How to keep different age groups happy on an Isle of Wight holiday

I received an email this week from a parent who was preparing for an Isle of Wight holiday with children aged nine, 14 and 18.

Florida was off the cards thanks to Covid, so plan B was a trip to the Isle of Wight. Needless to say, the pressure to compete with Florida was weighing on my mind.

The challenge is to find activities which are simultaneously interesting for a nine year old and an 18 year old that don't involve staring at a screen. I've had similar emails from other people before who are trying to occupy toddlers and teenagers at the same time. Do you just accept that one person in the party will be bored or find a middle ground that might please nobody?

We've written guides to days out for toddlers, junior school age children and teenagers but combining ages is more difficult. Fear not though, weary parents, it is not impossible.

Here are my suggestions of what I would with a nine, 14 and 18 year old on an Isle of Wight holiday. 

I've crammed a lot in to each day, you might want to enjoy a slightly slower pace.

​You can change the order of the days round to fit in with the weather, surf and tides.

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Day One - Tapnell Farm Park, Isle of Wight Aqua park and Freshwater Bay

Tapnell Farm Park has always been one of our top recommendations for toddlers and junior school aged children, as it's got a good mix of things like soft play, pedal go karts, minigolf, animals and trampolines. Most of it wouldn't really have been of much interest to teenagers until the owners wisely built the Isle of Wight Aqua Park alongside the farm park. They are separate attractions but if you have two adults in the party then you'll be able to split in half and do a bit of both.

Once you have squeezed the juice out of those, I would head to nearby Freshwater Bay, which is a stony beach which is good for a picnic or for exploring. At low tide, head round the corner past the big hotel and there's a second beach where you can climb on the rocks and parents can shout things like "be careful!" and "if you sprain your ankle, I'll be livid!".

Families who like a walk can head up the hill to the Tennyson Monument, although there's a high risk of teenagers complaining about this bit or getting too close to the cliff edge.

"Are we going on three or after three?"

Freshwater Bay is only a few minutes from Tapnell Farm Park

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Day Two - Sandham Gardens, Dinosaur Isle, Wildheart Animal Sanctuary

There's a good selection of modest sized attractions along the seafront in Sandown, at the Yaverland end of the beach. Some will be more suited to younger children whilst other stuff should be suitable for the older ones. If you combine a few of them it will fill a day.
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Sandham Gardens has got a good sized playground, a sports court/skate park and an impressive minigolf course with dinosaurs and a puffing volcano. There are also bouncy nets which will certainly appeal to the younger ones and might appeal to teenagers depending on their mood. 

Nearby, there is Wildheart Animal Sanctuary (previously called Isle of Wight Zoo) and Dinosaur Isle. The former will take you a couple of hours, the latter will take you about an hour. There's also a 'family golf course' called Browns. It isn't the same as minigolf, it's more of a relaxed pitch and putt in a nice seaside setting. As I write this, it is changing hands but there are plans to re-open it.

We like The Bandstand restaurant at Sandham Gardens but there are other choices.

There's a playground at Sandham Gardens, as well as a sports court, skate park and bouncing nets

The nearby minigolf course includes this puffing volcano

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Day Three - Alum Bay and Compton Bay 

Alum Bay and The Needles isn't to everyone's taste but I reckon there is something for most age groups, so I would head there in the morning. It's one of the windiest locations in the UK, so find a day when it isn't too blowy.

Younger children will enjoy the mini amusements and ride or filling up a plastic teddy bear shape with sand. Older children will probably enjoy the chairlift and the boat trip out to the Needles. Old dears will enjoy the National Trust's Old Battery which has a tunnel dug out into the rocks and terrific views.

In the afternoon, stick with the West Wight and head for Compton Bay which was named as one of the world's best beaches by the Sunday Times Travel Magazine.

A good day out at Compton Bay requires the perfect alignment of sunshine, moderately sized waves and a low tide. It doesn't need to be a very low tide, but at high tide there isn't much beach. I suggest that you start looking at the forecasts on your first day and figure out which day is your best bet. Plan your week around the beach days and then fill in the rest of the days with the attractions.

Once you've found the ideal time to visit, get hold of a bodyboard or two. They're about £30 each from Amazon or you can find them in some beachside shops around the Isle of Wight. Our relatives got some from the beach shop at Yaverland last time, but there are other places.

Park in the main Compton Bay car park with the toilet block and ice cream van but turn right at the bottom of the steps and walk along the beach for a couple of hundred metres. The section nearer the steps is rocky and it's also not wise to sit right underneath the taller cliffs without a crash helmet.

If it's low tide, we like to build a sandcastle, kick a football, play rounders and fly a kite. 

