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Isle of Wight Guru

Exclusive Wightlink Discount Code: 10% off until March 2026

11/9/2025

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Wightlink ferry
Wightlink is offering 10% off for the next six months (ish)
Isle of Wight ferry offers have been coming thick-and-fast over the last few months.

Anyone with a lot of spare time might like to look through the archive of recent blogs to see deals such as Wightlink's Sunset Flyer and Red Funnel's Autumn Sale.

The latest addition is 10% off Wightlink ferry travel, which is valid until 31 March 2026. It works whether you are travelling as a foot passenger or in a car. You need to complete your journey by that date, so you can't use it for spring and summer holidays next year (sorry).
10% off Wightlink 
via this link with 
​code GURU10

How do I use the 10% off Wightlink code?

If you are capable of tying your own shoelaces then you can probably figure this out for yourself, but you need to tick the box that says "I have a promotion code" on step three of this booking form. The same tick box appears on other pages in case you missed it the first time.
Journey extras on Wightlink website
Step three of the booking form is called 'Journey extras'
Promotion code section on Wightlink website
Look for the section that says 'I have a Promotion Code'

What are the restrictions?

I'm glad you asked, and might I commend you for doing some research. Here are the terms and conditions from Wightlink:
  • Valid for bookings and travel until 31 March 2026.
  • Offer is valid on foot, car and motorcycle products.
  • Cannot be used in conjunction with any other offer or promotional activity, e.g cashback.
  • Wightlink reserve the right to modify or cancel the offer at any time.
  • No adjustments can be made on previous purchases.
  • Wightlink General Conditions for provision of Ferry Services apply and can be found at wightlink.co.uk/terms.
  • Tesco Clubcard Reward Voucher Codes will not be accepted as part or full payment of tickets.
  • How to book: Copy the Promotion Code to use in the 'I have a Promotion Code' box at the bottom of the 'Your Details' stage when making your booking online. The discount will be shown at the payment stage of your booking.

Is this the best offer around?

The predictable answer is that "it depends".

If you just want a simple Wightlink discount without any faffing or jumping through hoops then this is a good deal. It will take you three seconds and save you a few quid.

However, if you are more of a bargain hunter then I would also consider these offers:
  • Red Funnel is also offering 10% off, via this link. Red Funnel operate the ferries from Southampton whilst Wightlink operate ferries from Portsmouth and Lymington. I wouldn't say that either company is always cheaper than the other, as they both offer 'flexible pricing'. Check both prices if they are both equally as convenient for you.

  • You will almost certainly save more than 10% if you get a bundled deal of accommodation + ferry travel. Some big holiday companies such as Away Resorts and Warner Leisure will often save you 50% or more, but lots of smaller accommodation companies will give a good discount (see more here).

  • You can't use the discount with other Wightlink offers and schemes, such as Multilink or the Tesco Clubcard deal. If you can use either of those then you will probably save more money.

  • Red Funnel routinely send out a book of vouchers called its Big Book of Savings. These are sent to every Isle of Wight household, five times a year (read more). The discount vouchers in there often give you 20 - 25% off overnight returns as well as offering fixed price day returns for about £50 - £60 for a car and passengers.

  • It seems likely that Wightlink and Red Funnel will do a Black Friday offer, as they have done in previous years. If you are planning travel between December and March then I would be tempted to stick rather than twisting at this point.
Swimming pool at Whitecliff Bay Holiday Park
Guests at Whitecliff Bay Holiday Park can get a big discount on the ferry
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Red Funnel's Autumn 2025 Sale - Is It Any Good?

5/9/2025

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Red Funnel ferry with container ship and cruise ship
Red Funnel is doing return fares with a car for £59 - £99 until early November
Click here to book
the Red Funnel
Autumn ​offer
Honk honk! Someone sound the special offer alarm! 

Red Funnel has just launched a new sale and it's one of their better ones.

​I've done a few test searches and found that there are some cheap fares to be had - as long as you stick to the rules.

What's so good about this Red Funnel offer?

The good thing about this sale is that Red Funnel is offering fixed fares of £59, £79 and £99 rather than offering a percentage off. That works particularly well if you are travelling on peak, which is generally weekend lunchtimes and during school holidays.

Yes, it's autumn so demand has dropped but there are still some notable savings compared to Red Funnel's standard savings and Wightlink's standard fares.

How do I get the offer?

To get the discounted price you have to go via this page on the Red Funnel website.

The offer is for a car and passengers and will (potentially) get you the ferry for:
  • £59 for a day return 
  • £79-£89 for a short break of up to four nights
  • £99 for a return of five or more nights

The offer can be used on journeys starting from East Cowes or Southampton (i.e. the Isle of Wight or the mainland).

