Popular travel destinations feeling the strain of overtourism
The Isles of Scilly is an archipelago off the southwest coast of Cornwall in England. The largest island is St. Mary's. Landmarks here include the ruins of Giant's Castle, an Iron Age cliff castle, and Porthellick Cove, designated a Site of Special Scientific Interest for migrating and wintering birds.
Anchored in the Solent in the South of England, the Isle of Wight is England's largest island. Visitor attractions include Osbourne House—Queen Victoria's summer retreat—and the 12th-century Carisbrooke Castle. The annual Isle of Wight rock festival draws thousands of music fans to the island.
Moored in the middle of the Irish Sea, the Isle of Man is a self-governing Crown Dependency, so not strictly part of the UK. The island is world famous for the annual TT, the international road racing event for motorcycles. The destination is also known as the birthplace of Maurice, Robin, and Barry Gibb, of the Bee Gees.
Located off the northwest coast of Wales, Anglesey is reached by a suspension bridge that spans the Menai Strait. Anglesey's tourist attractions number the 13th-century Beaumaris Castle, and the village of Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch—which claims the longest place name in Europe!
Another self-governing Crown Dependency, Jersey is the largest of the Channel Islands, set 23 km (14 mi) off the coast of Normandy, France. Jersey Zoo, established by naturalist and writer Gerald Durrell, Mont Orgueil Castle, and the Jersey War Tunnels, built by the Germans during the Second World War, are among the island's most popular visitor attractions.
The second-largest of the Channel Islands, Guernsey has been a popular tourist destination since the Victorian era. The capital, Saint Peter Port, is where French writer and politician Victor Hugo, especially known for the novels 'The Hunchback of Notre-Dame' (1831) and 'Les Misérables' (1862), lived during his exile from France. His house is now a museum.
A speck of land hugging the northeast coast of England, Holy Island is associated with the Celts and Vikings. It's celebrated as the location of Lindisfarne Priory, founded in 634.
The largest island in the Inner Hebrides of Scotland, Skye's picturesque capital Portree is often cited as one of the most beautiful villages in the United Kingdom. The island is also appreciated for its outstanding landscape, and in particular the rock pinnacles known as The Storr.
Arran, an island off the west coast of Scotland, is a favorite outdoor tourism destination, with walking, cycling, and wildlife watching especially popular. Landmarks include Brodick Castle and the Arran Brewery, open for tours and beer tastings.
The second-largest island of the Inner Hebrides, Mull is home to four castles, two whisky distilleries, and the quaint waterfront town of Tobermory, another picture-perfect Scottish island settlement.
The Channel Island of Alderney is the third-largest in the group. The annual Alderney Week festival is the island's largest summer get-together, beginning the first Monday of August and lasting six days.
Tresco is the second-largest island of the Isles of Scilly. A strategic location during the English Civil War, Tresco is nowadays a stronghold for flora and fauna, and attracts flocks of bird watchers to its variety of natural habitats.
Lundy is a dot of an island set in the Bristol Channel 19 km (10 mi) off the coast of Devon. One of Britain's great natural wonders and its first Maritime Conservation Zone, Lundy is recognized for a rich variety of birdlife, including puffins and Manx shearwaters. The island is also a cultural draw for anyone interested in Celtic history and that of the Knights Templar, the order claiming a presence on the island in the 12th century.
Iona in Scotland's Inner Hebrides is steeped in history. Iona Abbey, established in 563, serves as a site of Christian pilgrimage. The extraordinary 'Book of Kells,' an illuminated manuscript, is believed to have been produced by the monks of Iona in the years leading up to 800 (it's now on display at Trinity College Library, Dublin). The abbey graveyard is the final resting place of several early Scottish kings.
Forever associated with author George Orwell, who completed his novel 'Nineteen Eighty-Four' while living at a remote farmhouse on the island, Jura in Scotland's Inner Hebrides tends to attract those seeking seclusion in a stark but inspiring environment.
A little over 500 people live on Sark, part of the Channel Islands. The island is one of the few remaining places on the planet where cars are banned. Sark's other claim to fame is that it's the first Dark Sky Island in the world, an honor bestowed by the International Dark-Sky Association in 2011.
The Isles of Scilly's northernmost populated island, St. Martin's balmy climate promoted the creation in 1996 of a unique coastal vineyard. The winery remains a hugely palatable visitor attraction.
