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5 Best Traffic-Free Cycle Tracks For Families on the Isle of Wight
We’ve been jabbering on for ages about the family friendly and traffic free bike rides on the Isle of Wight.
I thought it was about time we bundled five of them together.
These routes aren’t necessarily the Isle of Wight’s most scenic cycle routes.
Instead, they are the cycle routes that can be attempted by wobbly children with stabilisers and exhausted parents. They are perfect for trying to fit around nap times rather than for looking up and admiring the view. Keep going, weary ones, the time for admiring the view will come.
If adventurous bike rides is your thing, take a look at the Tennyson Trail for mountain bikes or our main guide to cycling holidays.
Anyway, enough waffle. Here are the five best traffic-free cycle tracks on the Isle of Wight:
I thought it was about time we bundled five of them together.
These routes aren’t necessarily the Isle of Wight’s most scenic cycle routes.
Instead, they are the cycle routes that can be attempted by wobbly children with stabilisers and exhausted parents. They are perfect for trying to fit around nap times rather than for looking up and admiring the view. Keep going, weary ones, the time for admiring the view will come.
If adventurous bike rides is your thing, take a look at the Tennyson Trail for mountain bikes or our main guide to cycling holidays.
Anyway, enough waffle. Here are the five best traffic-free cycle tracks on the Isle of Wight:
Family bike rides should be short and in close proximity to a café
1. Yarmouth to Freshwater Causeway - 1.8 miles each way
We’ve written a separate blog about this family-friendly bike ride, so I’ll keep it brief (Ed: I doubt it).
Start from Wight Cycle Hire, which is one end of the cycle track and next door to a classy café/restaurant called Off The Rails. Most of the roads nearby are for permit holders, so I would park at the free car park on the coastal road.
From here, you pedal towards Freshwater Causeway on an old railway line. It’s flat and wide for most of the way, with only short sections that are a bit narrower. There is water on one side, but it’s generally a safe distance away and at low tide there’s very little water at all.
The track isn’t smooth-tarmac, but it’s not tremendously bumpy either.
After a couple of miles you’ll reach Freshwater Causeway, where you’ll probably find some swans bobbing around. Feel free to repeat some fact you’ve heard about the Queen owning swans or them being able to break your arm. I’m not sure if either of those are true and don’t have time to check right now.
If you are able to cope with some road cycling, you can cycle another mile to Freshwater Bay. This is well worth it and I’m beginning to well up at the thought of it. You’ll find somewhere to buy an ice cream and either crashing waves or sparkling sea depending on the weather.
We do this bike ride slightly different as we have our own bikes and don’t need to hire them. We park at Freshwater Causeway and cycle up to Off The Rails for a drink before turning round.
Start from Wight Cycle Hire, which is one end of the cycle track and next door to a classy café/restaurant called Off The Rails. Most of the roads nearby are for permit holders, so I would park at the free car park on the coastal road.
From here, you pedal towards Freshwater Causeway on an old railway line. It’s flat and wide for most of the way, with only short sections that are a bit narrower. There is water on one side, but it’s generally a safe distance away and at low tide there’s very little water at all.
The track isn’t smooth-tarmac, but it’s not tremendously bumpy either.
After a couple of miles you’ll reach Freshwater Causeway, where you’ll probably find some swans bobbing around. Feel free to repeat some fact you’ve heard about the Queen owning swans or them being able to break your arm. I’m not sure if either of those are true and don’t have time to check right now.
If you are able to cope with some road cycling, you can cycle another mile to Freshwater Bay. This is well worth it and I’m beginning to well up at the thought of it. You’ll find somewhere to buy an ice cream and either crashing waves or sparkling sea depending on the weather.
We do this bike ride slightly different as we have our own bikes and don’t need to hire them. We park at Freshwater Causeway and cycle up to Off The Rails for a drink before turning round.
The Yarmouth to Freshwater cycle track isn't tarmac but it's fairly smooth
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Wight Cycle Hire is next door to Off The Rails
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2. Cowes to Newport - 3 miles each way
This is another stretch of former railway line. It’s a long straight line of about three miles so it’s hard to get lost and you can turn round if you want to shorten it.
I would start in Newport and park in the ever-so-scenic industrial estate.
You'll turn up on the outskirts of Cowes. The track is mostly smooth tarmac and there aren’t too many hazards, apart from occasional sections where you cross a very quiet road.