Here are the hoops you have to jump through and the Ts & Cs you need to be aware of:
  1. You need to travel before 3 November 2025. That will include October half term for most people. I'm saying 'most people' here in case there is some random school in the Outer Hebrides that operates to a different timetable to everyone else.
  2. To get the £59 and £79 offer you need to travel at certain times of day. It varies a bit but they basically want you to avoid travelling between 1030 and 1730 as those are the peak times. The same rules don't seem to apply on the £99 offer - you can travel whenever you want.
  3. The tickets are 'limited and subject to availability'​

What does 'limited' mean?

We don't know. In the previous Red Funnel sale they told us that there were 50,000 tickets at the discounted price - but this time they haven't shared that information. 

To be honest though, whatever number they gave won't mean a lot to most people, unless they get a calculator out and starting guessing how many people are on each ferry.

My advice is to hurry up and book the cheap price ferries.

How much can I save?

It depends! 

We looked at the price of a seven day return from 21 September to 28 September and were quoted £99 with the special offer.

Without the special offer, the price ranged from £110 to £159 depending on what time of day you travelled. If you are travelling off peak then you could get 10% off via this exclusive link so the price would be about the same. You might also be able to get a different Red Funnel discount with one of the other offers on our ferry discounts page (such as English Heritage membership, which gives 15% off).

We then looked at a four night break from 27 October to 31 October, which is half term for a lot of people. With the offer, we found fares ranging from £79 to £89 depending on when you travelled. Without the offer, the fares ranged from £98 to £147. 

Again, you could get an extra 10% discount off the standard fares via this exclusive link, but for most people the offer price will be the best deal around.

What about Wightlink?

It's always worth checking Wightlink fares, particularly if you can get a discount via one of the tricks on our ferry discounts page.

We looked at the same dates to see how Wightlink compared:
  • For 21 September to 28 September, prices ranged from £86 - £195
  • For 27 October to 31 October, prices ranged from £87 - £169.

The cheapest prices required you to travel in the middle of the night. The Red Funnel offer will typically save you about £50 - £100 if you plan to travel at a more reasonable time of day.
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Being A Brave Boy At The Adrenaline Zone At Robin Hill

25/8/2025

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Adrenaline Zone entrance at Robin Hill
Back in April, my jaw dropped when I got my first glimpse of the Adrenaline Zone.

It was a building site at the time, but you could still see the outline looming over the Robin Hill car park.

I was particularly excited as the Isle of Wight was lacking in a high ropes course. I believe there’s one at PGL’s Little Canada but that is mostly used by school parties and you can’t wander up to try it out.

I had also spent a few summers running tides that previously lived on the Adrenaline Zone site, so this was the equivalent of finding that someone had replaced your childhood cottage with a swanky town house.

We finally got round to trying out the Adrenaline Zone last week – or at least enough of it to get the general idea.

Your options at the Adrenaline Zone

The first thing to make clear is that the Adrenaline Zone is a separate attraction to Robin Hill.

It sits next to the park and there's a path linking the two but  it isn’t included in the standard ticket price. You also don't need to pay to visit Robin Hill to get to the Adrenaline Zone so it's not really an add-on.

Some keyboard warriors complained about this on social media, but these are the sort of people that would ask for a tenner if you were handing out fivers in the street.

In reality, it couldn’t be included in the standard admission price of about £15 - £23. Center Parcs charges about £45 for its high ropes whilst Go Ape is about £37 - £40 when I checked. Expecting something similar to be included in Robin Hill admission is pie in the sky. Robin Hill season ticket holders currently get a 10% discount at the Adrenaline Zone.

The second thing to explain is that there are four (or five) attractions in the Adrenaline Zone. You can buy a bundle for about £35 including everything if you want to fill several hours or just pick and choose what you want.

The main event in my eyes is Ozone, which is a high ropes course that takes about an hour and costs about £20. This is the section we completed and is what I’ll waffle on about in a minute.
Adrenaline Zone ozone lower layer
Ozone has three layers - one for children under 135cm and two for brave boys like me
A separate set of steps lead to Zoom, which is a circular zip wire that will cost you about £7.
Adrenaline zone with zoom
Zoom is the circular thing in the top right hand corner of this photo
Your third option is a series of ‘Clip n Climb’ climbing walls, for about £15.
Adrenaline Zone clip and climb
The climbing walls at the Adrenaline Zone cost about £15
Adrenaline Zone clip and climb
Finally, there is Magma, which are three giant pillows that you can jump onto from a great height for £10. For that price, you get five jumps and can choose from three different platform heights.
Adrenaline Zone bag jump
Magma didn't appeal to me, but I might be feeling braver next time

Our trip to the Adrenaline Zone

Mrs Guru and I have established roles at this sort of thing.

My role is to ‘supervise’ the children by enthusiastically joining in. I like to think that I am encouraging them to have an adventurous spirit. Mrs Guru knows that I am really refusing to grow up myself but she has the grace not to say this out loud.

Mrs Guru’s role is to ‘watch the bags’ even when the bags don’t really need watching. I agree not to point this out.

