Quick Trip to the Isle of Man

We paid Anna’s mum a quick visit on the Isle of Man over the weekend, and with Morgan joining us, it turned into a bit of a family affair. Since we had an early flight out of Liverpool, we decided to travel up on Thursday evening. After stopping off for some shopping and dinner at Cheshire Oaks, we checked in to a Travelodge nearby. Check-in took a while because the key card wouldn’t work, and then we found that the room didn’t have enough beds. Eventually, they moved us to a new room, and we settled down for the evening.

The airport wasn’t much fun the following morning. We arrived early, but we ended up waiting ages in the security queue. An almond croissant and coffee kept us going, though. The flight was only 25 minutes, so soon enough, we were on the Isle of Man and on a bus to Pat’s house. After a second breakfast and some catching up, we had a few little “tasks” Pat had planned for us, along with a bit of technical support. Then it was time for lunch, followed by a bus ride and a walk through Castletown back to the airport to pick up our hire car.

With keys in hand and our little Toyota Aygo collected, we headed to Fort Island for a stroll before going back to a converted barn just a few doors down from Pat’s, where we were staying. It was owned by the parents of someone Anna went to school with (everyone knows everyone in one way or another on the Isle of Man) and was perfectly situated and nicely done up. We relaxed a bit, then headed to Pat’s for dinner before unwinding back at the cottage.

The next couple of days followed a similar pattern: breakfast in the cottage, a morning trip with Pat, lunch at hers, an afternoon outing, then back to Pat’s for dinner and relaxing at the cottage in the evening. We managed shopping at Robinson’s, Curry’s to check out fridge-freezers, B&Q for a strimmer, and some retail therapy at M&S. I think Anna tried on nearly all the clothes there—so no time for coffee and cake!

I got in a short run along the Coast Path from Fleshwick to Niarbyl, got a little lost, but managed to tick off another stretch of the Isle of Man coast.

Anna and Morgan had plenty of time to relax, and we all enjoyed ourselves. On Monday, we finally had that coffee and cake at The Sound, watching the seals for a while. Thankfully, the airport shenanigans on the way back were minimal—security took less than three minutes, so we could relax in the departure lounge overlooking Derby Haven. The flight back was smooth, and after a quick McDonald’s stop for sustenance during the three-hour drive home we were back and ready for work the next day.

It was a bit of a flying trip, but we managed to fit in everything we wanted. The weather wasn’t great, but that’s expected at the end of October on the Isle of Man. We’re already planning our next visit! We think we’ll try to plan it around the availability of the cottage as it worked perfectly – hopefully sometime in the Spring.

Tags: Isle of Man