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Isle of Wight

Photo: Christine Matthews (CC BY-SA 2.0), via Wikimedia Commons

Things to do in Isle of Wight

The best holidays are planned around great days out. Here's what's on the doorstep in Isle of Wight, from big-ticket attractions to rainy-day savers.

Aquariums

Blue Reef Aquarium

11.8 mi from Isle of Wight

Blue Reef Aquarium

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Oceanarium

25.4 mi from Isle of Wight

Oceanarium

The Oceanarium is a tropical aquarium on Bournemouth's seafront, home to sharks, a loggerhead turtle, otters, jellyfish, clownfish and a colony of Humboldt penguins. You can walk t...

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Museums & Galleries

Carisbrooke Castle Museum

1.4 mi from Isle of Wight

Carisbrooke Castle Museum

Carisbrooke Castle Museum is the oldest museum on the Isle of Wight, founded in 1898 by Princess Beatrice and now caring for over 37,000 items linked to island history. Housed in t...

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Newport Roman Villa

1.7 mi from Isle of Wight

Newport Roman Villa

Newport Roman Villa was a Romano-British farmhouse constructed in 280 AD. It is located near to Newport, Isle of Wight. — Wikipedia

Museum of Island History

2.1 mi from Isle of Wight

Museum of Island History

Museum in Newport, Isle of Wight, UK

The Shipwreck Centre

2.5 mi from Isle of Wight

The Shipwreck Centre

Museum in Arreton, Isle of Wight, England, United Kingdom

Isle of Wight Glass Museum

2.5 mi from Isle of Wight

Isle of Wight Glass Museum

The Isle of Wight Glass Museum in Arreton showcases over 1200 pieces of glass across two galleries, including the world's largest collection of glass handmade on the Isle of Wight,...

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The Wight Military and Heritage Museum

4.2 mi from Isle of Wight

The Wight Military and Heritage Museum

This museum in Newport and Carisbrooke on the Isle of Wight offers a hands-on military heritage experience, with guided tours from knowledgeable volunteers, an air rifle range, arm...

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Dinosaur Farm Museum

4.5 mi from Isle of Wight

Dinosaur Farm Museum

Dinosaur Farm Museum, officially the Dinosaur Expeditions, Conservation and Palaeoart Centre, sits on the Military Road near Brighstone on the Isle of Wight and opened in 2013. Ins...

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Isle of Wight Steam Railway

4.5 mi from Isle of Wight

Isle of Wight Steam Railway

The Isle of Wight Steam Railway is a heritage railway attraction where you can ride preserved Victorian and Edwardian carriages pulled by majestic steam engines on a ten-mile round...

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Brighstone Museum

4.6 mi from Isle of Wight

Brighstone Museum

Museum in Newport, England, UK

Wight Aviation Museum

5.3 mi from Isle of Wight

Wight Aviation Museum

Wight Aviation Museum in Newchurch, Isle of Wight, celebrates over 100 years of the island's aviation history through biplanes, sea planes, jet fighters, space rockets, helicopters...

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The National Poo Museum

6.2 mi from Isle of Wight

The National Poo Museum

The National Poo Museum offers a quirky, all-new exhibition experience exhibiting species faeces and exploring the gut biome, with a focus on supporting science and charities while...

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Cowes Maritime Museum

6.2 mi from Isle of Wight

Cowes Maritime Museum

Museum on the Isle of Wight

The Gallery

6.3 mi from Isle of Wight

The Gallery

The Classic Boat Museum is a museum of boats and of the history of yachting and boating. It is located on the Isle of Wight on the West side of the River Medina. It is a working mu... — Wikipedia

Sir Max Aitken Museum

6.5 mi from Isle of Wight

Sir Max Aitken Museum

Housed in the famous pink building on Cowes High Street, this magnificent 18th century sail maker's loft holds Sir Max Aitken's personal collection of historic and nautical artefac...

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Ventnor Heritage Museum

6.6 mi from Isle of Wight

Ventnor Heritage Museum

Ventnor Heritage Centre is a small volunteer-run local history museum at 11 Spring Hill, in the centre of Ventnor opposite the Central Car Park, on the Isle of Wight. You'll find d...

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Longshoreman's Museum

6.7 mi from Isle of Wight

Longshoreman's Museum

Museum in Ventnor, England, UK

Dinosaur Isle

6.9 mi from Isle of Wight

Dinosaur Isle

Dinosaur museum on the Isle of Wight

Lilliput Doll and Toy Museum

6.9 mi from Isle of Wight

Lilliput Doll and Toy Museum

The Lilliput Doll and Toy Museum, in the ancient town of Brading on the Isle of Wight, houses a collection of over 2,000 dolls and toys dating from 2000BC to 1950. You can see uniq...

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Brading Railway Heritage Centre

7.1 mi from Isle of Wight

Brading Railway Heritage Centre

Station building in Brading, Isle of Wight, England, UK

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Theme Parks

Robin Hill

2.8 mi from Isle of Wight

Robin Hill

Robin Hill is a theme park set across 88 acres of parkland, woodland and countryside gardens at Havenstreet and Ashey on the Isle of Wight. You can take on the Botswana assault cou...

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Blackgang Chine Theme Park

5.7 mi from Isle of Wight

Blackgang Chine Theme Park

Blackgang Chine is the UK's oldest theme park, set on the Isle of Wight and combining storytelling with rides across themed areas including Pirate Cove, Fairyland, Cowboy Town and...

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The Needles Landmark Attraction

11.7 mi from Isle of Wight

The Needles Landmark Attraction

The Needles Landmark Attraction sits at Totland on the Isle of Wight, overlooking the famous Needles Rocks and Lighthouse. You can ride the iconic chairlift down to Alum Bay, take...