We decided to keep it simple on our first visit. Child one and I would do the high ropes (Ozone), whilst child two would do the junior ropes. The key height to check is 135cm as this determines which course you need to do.

We opted out of Magma (due to cowardice on my part) and Clip n’ Climb (due to time limitations). Unfortunately, Zoom was out of action when we visited because of a technical issue. We had planned to do that, so we’ll need to return to give it a go.

In hindsight, I probably should have given Magma a go for the purposes of research. Child one wasn't keen on it either though, so I felt able to opt out. We've done a very similar Clip n' Climb on the mainland and can thoroughly recommend that option.

Harnessed Up

We presented our QR codes and were assisted into our harnesses by the staff before being sent over and clipped onto Ozone.

The junior course is very tame and sits about one metre off the ground. Child two was happy doing this but is getting quite close to 135cm and will be keen to try the higher ropes when she can.

The main course is over two levels, with a staircase linking the two. There isn’t a set route and it’s possible to skip any sections that you don’t like the look of. It’s also been designed so that other people can easily overtake you, rather than you feeling like a 10 year old is glaring at you because you’re hesitating to follow a tightrope across a significant drop.

I (bravely) worked my way round everything on the course including wobbly boulders, two climbing walls, twisty netting, stepping stones, a see saw, walk-the-plank and so on.
Adrenaline Zone plank
The juddery seesaw can be found on the upper level at the Adrenaline Zone
Adrenaline Zone high ropes
These see-saw stepping stones offered a squeaky bum moment
Adrenaline Zone ozone high ropes
The course uses a good mix of ropes and other things to clamber across
The hairiest moment was when I briefly lost my footing on the high ropes climbing wall and dangled by my arms. Of course, I was attached by a harness and so the actual risk of death was minimal but it still gave me a good wobble.
Adrenaline Zone climbing wall
This climbing wall gave me the heebie-jeebies
Shortly after this, I told child one that I would be spending a little more time on the lower level. She asked why, to which I bellowed across the attraction that I was “feeling a bit scared”, since I couldn’t think of any other reason. A child who was about 30 years younger than me offered a sympathetic look.

As mentioned earlier, we couldn’t try the Zoom part of the Adrenaline Zone. These things often end with a zip wire or something similar but we’ll need to come back for that one. 

We thoroughly enjoyed our hour at The Adrenaline Zone, so that won't be a big burden.
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New Steps At Gurnard's Hidden Beach

17/8/2025

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It was about ten years ago that I impressed my mother by showing her an Isle of Wight beach she hadn't ever visited. It was Gurnard's hidden beach, which she began calling Robert's Beach, in the same way that explorers have cities and countries named after them. 

I've never been sure of the official name but I've also heard it called Gurnard Cove and John's Beach.

The previous main access point involved walking round the back of Gurnard's sailing club and in front of some seafront houses. I liked to point at these and tell everyone which one I would like to buy.

There are now some rather wonderful new steps that lead through woodland to get there. They aren't necessarily easier than the old route but I love a wooden walkway to a beach, so this is a great thrill. You can access it here on Shore Road, where there is a little bit of free on-street parking.
Steps leading to Gurnard's hidden beach in woods
This grand wooden walkway now leads to Gurnard's 'hidden' beach
Start of steps to Gurnard hidden beach
A closer look at the steps, for the benefit of any joiners and wood enthusiasts
When you get to the beach, you'll find that it is pretty rustic. There are great big boulders at low tide, as well as shingle and the occasional bit of rough sand.

It's not the most idyllic beach but it gets great sunsets and it's nice for a bit of peace and quiet.
Hidden beach at Gurnard
Gurnard's hidden beach, which isn't particularly hidden anymore
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Donuts in a Hovercraft on Hovertravel's Experience Flight

8/8/2025

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Hovercraft in Southsea
One of many curiosities about the Isle of Wight is that it still has a hovercraft providing a back-and-forth service. There are still hovercrafts used privately and by the military but Hovertravel has been able to say for a long time that it's the world's only commercial service.

That means it gets a mention in our guide to 10 things you can only do on the Isle of Wight. 

We learnt from the pilot that an island in Japan has recently started a hovercraft service, so we may need to tweak the wording slightly to say that it's unique to Europe. 

Hovertravel - which runs the hovercraft - invited us along to one of their 'Experience Flights'. They take place on dates throughout the summer and cost about £60, with cheaper prices for children and occasional special offers.

Tummy Troubles

I am afflicted with a condition that is known by experts as having 'a bit of a wobbly tummy'. This frustrates me greatly, as my mind is desperate to ride rollercoasters etc, but my body rewards me with motion sickness.

I discovered this condition whilst on a stag do at Europa Park. The day began with a ride on a rollercoaster that claimed to be the fastest in Europe and ended with me sitting under a tree for eight hours. Occasionally, I convince myself that I might have outgrown this, and soon regret it when it turns out I haven't.

