Isle of Man Passport

The Isle of Man in practice

Formalities:

No visa is required to enter the Isle of Man. Entry requirements are similar to those for the UK, i.e. a passport valid for the period of the trip.

Access:

By the sea

You can reach the Isle of Man by ferry from the following ports:

in the UK at Heysham, Liverpool or Birkenhead
in Northern Ireland in Belfast
in Ireland in Dublin

By plane

The Isle of Man's only airport - Ronaldsway - is located in the south of the island, at Ballasalla, near Castletown.

The Isle of Man has excellent air links with many major airports in the UK (London, Birmingham, Cardiff, Glasgow, Liverpool and Manchester) and Northern Ireland (Belfast).

Preferable periods :

The climate on the Isle of Man is temperate, with cool summers and mild winters. Rainfall varies considerably across the island, although the average is high compared with the rest of the British Isles.

With consistent temperatures, the Isle of Man is a good year-round destination. However, April, May and June are the driest months, May, June and July are the sunniest and July and August the warmest.

Climate:

Average temperatures (Ronaldsway Airport) source climatsetvoyages.com

Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
Min (C°)	4	3	4	5	8	10	12	12	11	9	6	4
Max (C°)	8	8	9	11	14	16	18	18	16	14	11	9

Average rainfall (Ronaldsway Airport) source climatsetvoyages.com

Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
Rain. (mm)	85	60	65	55	50	60	55	65	75	105	105	90
Days	14	11	12	10	10	10	9	11	11	14	15	14

Accommodation:

There is a wide variety of accommodation available throughout the Isle of Man. Beware, however, of the peak summer season and TT racing periods, when you need to book well in advance to secure a bed.

There is a wide choice of hotels, to suit all tastes and budgets. The majority of hotels are located in Douglas, many of them on the promenade overlooking the sea. They often have their own restaurants, offering local and international cuisine.

B&Bs are very common. There is a wide range of bed and breakfasts and guesthouses, often in attractive locations around the island. Breakfasts include delicious local produce cooked on the premises and you will enjoy a warm welcome and friendly service.

Campsites generally cater for tents and motorhomes. Caution: caravans are not permitted. They are generally located in picturesque settings.

Catering:

Food on the Isle of Man is generally good, with the emphasis on a mix of seafood and local game. Perhaps the island's most famous food is Manx herring (try it for breakfast); the herrings are caught locally in the Irish Sea, then cut, salted and smoked with oak chips to give them a unique flavour. Smoked salmon is also a local speciality. Okells, the island's only licensed brewery, produces beers that are served in pubs across the island.

Money and budget :

The Isle of Man uses the Manx pound or Sterling. These two currencies are parity. Most shops accept credit cards.
A pint of beer costs around €4 and a litre of petrol €1.50 (2020).

Not to be missed:

Rushen and Peel castles, Tynwald Hill, the electric railway, whale and seal watching, the Laxey Wheel, Milner Tower, Rushen Abbey and Milntown Gardens.

Special features:

The Isle of Man is a Crown Dependency, which means that it is technically a possession of the Crown (i.e. the Queen) directly, and not of the United Kingdom. The Lord of Mann was the titular ruler of the island until 1765, when the feudal rights were purchased by the Crown and the title transferred to George I. The Parliament of Mann has been in office continuously since 979, making it one of the oldest in the world.

The Manx is a breed of cat that actually comes from the Isle of Man, and its best-known characteristic is that it has no tail. The breed also has very large hind legs and a rounded head. There is also a breed of sheep that originated on the island, the Manx Loaghtan, which is known to sometimes have four or six horns.

The Bee Gees are from the Isle of Man. You thought they were Australian? They're not. The Bee Gees are Manx through and through: Maurice, Robin and Barry were all born on the Isle of Man. Their family later moved to Australia, but they were born on the island.

Cycling champion Marc Cavendish, twice winner of the points classification in the Tour de France, was born in Douglas.