Isle of Man Social Weekend
Overview
Overview: After many requests, we are running the Isle of Man social weekend with Steve Dell and Arlene again. It’s a short flight from the UK (around an hour) or a ferry from Liverpool, so it’s ideal for a long weekend.
The Isle of Man has much to offer; we will develop an itinerary over the next few weeks but expect things like the horse drawn tram along the sea front, the Manx Electric Railway, Laxey Wheel and mine, the train to Snaefell Summit. The Steam railway from Douglas to Castletown. Castletown has the House of Keys (original Isle of Man House of Parliament and Castle Rushen, Port Erin, a seaside village with its sandy beach and much more.
We stay in Douglas at The Chesterhouse Hotel which is near the town centre and a short walk to the ferry terminal and steam railway station.
As with all of Steve and Arlene’s social weekends there will be a set of coordinated activities throughout the weekend; you can do all of them of just dip in and out as you please (although many will need to be booked in advance).
The Evenings: Dinner will be at the hotel each evening. On the Friday Steve will do a welcome chat to go through the plans for the weekend. After this and on the other evenings we will explore the nightlife of Douglas.
Because of the nature of this weekend the payment due and cancellation period is longer than usual – balances are due 8 weeks in advance.
Extra night: There is so much to see and do in the Isle of Man, we have added an extra night for those who want to stay longer. Previous visits have shown that to fully explore the wonderful island three nights isn’t enough.
There will be more coordinated activities later in the day on Monday and Sunday morning.
Includes
The package includes three night’s dinner (3 course carvery style meal), bed and breakfast and a host throughout the weekend with a coordinated itinerary.
Extras
Extras: Travel, lunches and any activities booked
Location & Itinerary
This is the 2025 Coordinated itinerary
Friday
After checking in to the hotel Steve will take us on a familiarisation walk and if time, visit the Manx Museum.
Saturday (South of Douglas - steam railway)
- 09:50 Douglas to Castletown
- In Castletown we are booked into the House of Keys (old Manx parliament where we are part of a mock parliament sitting) and Rushen Castle. We will need to split into two groups for the House of Keys (11:00 and 12:00), visiting the castle before / after your time slot.
Time for lunch
After lunch you have a couple of options…
- Catch the 14:27 to Port Erin, a lovely seaside town, plus a railway museum. You will have just over an hour to explore this town and seafront.
- Or
- Catch 14:27 to Ballasalla for a visit to Rushen Abbey. You will have around 2 hours to walk to Rushen Abbey, explore this and walk back to the station.
Sunday (North of Douglas - electric railway)
- 10:10 Douglas to Laxey
- 10:45 Laxey to Snafell Summit
- We will have just under an hour to look around the summit and visit the café
- 12:10 Summit to Laxey (if its cloudy, we can get the 11:50 back to Laxey)
- In Laxey we can visit the Laxey Wheel and Mines walk. There are a couple of pubs and cafes for lunch or a snack.
- The Laxey Mines railway and the Washing Floors heritage site are also well worth as visit
- The return back is flexible depending on how long you want to spend in Laxey.
Monday
There are a few options today, which depends on whether you are staying the extra night.
10:30 Tynwald private guided tour For the first time, we have secured a private guided tour of the Tynwald, the Isle of Man parliament building. This is free of charge, but you need to book.
or
10:00 or 11:30 The TT Taster Trike Tour which will need to be booked.
and / or
A visit to Peel (on the public bus). Another lovely harbour town with a castle, cathedral and the House of Manannan (Viking Museum). We went to Peel last time and it’s well worth a visit. If you are staying the Monday evening, you can make a day of it if, but if you are going home on the Monday, it will be more of a flying visit.
Note: if you are staying on the Monday night, the suggestion is that you book the Tynwald tour (if that interests you) and then go to Peel afterwards. You can then book the TT Taster Trike Tour on the Tuesday.
Tuesday
10:00 or 11:30 The TT Taster Trike Tour which will need to be booked.
If we haven’t done this on the Friday, we can visit the Manx Museum.
Travel: The plan is to book your own travel independently rather than packaging them as this is more flexible and cost effective.
The easiest way to travel is using the ferry from Liverpool. Steve and Arlene will get the ferry from Liverpool so you can join them or use an alternative and meet us there.
There is also a ferry option from Heysham (near Morecombe).
Update January 2025: The ferry times and prices are now available on the Isle of Man ferry companies’ website.
The group ferries are..
Friday 13th June - Liverpool to Isle of Man at 11:15
Monday 16th or Tuesday 17th June (if you have booked the extra night) Isle of Man to Liverpool at 15:00
You are of course welcome to book a different ferry or some will fly if this is easier than going to Liverpool.
If you book now, they have a great deal – it’s just £56.50 return, as a foot passenger, but this is a non-cancellable price and it’s a dynamic price so will go up at some stage. If you are certain you will go, the advice is to book now.
Here is a link to their website
Thursday night in Liverpool. Last time some of us stayed on the Thursday evening to make sure we were in Liverpool in time for the ferry. We will this again and we will arrange a group meal on the Thursday evening. Hotel prices can also be dynamic so it’s generally better if you book this sooner rather than later. Last time the Travel lodge on The Strand offered a good rate but there are several hotels nearby.
| Type | Price | |
|---|---|---|
| Member double share | £329.00 | Sold Out |
| Member Female Twin Share | £329.00 | Sold Out |
| Member twin share | £329.00 | Sold Out |
| Member single | £379.00 | Sold Out |
| Member double for sole occupancy | £429.00 | Sold Out |
Not enough spaces left for you? Join the waitlist
Host & Everything Else
Gallery