With this in mind, I was hesitant to sign up for something that involves a hovercraft driving sideways and doing donuts. However, my father in law's eyes lit up with excitement when I mentioned it to him and I figured it might not be too bumpy.

I took preventative measures (i.e. I took a motion sickness pill) and turned up for the occasion. Luckily, the Solent was very calm on the day we had booked, so I also thanked the Blackgang Chine Weather Wizard for his help.

Starting From Ryde

If you're joining the hovercraft experience from Ryde then you end up getting a bit more for your money. You first get taken on a normal hovercraft journey to Southsea to pick up other thrill seekers. At the end, you get taken back to Ryde on a normal hovercraft journey.

Sandwiched in between is the 'Experience' flight, where our pilot performed some tricks at sea and gave us some detail about what he was doing. The highlight was the donuts in the Solent where we appeared to be moving sideways at one point. Onlookers on dry land must have concluded that a wild animal had made its way into the cockpit and was playing havoc with the controls.

The motion sickness pills did the trick and I was able to enjoy it rather than desperately hoping it would end. The downside of the pills I used is that they make you feel dizzy and thirsty, but I concluded that this was preferable to sea sickness.
Entrance to hovercraft in Southsea

Back on dry land

We returned to Southsea to be given a tour of the outside of the hovercraft by the pilot. He talked us through the technology and pointed at things whilst we admired the motors and asked questions.

The crew then carried out a raffle, having handed out tickets earlier in the experience. Without Mrs Guru with me, I had managed to lose my raffle ticket within 25 seconds of being given it. I was relieved when someone else won the goody bag of Hovertravel souvenirs rather than there being an awkward moment of the crew saying "well, someone must have the winning ticket....".

One of the younger visitors then asked if he could see the cockpit, and was given permission to stick his head through the tiny loft-hatch. 

There then followed a small queue of middle-aged men who tentatively asked to see the controls and formed a queue began sticking their head through the hole.

Our time ran out before my turn arrived, but I noted that they do a separate 'Behind The Scenes' tour, which presumably includes this addition.
Rear engines of hovercraft in Southsea
Rear of Hovertravel Hovercraft with visitors

Happy Birthday

Our visit was in the same week as the 60th anniversary of Hovertravel. Let's hope this little curiosity of the Isle of Wight has many more years of happy sailing - sorry - flying.
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How many people attended the Isle of Wight Festival 1970?

6/8/2025

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Jimi Hendrix statue at Dimbola
This Jimi Hendrix statue can be found at Dimbola in Freshwater Bay
We all know that the Isle of Wight Festival 1970 was the biggest ever.

It also had a remarkable lineup including Jimi Hendrix, The Doors, The Who, Leonard Cohen and Joni Mitchell. You can see an exhibition about it at Dimbola in Freshwater Bay - and a statue of Jimi Hendrix.

But how many people were at the 1970 festival?
  • Encyclopaedia Britannica say 50,000 tickets were sold but say with some confidence that 'some 600,000 turned up'.
  • A report by British Pathe says 400,000. 
  • The Getty Images caption for this photo claims there to be 120,000 people, but this could be confusion with the Isle of Wight Festival 1969, which was in a different location. ​
  • This BBC Archive video claims there are 15,000 watching from Afton Down, with more arriving. It also claims that about 100,000 people bought tickets (double the number suggested by Encyclopaedia Brittanica).
  • Another BBC Archive video estimates there are 400,000 attending. 
  • Several reports (including the Guardian) say that 'The Guinness Book of Records estimated the total attendance at between 600,000 and 700,000'. But when you actually look at the Guinness Book of Records, it says that organisers put the number at 400,000. A Portsmouth News report quotes the Guinness Book of Records but says the number was actually 800,000 (i.e. double what the Guinness Book of Records actually says).
​
The number I've heard most often is the 600,000 figure, but there's a risk that everyone is quoting each other and that the original source got it wrong.

Of course, there's no definitive number because lots of people watched it without paying - but which number is most likely to be accurate?
Isle of Wight Festival 2025 crowd
Some estimates say that the Isle of Wight Festival 1970 attracted 12 times as many people as 2025 (pictured)

Creating a map of the Isle of WIght 1970 site

I wanted to come up with own estimate with the data available, so I started by mapping the 1970 site on Google Maps. I used a diagram of the site that I found in an Evening Standard newspaper article from 1970 and a selection of aerial photographs from Getty Images.

Here’s my rough map:
  • ​The section in orange is the ‘spectator arena’, which I calculate to be 10.7 hectares. We’ll call it 11 hectares, as this is just a back-of-the-envelope estimate, rather than something that will form part of a dissertation.
  • The purple and pinkish areas are camping fields. I haven't figured out where these ended, but it's not terribly relevant.
  • The blue area is parking.
  • The big green area is parts of Afton Down where people watched from a distance. It became known as Desolation Hill or Devastation Hill.
  • The yellow section is the entrance area as well as things like an ambulance station.