Attacked by the Vikings in the 9th century, the Isle of Sheppey, an island off the northern coast of Kent in England, draws on its maritime history as a selling point for tourism. Sheppey is also recognized for its association with the development of aviation: Short Brothers, a thriving aerospace company founded in 1908 and the first in the world to make production aircraft, has its roots on the island, established by siblings Oswald, Horace, and Eustace.
Jarlshof, located on the Scottish Shetland island of Mainland, is one of the most remarkable archaeological sites ever excavated in the British Isles. Containing remains dating from 2500 BCE up to the 17th century CE, Jarlshof is the most visited of all Shetland's tourism attractions.
Known as the Heart of Neolithic Orkney, the ancient Ring of Brodgar on Mainland in the Orkney Islands is one of Scotland's most revered prehistoric sites. Indeed, it ranks alongside Stonehenge as one of the world's most important stone circles.
The majority of Portsea Island is home to Portsmouth, the UK's only island city. Located off the southern coast of Hampshire in England, the island is separated from the mainland by a narrow tidal channel known as Portsbridge Creek.
The southernmost island of the Inner Hebrides of Scotland, Islay, the "Queen of the Hebrides," is known nationwide for its malt whisky distillation industry. In fact, there are nine active distilleries on Islay, all of which considerably flavor the island's tourism product.
Rathlin Island serves as Northern Ireland's northernmost point. It's the only inhabited offshore island in the province and is visited primarily for its natural history, home as it is to tens of thousands of seabirds.
Tucked between Portsea Island and the headland known as Selsey Bill on England's south coast, Haying Island though largely residential is a magnet for tourists during the summer months. A funfair on the beach plus a seaside light railway number among the leisure amenities.
Sources: (Europeana) (English Heritage) (NPR)
See also: Ireland, forever the "Emerald Isle"
The Isle of Lewis in Scotland's Outer Hebrides is the northern part of Lewis and Harris, the largest island in the archipelago. Lewis is peppered with sites of historical and archaeological interest. Don't miss the Bronze Age-era Callanish Stones, Dun Carloway, an Iron Age dwelling, and Ui Church, burial place of the clan chiefs MacLeod of Lewis and MacKenzie.
Comprising the southern half of Lewis and Harris, the Isle of Harris is world famous for its cloth known as Harris Tweed. Adventure tourists, meanwhile, head for Clisham, at 799 m (2,621 ft) the Outer Hebrides' highest mountain.
A diminutive island set in the Firth of Clyde in Scotland, the Isle of Bute is visited for its 13th-century castle at Rothesay, the decorative neo-Gothic Mount Stuart House, and Scalpsie Bay, which has a colony of over 200 seals on its beach. Getting to Bute is half the fun, served as it is from the mainland by a traditional paddle steamer.
Gaelic is still widely spoken on Barra, an island of Scotland's Outer Hebrides. Barra is traditionally a land of lairds and pirates, landowners and privateers who helped shape this remote and barren destination. This is a place to escape to from the modern world, where Mother Nature is often your only companion.
Lying to the south of the Isle of Skye in the Inner Hebrides, Eigg is defined by the colossal An Sgùrr, a mountain formed millions of years ago from a violent volcanic eruption. The summit can be conquered by fit climbers in about four hours.
The larger of the two islands known as The Cumbraes in the lower Firth of Clyde in western Scotland, Great Cumbrae is a residential island the population of which is boosted during the summer months as visitors take advantage of its attractive leisure amenities.
The islands of the United Kingdom number in their thousands. But only a few hundred are inhabited. These are destinations in their own right, and include places like the Isle of Wight, Anglesey, and the Isle of Skye. Each has its own unique culture and identity, and a collection of visitor attractions that make them all compelling tourist hot spots. But with so many to choose from, which islands should you include in your travel itinerary?
Click through and start island-hopping the British Isles today.
Island-hopping the British Isles
Exploring the United Kingdom's many island hot spots
TRAVEL Islands
The islands of the United Kingdom number in their thousands. But only a few hundred are inhabited. These are destinations in their own right, and include places like the Isle of Wight, Anglesey, and the Isle of Skye. Each has its own unique culture and identity, and a collection of visitor attractions that make them all compelling tourist hot spots. But with so many to choose from, which islands should you include in your travel itinerary?
Click through and start island-hopping the British Isles today.