If it's not too busy you can light a barbecue, but a) don't do this if it's full of people as a slight breeze will suffocate the rest of the the beach and b) take your rubbish home rather than burying your used barbecue in the sand.

You can't take dogs on this beach in the summer months and anyone who attempts to will be dragged back to the ferry.

The Needles Lighthouse is surrounded by a few small attractions

Compton Bay is a good place for bodyboarding or surfing - but check the forecasts first

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Day Four - Monkey Haven, Cineworld and Go Karting (ideal for a grey day)

You might not want to do all of these things in one day, as it could end up pretty expensive but they're all good options for a grey day.

Monkey Haven is an award winning attraction which is relatively small but which will fill an hour or two. 

The cinema is a good size with 11 screens and is ideal for a grey day. The same complex has a KFC, a Burger King and a Pizza Hut which might keep everyone happy. Serendipitously, there's also a gym between Pizza Hut and Burger King.

Towards Ryde is a go kart track, which has race options for children and teenagers. 

Go karting is a good option for a grey day

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Day Five - Watersports at St Helen's or Dunroamin

For another beach day, I would try some different watersports. Again, planning around the weather is the key so look at the forecast and organise your week around them. Kayaking in a gale is not enjoyable and paddleboarding on chopping waters is like a ride on a bucking bronco. Ideally, you want very calm water and sunshine.

There are a few watersports hire places on the Isle of Wight, but the main ones are Tackt Isle in St Helens and Wight Water in Lake/Dunroamin. 

Personally, I would go for St Helens unless you are staying near to Lake as the water is very shallow at St. Helens. More adventurous kayakers might want to venture round to the beautiful beach of Priory Bay but if you're a first timer than keep it simple and stay in your depth. For younger children, parents may just want to stand in the water and hold onto the boat whilst the children squeal with excitement every time a tiny wave passes them.

Alternatively, if you don't want to try watersports then you could visit the beach at Appley. The seafront has a couple of playgrounds for the younger members of the party and a good amount of space for ball games for the older ones.

For teenagers, invest £20-£30 in a stunt kite with two handles rather than a 99p piece of rubbish with Spiderman on it. The feeling of nearly being lifted off your feet by a good kite might even make a teenager smile. 

A closeup of my hairy knee during a kayaking outing at St Helen's

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Day Six - Amusements and Minigolf in Shanklin, Treasure Trail in Ventnor

This is a bit of a risky day which involves an activity which could go either way.

In the morning, head to Shanklin seafront and try to find somewhere to park. You may need to adopt an aggressive driving stance.

The amusement arcade is better than average and will fill an hour with most ages of children. I highly recommend agreeing a budget before embarking on an expensive journey collecting yellow tickets.

The seafront also has several minigolf courses which are nicely done and which will fill a bit of time. There are plenty of places to eat on the seafront.

In the afternoon, I would travel to nearby Ventnor and do the Treasure Trail which goes from Ventnor to Steephill Cove. Technically speaking, this is a walk (hence the warning about it being risky) but the combination of the sea views, the treasure hunt theme and the availability of ice creams at both ends of the walk should get you through it. 

We did this Treasure Trail in the howling wind and rain and still enjoyed it (to an extent). It was so cold that we started rummaging in the car for anything that we could improvise as an extra layer. My sister-in-law did the entire walk wearing a picnic blanket as a shawl and I wore a buoyancy aid under my coat so that I looked like a bodybuilder.

You'll need plenty of this at the amusement arcade

The coastal walk from Ventnor to Steephill Cove is best done with a distracting treasure hunt

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Some other options

There are a few big name attractions missing from our itinerary and you may well find that they do the job nicely for your family. 

Some of the bigger Isle of Wight attractions that I haven't mentioned include:

• Robin Hill is a good sized country park which combines some mid-sized rides with lots of green space, woodland and shows in the amphitheater during the summer months. There are certainly things that will appeal to younger teenagers such as the toboggan run and there is enough space to kick a ball about and so on. However, a lot of it is best for children aged 4-12.
• Blackgang Chine is a charming theme park which has been visited by every school child and Isle of Wight visitor in the last century. It's great fun, but I reckon it is best for 3-11 year olds. Teenagers will find the rides a bit small if they are used to rollercoasters which do thirteen loop-the-loops.
• Osborne House has a gorgeous beach, impressive grounds and gardens and an interesting history. However, the teenage version of me would not have been interested in visiting a stately home during the summer holidays.
• Carisbrooke Castle is a very well preserved castle with outstanding views from the top and summertime shows. Some teenagers would enjoy it, but it felt a bit too educational to me when I was 15.