The majority of people watching were in the orange area, according to aerial photographs.

The next thing we need to figure out is how dense the crowd was. The aerial photos show the arena with a vast crowd, but you can see some thinner areas at the edges. We don't know what time this image was taken though, so it might have got busier.

​So, how big a crowd typically fits into 11 hectares?  

​This BBC news article about a Lady Gaga concert demonstrates what five people in a square metre looks like. This makes for a pretty cosy crowd and is similar to my experiences of being towards the front of a modern-day festival.

With that density across the whole arena, you could theoretically fit in 517,000 people. If everyone was stood up and it was a real crush, then the numbers could be even higher. That would take us close to the 600,000 quoted earlier.

However, the crowd at the Isle of Wight Festival 1970 doesn’t look anywhere near as uncomfortable and condensed as that to me.

In fact, most of the photos and videos from the Isle of Wight Festival in 1970 show people sitting down whilst the acts are performing. You can see this during Joni Mitchell's set at about 1 minute 30 seconds ​and in this Free performance.
I’ve heard John Giddings talk about this quirk before. Back then, people tended to sit down at festivals during the music (at this point, I will point out that we’ve gone full circle and half of the people at modern day Isle of Wight festivals turn up with a camping chair).

People do appear to be standing up on this video, but it looks to me as if they stood up for a quick boogie and then sat back down.

What's the capacity in the arena if everyone is sat down?

Let's assume that the arena is 100% full and that everyone is sitting down.

Most information I've found online suggests that in a dense crowd, each person would use up about 0.5 m2 if they sat down. In other words, two people use up a space that is 100cm x 100cm between them. More comfortable spacing would be more like 0.6 m2.

It might be cosier at the front, but we also need to allow for people towards the back who are lounging around a bit and stretching their legs out. Take a look at this image, which appears to be inside the arena. People aren't crammed in with their knees up around their chins.

The photo in this Guardian article gives a good image of how the crowd were packed towards the front. 

So, we don't know exactly how densely packed the crowd was, but I'd welcome memories on this of anyone who was there.

If we take the figure of 0.5 - 06 m2 per person, then that works out as 183,000 to 220,000 people across an 11-hectare site. 

Of course, we don’t know for sure that people weren’t in the campsites during the performances, but it seems a fair guess that most of them were watching the artists.

And what about people watching from outside the arena?

The layout of the 1970 site is such that you get a great view from Afton Down and it's certainly true that lots of people watched from there.

It's tricky to estimate numbers, but here's the information we've got.
  • The area that became known as Devastation Hill or Desolation Hill is roughly 14 hectares. This photograph shows the size of the downs. Most people are towards the bottom, and some are towards the flatter section at the top. Some parts of the hill are clearly too steep to sit on comfortably or are full of hedges, so it's patchy.​
  • The photo in this Guardian article is the most crowded shot I've found of the hill. Some patches are empty whilst others around the top are packed with tents.​
  • We can get another good view from this photograph, which gives us an idea of crowd density on the downs. Again, we don't know what time these photos were taken but we can see that the arena is busy. We get another view from this photo, further away from the stage and see that the crowd is petering out.
  • The BBC archive video that we mentioned earlier interviews one of the organisers (Peter Harrigan), who says "most of the people have sat on the downs and watched the music there, very few have come through the gate as a proportion".

If we take a density of one person for every two square metres (that’s just a guess, this is a hard one to estimate) then that would add another 70,000 people to the number of spectators. The BBC report mentioned earlier said 15,000, with people still arriving, so my best guess is that it would be between these two figures.

​As I said, this is hard to calculate.

​My conclusion and best guess

My conclusion is that there were somewhere around 200,000 – 300,000 people watching the Isle of Wight Festival in 1970, from inside the arena and on the hillside.

This higher figure is based on:
  • the 11-hectare arena being completely full, but with everyone sat down in quite tightly packed spaces
  • an area of the downs covering about 14 hectares being occupied at a rate of one person per two square metres

I can't see where figures of 600,000 - 800,000 have come from, based on the information I've found.

It’s possible that I’ve completely missed something here.

Did the crowd overflow into camping areas during performances? Did a huge number turn up on Afton Down later? Did the number perhaps come from counting the crowds from Friday, Saturday and Sunday and then adding them together? Is there some data that we've excluded, such as ferry tickets?

If you were there and want to add your thoughts, please leave us a (polite) comment.
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A Week At Whitecliff Bay Holiday Park

3/8/2025

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We recently stayed at Whitecliff Bay Holiday Park, thanks to an invitation from Away Resorts. The beach is one of our favourites so we jumped at the offer.

