After wanting to visit for a long time, I was finally able to experience The Sensational Isles of Scilly tour recently. As the Product Manager for our UK and Ireland holidays, I loved planning this tour and it did not disappoint.
From London to Penzance in comfort
The adventure began at London Paddington where we checked into the First Class lounge to meet the Tour Manager and the rest of the group. Unlimited drinks and snacks were available for everyone and the place was nice, warm and relaxing.
Soon, it was time to board the Riviera Sleeper train all the way down to Penzance. The only experience of a sleeper train I've had before was in Vietnam, so I wasn't expecting much. But, the train is quite comfortable actually. I had a double bunk cabin to myself where I settled in for the 7+ hour journey.
A first glimpse at the magic of Cornwall
I woke around 4am, and it was absolutely magical - sat by the window, watching the sunrise over Bodmin Moor. Breakfast - a sausage sandwich and a cuppa - was delivered to the cabin. When we arrived at Penzance, we gathered in the First Class lounge where Joanne, our Tour Manager, filled us in on the day's plan, including sailing times and coach pick-ups.
Since our sailing was an hour later than usual, I took advantage of the extra time and took myself off for a walk down to St Michael's Mount in the glorious Cornish sunshine.
Setting sail to the Isles of Scilly
The coach arrived and took us to the boat - an older vessel called the Scillonian III. Boarding was smooth, and after we watched Land's End disappear behind us, I found myself a reclining seat and dozed for an hour.
The journey takes about two and a half hours but those last 20 minutes sailing into Scilly is amazing. Drifting past small islands and navigating between the main ones - it's a great welcome to the isles, helped along by the fact the sky was blue and the sun was shining brightly.
From the port, it's about a 10-minute walk to St Mary's Hall Hotel (or just a couple of minutes if you're staying at the Atlantic Hotel). Our bags were delivered directly to the hotel, so the walk through Hugh Town was really easy.
Checking in and exploring St Mary's
St Mary's Hall Hotel is really lovely. It is a former townhouse, built in 1938 by an Italian nobleman for his Scillonian bride, converted into a hotel in 1967. Peter, the General Manager, gathered us all in our own private dining room and handed out the room keys and, from there, the rest of the afternoon was at leisure.
Most of the group went up to their rooms to unpack, but I had the giddiness of a small child on Christmas Day so raced off to explore. You literally trip over history on St Mary's and, within half an hour, I'd hiked to the top of a hill to visit some standing stones, found myself a Neolithic burial dolmen to crawl inside of, and ordered a pint in a pub called the Mermaid which was used by smugglers and pirates back in the day.
A perfect first evening at St Mary's Hall Hotel
Back at the hotel, it was time for our first evening meal as a group. All the guests were brilliant, there were some genius characters among them.
The food is absolutely top-notch, as was the service. The meals are all amazingly well presented and served quickly - but never rushed. The staff are very polite and friendly and can't do enough for you. It was clean plates all around and everyone ended the evening in the lounge, chatting over a beer and getting to know each other.
History, scenery, and leisure: What to do on St Mary's
The next morning, we had a full-day tour of St Mary's (or half-day for those who preferred). Led by a local expert - Jess - a gentle stroll around the south side of the island took us to some lovely places, with interesting history and amazing views. Jess was incredibly knowledgeable, and the group peppered her with questions.
After that, it was free time to do whatever you fancied. That's the beauty of this tour - there's a lot going on but it's also relaxing at the same time with lots of free time to enjoy doing as much or as little as you want.
A day on Tresco Island
The next day was a highlight, a boat trip to Tresco island to visit Tresco Abbey. The boat system is brilliantly efficient. You just get to the quay, there are signs with which boat names are going to which island, and you get on board. If a boat fills up, it simply leaves, and another arrives to take the rest. It's very easy to sort and there are many deckhands to help you down and climb on. Sailings to the nearby islands take around 15 minutes, and they were smooth (well, apart from one choppier crossing later in the week).
Once on Tresco, we walked to the abbey gardens where we could explore independently. The gardens are extraordinary, with more than 20,000 plants from 80 countries - and watching red squirrels frolicking around was great fun. The climate in Scilly is really warm, but not hot, and very rarely gets bitterly cold in the winter so the flora thrives here.
After lunch, we went on a walking tour of Tresco with Jess. She once again regaled us with tales of the islands and took us to ruined castles before we called into the only pub on the island for a beverage in the sunshine before the boat back to St Mary's.
Visiting St Agnes and St Martin's
On this tour, we also do a day trip to St Agnes and St Martin's. Both are very different islands but are equally as stunning. St Martin's is rugged with pretty little villages dotted around, while St Agnes is more rural. We visited a farm that had the largest herd of cattle on the island, a whopping 10 cows! They make their own ice cream, which is sold almost exclusively on Scilly and, genuinely, I can confirm that Troy Town Ice Cream is as good as it gets.
Both islands have wild beauty in abundance and coastal paths to walk, lovely little pubs overlooking the bay and surrounding islands, it's pretty much perfect.
A unique chance to walk the Land Bridge to Bryher
With two free days, this tour really is super laid-back and chilled. The group all went off and did their own thing, as did the Tour Manager, who went swimming with seals. But, on the final free day, we were all in for a real scoop. Just twice a year, during a super full moon, a land bridge appears between Tresco and the smaller island of Bryher due to a very low tide.
This means that for only two days a year, you can walk between the islands and the folk really go to town with it. A pop-up mini festival happened with live music, artisan food stalls, craft stalls etc, all set up on a sandbank which is normally 10 metres below the Atlantic Ocean. Everyone in the group chose to do this and it was amazing to be able to witness this rare event for ourselves and, of course, have the opportunity to explore Bryher which we don't visit as standard on this tour.
A scenic flight on the journey home
With the holiday coming to a close, one of the highlights was the tiny plane ride back to Land's End. With only 17 seats (and a dog cage with two sausage dogs on board), we had a clear view into the cockpit to watch the pilot fly as we flew no higher than 1,000 feet above all the islands we had visited.
It was an amazing experience to look down on all we had explored over the past seven days. Once down, we had a final lunch together at Cape Cornwall before going back to London, from Penzance, on a First Class train ride home.
Final thoughts on Scilly
It's hard to describe Scilly without sounding a bit over the top. It's probably in the top three most beautiful places I've ever been; it's the most relaxed I've felt in a long time and the whole island chain holds a magic I can't quite put into words. If you get a chance, go. I promise you wholeheartedly you will not regret it.
Experience The Sensational Isles of Scilly with us for yourself.