The downside with this one is that there's a poor supply of cafes and bike hire places.
There has previously been bike hire places near the track in Cowes but there weren’t any when I checked. There's a bike hire place called Wight Cycle Hire in Newport, which is half a mile from the start of the traffic free section.
At the Newport end, you can go to the Bargeman’s Rest for food or drink but it’s half a mile from the end of the track along a mix of footpaths and quiet roads. Similarly, the Cowes end spits you out on the outskirts of the town where there isn’t anywhere to eat.
The roads into Cowes are quiet residential roads but they are quite hilly and confusing. If you make it into Cowes, it’s a lovely stopping point with lots of cafes and a pleasant coastal road leading to Gurnard.
I would start in Newport and park in the ever-so-scenic industrial estate.
You'll turn up on the outskirts of Cowes. The track is mostly smooth tarmac and there aren’t too many hazards, apart from occasional sections where you cross a very quiet road.
The downside with this one is that there's a poor supply of cafes and bike hire places.
There has previously been bike hire places near the track in Cowes but there weren’t any when I checked. There's a bike hire place called Wight Cycle Hire in Newport, which is half a mile from the start of the traffic free section.
At the Newport end, you can go to the Bargeman’s Rest for food or drink but it’s half a mile from the end of the track along a mix of footpaths and quiet roads. Similarly, the Cowes end spits you out on the outskirts of the town where there isn’t anywhere to eat.
The roads into Cowes are quiet residential roads but they are quite hilly and confusing. If you make it into Cowes, it’s a lovely stopping point with lots of cafes and a pleasant coastal road leading to Gurnard.
The Newport to Cowes cycle track is three miles of mostly smooth riding
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Treat yourself to occasional glimpses of the River Medina through the trees
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3. Shanklin to Wroxall - 2.3 miles each way
This route from Shanklin to Wroxall is another good one if you don’t have your own bikes.
Start at Lower Hyde Holiday Park, where you’ll find Route 57 Cycle Hire. The cycle track runs alongside the holiday park for 2.3 miles until you reach Wroxall.
It’s another former railway (there’s a pattern emerging here) so it is smooth, flat and traffic free. Some sections get a little narrow or go over a road but we didn’t find it too hazardous. Well, that’s not quite true as a horse blocked the path and a random dog jumped up at my children on their bikes...but I don’t imagine they’ll be there when you visit.
Once you get to Wroxall you’ll discover a land of enchantment, thrills and adventure for all ages.
Sorry, I was mixing up Wroxall with Disneyland Paris.
You’ll actually find very little in Wroxall so you will probably turn around and end up heading towards Shanklin for refreshment.
The alternative is to go to the rather lovely Isle of Wight Donkey Sanctuary, which is about a mile from the cycle track. The good news is that it’s free to get in and has a nice café. The bad news is that I don’t believe you can reach it without going on a fairly busy road (and there's no pavement for some of the way).
Start at Lower Hyde Holiday Park, where you’ll find Route 57 Cycle Hire. The cycle track runs alongside the holiday park for 2.3 miles until you reach Wroxall.
It’s another former railway (there’s a pattern emerging here) so it is smooth, flat and traffic free. Some sections get a little narrow or go over a road but we didn’t find it too hazardous. Well, that’s not quite true as a horse blocked the path and a random dog jumped up at my children on their bikes...but I don’t imagine they’ll be there when you visit.
Once you get to Wroxall you’ll discover a land of enchantment, thrills and adventure for all ages.
Sorry, I was mixing up Wroxall with Disneyland Paris.
You’ll actually find very little in Wroxall so you will probably turn around and end up heading towards Shanklin for refreshment.
The alternative is to go to the rather lovely Isle of Wight Donkey Sanctuary, which is about a mile from the cycle track. The good news is that it’s free to get in and has a nice café. The bad news is that I don’t believe you can reach it without going on a fairly busy road (and there's no pavement for some of the way).
You can hire bikes from Route 57, based at Lower Hyde Holiday Park
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Little Miss Guru testing out the Wroxall to Shanklin cycle track
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4. Pedallers Cafe towards either Newchurch or Sandown - 1 mile in either direction
The cycle track at Pedallers Café is a good choice if you have your own bikes. There isn't currently a bike hire place nearby (although an application to build one was submitted in 2023).