​We visit the beach quite regularly but the last time I'd actually stayed at the site was 19 years earlier on the day I bought my first car, so I was keen to see how it has changed.
Beach at Whitecliff Bay Holiday Park
Whitecliff Bay is a stunner of a beach

Our Caravan At Whitecliff Bay Holiday Park

Perhaps I'm getting carried away, but I think we had one of the five best located caravans at Whitecliff Bay Holiday Park. Ours was in a section known as Solent View, which you can see on this map.

These five caravans and lodges have an uninterrupted view of the sea. They are also very close to the indoor and outdoor swimming pools, which saved us having to walk very far whilst wearing nothing but towels.

​When we arrived, we found that they offered a view of the park's big screen so we unpacked and then watched England's women win the Euros 2025. We considered this a good start to the holiday.
Caravan at Whitecliff Bay Holiday Park
Our caravan was Solent View 3

Site layout at Whitecliff Bay Holiday Park

Whitecliff Bay Holiday Park is split into two by a public road. Child one and I took a wander on a warm evening to get a feel for different parts of the site.

I think she was hoping I would take her into the amusement arcade whilst on the walk, but I (genuinely) forgot my wallet so she had to settle for a few minutes on the playground.

The beach side of Whitecliff Bay Holiday Park has the main entertainment whilst the far side of the park has some nice views of the rolling hills of the East Wight and is a bit quieter.

From memory (and according to some old road signs) this quieter section - known as The Crosswinds - used to have lots of camping and touring. It is now mostly static caravans and lodges with a small section reserved for no-frills camping in July and August.

The Crosswinds is further from the beach than the part of the resort that we stayed on but it has some of the newest and most interesting accommodation, including the TriBeCa Village and Itchycoo Park. These lodges have trendy designs and hot tubs, whereas our caravan was the more conventional sort.
Crosswinds entrance at Whitecliff Bay Holiday Park
There are two halves to Whitecliff Bay Holiday Park - the far end is called Crosswinds
Caravans at Whitecliff Bay Holiday Park
The view from Crosswinds is the hills of the East Wight
Tribeca at Whitecliff Bay Holiday Park
Newer properties, including TriBeCa are in The Crosswinds part of the resort
Playground at Whitecliff Bay Holiday Park
This playground can be found in the Crosswinds half of the resort
Itchycoo Park at Whitecliff Bay Holiday Park
Shane Ritchie fans may remember him staying in Itchycoo Park at Whitecliff Bay for a Channel 5 series
Camping at Whitecliff Bay Holiday Park
This no-frills campsite operates during peak season at Whitecliff Bay Holiday Park

​the beach and onsite entertainment at Whitecliff Bay Holiday Park

We didn't quite get down to the beach on the first night, thanks to the penalty excitement but we made the most of it on our first morning.

​Whitecliff Bay was looking stunning as it was both a) sunny and b) low tide. We built a sandcastle and moat for the incoming tide and paddled up to our knees before heading back up the hill.

Neither of the beach cafes at Whitecliff Bay are open at the time of writing, so we went to the Nab Bar for a cappuccino before walking a few metres back to our caravan for lunch in the sunshine.  

The afternoon plan was a swim in either the indoor pool or the outdoor pool. Of course, this turned into an argument between the children. It was one of those arguments where one of them kept changing their mind and was clearly arguing for the thrill of having an argument rather than because they actually had a strong opinion.

Anyway, we headed off to the outdoor pool for a splash around. It has been re-lined since we last walked past it on the way to the beach a couple of years ago, and was looking pretty smart. The pool is heated but I would recommend it for a hot day, unless you are particularly well insulated.

We then went to the indoor pool, which is smaller but is good fun and has a waterslide that sent me whooshing down at twice the speed I was expecting. I emerged from the water with a shocked look on my face, much to the amusement of Mrs Guru.

Outdoor swimming pool at Whitecliff Bay Holiday Park
We used the outdoor pool four times during our week at Whitecliff Bay Holiday Park
Playground at Whitecliff Bay Holiday Park
The main part of Whitecliff Bay has this more modern playground and the entertainment centre
Amusement arcade at Whitecliff Bay Holiday Park
The park has its own amusement arcade that hands out yellow tickets
Evening entertainment at Whitecliff Bay Holiday Park
We popped our heads into the entertainment, which runs nightly at the park
The Nab at Whitecliff Bay Holiday Park
We had a couple of drinks at The Nab bar after a swimming session
Culver at Whitecliff Bay Holiday Park
The Culver is the entertainment venue at Whitecliff Bay Holiday Park

Days Out From Whitecliff Bay

You could theoretically spend all of your time at Whitecliff Bay Holiday Park and not actually leave the site. The beach is gorgeous and we had the choice of several activities including a custard pie fight, archery and axe throwing.

There is also a busy schedule of entertainment, including bingo, kids' discos and films on the outdoor screen. During our week there was also a Robbie Williams tribute, a wrestling match and a magic show, amongst other things. I was secretly gutted to miss the wrestling match.

