My Top Five? Find a sheltered bay and sit with a good book, day spa at L’Horizon Hotel in St Brelade’s, sit on a pavement table in Gorey or St Aubin’s at high tide and watch the boats bob in the harbour, saunter through the garden of Samares Manor at your leisure, park on the sea wall at St Ouens and watch the sun set over the horizon and the surfers doing their thing.