We park on the road just outside the café. There are only a couple of spaces, so you may not be so lucky. On the second time we visited, we found that the spaces had been taken and I had do a drop off and go searching for spaces on my own. That's the sort of heroic father I am.
From the café, you can cycle for about a mile in either direction before you reach a road. So, you can turn it into a four mile cycle ride by going back and forth.
My advice is to do some cycling before you let anyone eat anything at the café. Otherwise, there’s a high risk that you will settle into your chairs with the sun shining and not actually leave. If this happens, it doesn’t really count as a bike ride in my book.
The track is pretty smooth in both directions and the only road that you need to cross is the one that you parked on.
We park on the road just outside the café. There are only a couple of spaces, so you may not be so lucky. On the second time we visited, we found that the spaces had been taken and I had do a drop off and go searching for spaces on my own. That's the sort of heroic father I am.
From the café, you can cycle for about a mile in either direction before you reach a road. So, you can turn it into a four mile cycle ride by going back and forth.
My advice is to do some cycling before you let anyone eat anything at the café. Otherwise, there’s a high risk that you will settle into your chairs with the sun shining and not actually leave. If this happens, it doesn’t really count as a bike ride in my book.
The track is pretty smooth in both directions and the only road that you need to cross is the one that you parked on.
If you're lucky, you'll find a parking space outside Pedallers Café
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There is decent cycle in both directions from Pedallers Café for about a mile
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5. Seaclose Park to Island Harbour - 1.5 miles each way
The fifth entry in our guide to traffic free cycle rides has given me sleepless nights. Actually, that might have been the children but this decision certainly didn't help.
It was between two cycle rides - Parkhurst Forest and this route along the Seaclose Park to Island Harbour cycle track. Its official name is the Medina Greenway.
You park up at Seaclose Park, which is (annoyingly) pay and display parking despite a council-owned public park. You then cycle along the River Medina until you reach Island Harbour.
My main reservations are that a) the track got a little narrow and bumpy at times b) there are a couple of sections where there is a risk of falling into the river if you aren't paying attention.
It was also a very grey day when we visited and the river didn't smell very nice as it was low tide. The cycle path also closes for a couple of weeks during the Isle of Wight Festival.
Apart from all those complaints, it is quite pleasant and there's a playground in Seaclose Park. There's a café within Island Harbour - but check that it's open first.
It was between two cycle rides - Parkhurst Forest and this route along the Seaclose Park to Island Harbour cycle track. Its official name is the Medina Greenway.
You park up at Seaclose Park, which is (annoyingly) pay and display parking despite a council-owned public park. You then cycle along the River Medina until you reach Island Harbour.
My main reservations are that a) the track got a little narrow and bumpy at times b) there are a couple of sections where there is a risk of falling into the river if you aren't paying attention.
It was also a very grey day when we visited and the river didn't smell very nice as it was low tide. The cycle path also closes for a couple of weeks during the Isle of Wight Festival.
Apart from all those complaints, it is quite pleasant and there's a playground in Seaclose Park. There's a café within Island Harbour - but check that it's open first.
The Seaclose to Island Harbour cycle is not bad, but it's not my favourite
Give me Further suggestions for family bike rides on the Isle of Wight!
What’s wrong with you people. Isn’t that enough?
- Cycling round Parkhurst Forest is good fun, but it’s not very flat and the tracks are bumpy. Some sections are narrow and it’s not very well sign-posted. I still enjoyed it but feedback was mixed in our family.
Cycling in Parkhurst Forest is a bit bumpier and more confusing than other cycle tracks
- The Red Squirrel Trail is a 32 mile cycle track that is mostly traffic free. We’ve written a separate guide to it, but it is basically a worthy attempt to join up some of the best cycle tracks to make a longer route. Some of the routes we’ve included in this guide are sections of the Red Squirrel Trail (Cowes to Newport, Pedallers Café and Shanklin to Wroxall). However, it’s worth noting that some sections go through town centres and other sections are steep, muddy and a little precarious. It’s fine with children who are relatively confident cyclists but some sections aren’t suitable for toddlers with stabilisers.
- Some seafronts allow cycling on shared pathways and will give you some of the most scenic rides on the Island. I particularly enjoy the Sandown to Shanklin cycle track. I’ve not included them in this guide as they don’t have railings and they are usually full of pedestrians that you have weave around (or ring your bell). Mrs Guru would have kittens if we took the children on one of these routes.