We did bits and bobs on the site but we like to get out and about and made the most of our time in the East Wight (we are usually in the West Wight, so this was a novelty for us).

I headed out on my mountain bike on a few early morning trips and found some truly glorious rides. I cycled up to Ventnor Down and Luccombe Down, along Shanklin and Sandown seafront, through woodland near Brading Down and did a beach tour around St Helens and Bembridge.

We also had several family days out to:
  • Shanklin Seafront for the amusement arcades, funfair and lunch
  • Bembridge to see the lifeboat station
  • Ryde for the 'hovercraft experience', where they do donuts in the hovercraft for your amusement
  • Yaverland for a swim
  • Robin Hill Adventure Park to lark around in the woods​
Bike at St Helens Beach
One of my early morning bike rides took me to St Helens Beach
Bridges at Robin Hill
Robin Hill provided one of our best days out of the week
Many thanks to Away Resorts for inviting us to stay. As always with this site, the words are 100% our own.
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20% Off Red Funnel Extended To August 2025 (Travel All Year)

30/7/2025

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Red Funnel ferry at night
Red Funnel's 20% off deal is now valid until 31 August 2025
Good news!

Red Funnel's 20% off deal has been extended for another month and is now valid until 31 August 2025. You can use for bookings up until 31 December 2025.

There is no discount code, but you need to click through the button below, which takes you to Red Funnel's website:
Save 20% on Red Funnel
via this link
Your booking is still with Red Funnel, so please get in touch with them if you have any issues. 

As usual, check that you can't find a better deal

In our previous blog posts about this now-extended offer, we have pointed out that this 20% may or may not be the best offer around for you. Before you book, check that you can't take advantage of the other Isle of Wight ferry deals on our main ferry discounts page. These include:
  • Discounts from your accommodation provider, assuming you are visiting the Isle of Wight and are paying for accommodation. Holiday parks, hotels, campsites and holiday cottages can usually get you a discount - and it is often better than 20%. See our guide to holiday + ferry bundles. Some of the big name holiday parks can get you 50% off or more (see more details from Away Resorts or Parkdean Resorts).

  • If you're planning a day return with a car, take a look at Red Funnel's Summer Sale. You can get the ferry with a car full of people for £50, which is likely to be better than 20% off the standard fares.

  • If you live on the Isle of Wight then you can buy a Multilink pass from Wightlink for about £400. That gets you 10 single journeys, which works out as about £80 return. The snag is that they need to be used within 12 months and that there is a limited number of spaces on each ferry. 

As I said, take a look through the full ferry discounts guide to check you aren't missing out.

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Red Funnel Day Return for £50 in Summer 2025 (Car + Passengers)

23/7/2025

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Red Funnel car ferry
Red Funnel is doing a day return with a car for £50
Book Red Funnel's
​£50 day return deal
I'm considering getting a bell or klaxon installed at home to announce a new ferry discount. It might wake the neighbours but I'm sure they'd understand when I told them that Red Funnel had a sale on.

Today's offer is a £50 day return for a standard sized car and passengers, and is valid until 30 September 2025. You can book it here.

This is about as cheap as it gets for taking a car to the Isle of Wight. For a family of four, it's about £6 per person, per crossing, which is hard to complain about. 

Red Funnel's Big Book of Savings has offered something similar but it requires midweek travel and it also requires you to know someone on the Isle of Wight who will share their unique discount code.

This offer is simpler and is open to everyone.

The main things to note are:
  • You need to book via this page.
  • There are only 50,000 tickets available. I've no idea if that's a lot or not very many but Red Funnel has capacity to take about 7600 cars across per day, according to my back-of-an-envelope calculation (200 cars per crossing x 38 crossings per day).
  • You need to travel by 30 September
  • It's only for day returns
  • It's for vehicles up to 5.5m long (i.e. nearly all cars and some cars with a bike rack on the back)
  • It's for vehicles up to 2m in height. That's a little more limiting as a roofbox or kayaks would probably take you over. However, you can upgrade and take taller vehicles for a very modest add-on of £2.50 per leg.
  • The offer is only available "on sailings from Southampton between the hours of 0600 to 1000 and 1700 to 2359, and sailings from East Cowes between the hours of 0630 to 1030 and 1730 to 2359. I assume this has been done to ensure that people really are doing a day return and to keep people away from the peak lunchtime ferries.

What if I don't want a day return?

There's no need to use that tone.

There are other deals around at the moment for discounted overnight stays on the Isle of Wight. You can get 20% off via this ​exclusive page until 31 July and you can find other offers on this discount ferries page.

What should I do on a day trip to the ISle of Wight?

The Isle of Wight is small enough that you can pretty much get anywhere with a car. This ferry arrives in East Cowes, which is on the northern end of the Island and is a good starting point. 