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Clarence Pier

11.8 mi from Isle of Wight

Clarence Pier

Clarence Pier is Southsea's well-known seaside amusement park on the Portsmouth seafront, offering fairground rides, arcades, indoor crazy golf and a Wimpy restaurant. The fairgrou...

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Funland Hayling Island

15.8 mi from Isle of Wight

Funland Hayling Island

Funland Hayling Island is an amusement park close to Portsmouth, offering over 18 rides such as rollercoasters, a carousel and dodgems, alongside an amusement arcade, a pirate-them...

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Go Ape Southampton

19.1 mi from Isle of Wight

Go Ape Southampton

Go Ape Southampton sits in Itchen Valley Country Park in West End, Eastleigh, offering high ropes courses, zip wires and axe throwing among 440 acres of water meadows and woodland...

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Peppa Pig World

22.1 mi from Isle of Wight

Peppa Pig World

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Lost Kingdom

22.2 mi from Isle of Wight

Lost Kingdom

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Paultons Park

22.2 mi from Isle of Wight

Paultons Park

Paultons Park is a large family theme park set within 140 acres of parkland on the edge of the New Forest National Park in Hampshire. There's plenty to do, from rollercoasters and...

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Tornado Springs

22.2 mi from Isle of Wight

Tornado Springs

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Critter Creek

22.3 mi from Isle of Wight

Critter Creek

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Go Ape Moors Valley

27 mi from Isle of Wight

Go Ape Moors Valley

Go Ape Moors Valley sits within Moors Valley Country Park in St. Leonards and St. Ives, Dorset, near Bournemouth and the New Forest. You can take on the original Treetop Challenge...

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Butlins Bognor Regis

29 mi from Isle of Wight

Butlins Bognor Regis

Butlin's Bognor Regis is a holiday camp in the seaside resort of Bognor Regis, West Sussex, England. It lies 55.5 miles (89 km) south southwest of London. Butlin's presence in the... — Wikipedia

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Santa-Fe Fun Park

29.1 mi from Isle of Wight

Santa-Fe Fun Park

Santa-Fe Fun Park is a family-run amusement park set on the marina in Swanage, Dorset, offering rides, arcade games and two adventure golf courses — the pirate-themed Shipwreck Isl...

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Water Parks

Muddy Puddles

22.2 mi from Isle of Wight

Muddy Puddles

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New Forest Water Park

26.4 mi from Isle of Wight

New Forest Water Park

New Forest Water Park, in Hyde near Fordingbridge, is a family-friendly water park offering wakeboarding on a cable system, an inflatable Aqua Park obstacle course, and kayak or pa...

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Zoos & Wildlife

The Falconry Experience

2.9 mi from Isle of Wight

The Falconry Experience

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Monkey Haven

2.9 mi from Isle of Wight

Monkey Haven

Monkey Haven is the Isle of Wight's primate rescue centre in Newport and Carisbrooke, where you can meet monkeys, owls, meerkats and reptiles, many rescued from tragic situations o...

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Amazon World

3.6 mi from Isle of Wight

Amazon World

Amazon World Zoo Park is a zoo and wildlife attraction near Arreton on the Isle of Wight, home to around 200 different species spanning the animal kingdom. You can explore the anim...

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Isle of Wight Donkey Sanctuary

4.4 mi from Isle of Wight

Isle of Wight Donkey Sanctuary

The Isle of Wight Donkey Sanctuary is a charity-run rescue home near Wroxall where you can meet over 100 donkeys, mules and Shetland ponies. There's no need to book — just turn up...

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The Wildheart Animal Sanctuary

7.1 mi from Isle of Wight

The Wildheart Animal Sanctuary

The Wildheart Animal Sanctuary, formerly the Isle of Wight Zoo, is a rescue centre in Sandown where you can see bears, tigers, lions, lemurs and other rescued animals. Expect close...

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Reptilarium

10 mi from Isle of Wight

Reptilarium

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The New Forest Wildlife Park

17.4 mi from Isle of Wight

The New Forest Wildlife Park

The New Forest Wildlife Park at Denny Lodge is a family-friendly zoo and wildlife attraction where you can walk through Wallaby Wood, meet friendly deer in a walk-through encounter...

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New Forest Reptile Centre

19.2 mi from Isle of Wight

New Forest Reptile Centre

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Marwell Zoo

22.4 mi from Isle of Wight

Marwell Zoo

Marwell Zoo is a 140-acre zoological park near Winchester where you can see hundreds of animals, including giraffes, leopards, meerkats and penguins, alongside attractions like the...

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Liberty's Owl, Raptor and Reptile Centre

23.6 mi from Isle of Wight

Liberty's Owl, Raptor and Reptile Centre

Liberty's Owl, Raptor and Reptile Centre is an outdoor attraction in the New Forest, near Bournemouth, Dorset, built around its birds of prey and reptiles. The star resident is Lib...

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Bournemouth Aviary

25.4 mi from Isle of Wight

Bournemouth Aviary

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Where to stay near Isle of Wight

Places to stay within easy reach of these days out.

More around Isle of Wight

Plan it day by day

Create a free account and hit "Save to my trip" on anything below — then assign each one to a day of your holiday so the whole week is sorted before you pack. And if you haven't booked yet, see our guide to holidays in Isle of Wight for the best places to stay.

Frequently asked questions

What are the best things to do in Isle of Wight?

The list below shows attractions nearby with distances from Isle of Wight.

What can we do in Isle of Wight when it rains?

Museums, galleries and aquariums are your friends — filter the list below by category and keep a couple in reserve for wet days.

More ways to explore

Not booked yet? See the best places to stay in Isle of Wight.