Travel to the Isle of Man – Episode 381

Hear about travel to the Isle of Man as the Amateur Traveler talks to writer and filmmaker Andrew White.

The Isle of Man is a small island in between Ireland and England. “It’s a fantastic place. It really is. It’s often said it’s like the British Isles in miniature. and it is almost like someone’s read a guidebook or Britain and said, ‘hmmm, all these places are great, but why don’t we squeeze them down into one little tiny island'”.

“One of the stories for why the Isle of Man is where it is is that an Irish Giant who threw a piece of ground to a Scottish rival and it didn’t quite get there.”

“Because it’s not part of the United Kingdom, it’s not even part of the European Union. It’s got its own little feel to the island. If you are familiar with Britain, because it drives on the same side of the road, the road signs look exactly the same, but it’s got its own characteristics.

The Isle of Man is steeped in history, so it has plenty of historic buildings, castles, and ruins to see there. One of its really big things is walking. There are some fantastic trails that you can use to discover the island.

The island is 221 square miles. “It’s a great size when you’re a visitor to go across to because if you hire a car or you take your own car across, it’s a great size to be able to drive around.” You can take a ferry from Ireland, Northern Ireland, Liverpool or Heysham, or you can fly to the island’s one airport.

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Show Notes

Walks Around Britain
Visit Isle of Man
Isle of Man Government
Heritage Railways
Laxey Wheel
Douglas, Isle of Man
Castletown
Peel Castle
Point of Ayre
Raad ny Foillan
The Herring Way
The Walking Festival
Isle of Man Public Transport
Isle of Man TT
14 North Restaurant
Fairy Bridge

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Community

David from Oregon wrote:

Hello Chris,

Thanks for providing the Amateur Traveler podcast. I’ve found some of
the programs a good resource for discovering what’s interesting about
destinations without having to go there first. It’s nice to hear good,
first hand travel experiences. I’ve heard a number of episodes now but
there are some locations I’ve not heard programs for (listed below) and
was wondering if you’ve already done these or if they are in the works?

– Boston, MA
– Buffalo, NY
– Cincinnati, OH
– Denver, CO
– Houston, TX
– Nashville, TN
– Orlando, FL
– Phoenix, AZ
– Salt Lake City, UT
– Tampa, FL
– Toronto, Ontario
– Winnipeg, Manitoba

Also – one comment about the program – some people have mentioned that
the journey to a destination is a big part of the fun of travel, and I
would have to agree. Would you consider adding this element to your
pool of questions you ask your guests? For example, how did you get
there and/or what was interesting about the journey? I understand in
some cases there won’t be much to say, but it could provide some extra
detail that your listeners might enjoy.

Thanks for your help,

David