Some options:
  • Drive the Wighty 90, which is a 90km driving route that covers a lot of the most scenic parts of the Island. It takes a couple of hours, but you can stop off for an ice cream when you see something you like.
  • Do a few free things, since you've already coughed up for the ferry. The Isle of Wight has an abundance of these, including 20+ beaches and some decent free attractions including the Isle of Wight Donkey Sanctuary and Quarr Abbey. There are also various things that are free if you have National Trust or English Heritage Membership including Carisbrooke Castle or Osborne House.
  • Take a look at our day trip guide from Southampton for more ideas.
Compton Bay on the Isle of Wight
Pop across to Compton Bay with your day return deal
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Sunset Flyer - Wightlink's New £90 Fare For Isle of Wight Residents

2/7/2025

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Wightlink ferry near Yarmouth
Can you travel early or late? You could save up to 67% on Wightlink's standard fares
Book the Sunset
​Flyer for £90
Fixed price car ferry fares are few-and-far-between on the Isle of Wight ferries.

Most of the time, the car ferries run like airlines with cheap prices at 3am on a Thursday in February and considerably higher prices at lunchtime on a Saturday in August. Foot passenger ferries are a bit less flexible but if you're bringing your car then the amount you'll pay is hard to predict (a rare exception is the day return car journeys offered by Red Funnel's Big Book of Savings).

And so, I was giddy with excitement when I heard about a 'trial' of a new fixed price ferry fare with Wightlink called the Sunset Flyer.

​It is currently only for return journeys starting on the Isle of Wight (i.e. for Isle of Wight residents) but I'm hoping they might offer it to visitors if it proves popular. There was a similar fare a few years ago called a 'Night Flyer' (from memory) that was available to both mainlanders and Islanders but it required you to travel close to midnight. The Sunset Flyer is likely to be workable for more people.

How Does The Sunset Flyer Work?

During the trial, the Sunset Flyer will cost you £90 return for a car and passengers as long as you:
  • Travel after 8pm or before 9.05am on both legs of the journey
  • Start your journey on the Isle of Wight (either Yarmouth or Fishbourne)
  • Return within 30 days
  • Book by 30 September 2025
  • Travel by 31 December 2025
  • Book via this link, rather than via the main booking page

How much will I save?

This is obviously an attempt by Wightlink to spread out demand across the day. Most people want to travel on the car ferry around the middle of the day, so earlier and later ferries do tend to be quieter.  

Off peak ferries are also cheaper - so is there really much of a saving to be made?

I searched for a ferry price for a week's holiday from Friday 1 August 2025, leaving Fishbourne at 9am and then returning a week later via Portsmouth on Friday 8 August at 8pm.

With the Sunset Flyer, I would pay £90 return.

Without the Sunset Flyer, I was quoted £278.75. A similar journey on the Yarmouth to Lymington journey was £280.25.

The Portsmouth crossing is a staggering saving of £188.75 or a 67% discount.

I've deliberately picked out a very busy date here but the saving can clearly be significant. 

Let's look at an extreme example at the other end of the scale. 

I looked at a random Wednesday in November and found that the price without the Sunset Flyer was £101 if I travelled at 9am and returned the next day at 8pm. That's a slightly less exciting saving of £11. If you can find a discount code then the standard fare would likely be cheaper.

What's the catch?

There are a few things to be aware of before you leap to book the Sunset Flyer.

  • As mentioned, you can only use this for journeys starting from the Isle of Wight. That means it won't be an option for holidaymakers. If that's you, take a look at our main ferry discounts guide or our accommodation + ferry bundles. 

    We are hoping Wightlink might extend the offer for visitors as well, but don't know if that will happen. Most accommodation on the Isle of Wight will let you check in around 4pm and kick you out around 10am. With this offer, you'd need to arrive around 9pm and leave your accommodation around 8am to get the offer (or arrive early and spend a day on the Island before checking in etc.).

  • You can't combine it with other offers and discounts. That includes the popular Tesco Clubcard deal or the 15% off that you can get via various clubs and memberships.

  • Isle of Wight residents with a Multilink pass will pay less than £90 with their book of tickets. The Multilink deal works differently in that you pay about £400 upfront for 10 single tickets that have to be used within 12 months (see the full guide). The Multilink fares can theoretically be used on any crossing, but there's a limited number of spaces. 

Will The Sunset Flyer Be Extended Or Offered To Holidaymakers?

We don't know, but we certainly hope so!

It wouldn't work for everyone, but it could be a big money saver for people who are flexible. 

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Isle of Wight Guru
Your unofficial guide to cheap Isle of Wight ferry travel, free days out, best beaches and festival rumours since 2013. Now with 10% more waffle!

Planning Your Holiday
Ferry discounts
Which town to stay in
When to visit
Saving money
​Holidays including ferry travel
Dog friendly

Where To Stay
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Self catering cottages
Hotels
Camping/touring
​Warner Leisure

Things To Do
Beaches
Family-friendly
Free days out

Rainy days
Walking

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