Cowes Port Handbook 2014-2015 April 2014 | Page 76

COWES PORT HANDBOOK 2014 - 2015 The Royal Hotel, one of the oldest hotels on the Island as Hillside, remarkable for combining an 18th century thatched exterior with a very contemporary Scandinavian interior. Find more places to stay, as well as the latest deals, at www.isleofwight.co.uk/offers. The Isle of Wight is shaped like a diamond and has 57 miles of coastline to explore. Each section of the coast is very different in character; from river estuaries such as Bembridge, Newtown and Yarmouth to soaring cliffs that dominate both ends of the Isle of Wight at Culver and Freshwater. There are secluded coves, perfect for rock pooling and beautiful beaches for swimming and sunbathing in the summer. You can find a comprehensive guide to the Island’s beaches online at www.isleofwight.co.uk/beaches. If you are not using your car, then a regular bus service runs from Cowes and East Cowes and enables you to travel to enjoy the Isle of Wight’s attractions, countryside, and coastline. You can also explore the Isle of Wight with Island Line’s unique electric trains, which offer a convenient way of travelling between Ryde and Shanklin, calling at Brading, Sandown, and Lake. The trains are in fact 1930’s London Underground tube trains which still offer a reliable service, 80 years after they were first introduced The Hillside, Ventnor, boasts a fabulous restaurant and bistro 76 COWES.co.uk