How to get to the Isle of Man
How to get to the Isle of Man is a question I am often asked. In fact the Isle of Man is really very easy to get to by airplane or Ferry, from several locations in the United Kingdom and Southern Ireland.
The flying time to the Isle of Man is quite short and the availability of flight times is generous and varies with your starting point. With no need to check in too early at most regional airports, your journey to the Isle of Man is a relaxing start to a memorable short break or longer stay in the beautiful Isle of Man. It is also possible to fly in and out of the Isle of Man on the same day from lots of airports.
There are two Ports that the Isle of Man Steam Packet Company https://www.steam-packet.com/ regularly sail from in England and there are also less frequent sailings out of Belfast and Dublin.
How to get to the Isle of Man from the North West of England. From the North West of England you have the choice of departing by air from Manchester or Liverpool, or by sea from Heysham Port or Liverpool / Birkenhead Ports.
How to get to the Isle of Man from Manchester. There is a direct flight that takes approximately 40 minutes. The service is operated by Flybe https://www.flybe.com/
There are five flights a day Monday to Friday, three flights departing on a Saturday and four flights departing on a Sunday throughout the year. Plenty of choice there. Return ticket prices during the winter months are around £55.00 per person and £71.00 during the summer months.
How to get to the Isle of Man from Liverpool. There is a direct flight that takes around 45 minutes. This service is operated by two carriers giving the passenger even more choice not just on timetabling but also price. EasyJet https://www.easyjet.com operate two flights a day Monday to Friday and one flight a day at weekends. Price for a return ticket booked in advance would be around £45.00. The other carrier is Flybe https://www.flybe.com/ who run four flights a day throughout the week. Return ticket prices with Flybe are around £64.00 average per person.
How to get to the Isle of Man from Liverpool. From Liverpool by Fast craft Ferry (The Manannan) takes approximately 2hrs45 and costs from £44.00 for a foot passenger return. You are able to pre book your seats for an extra charge and you can also bring your own vehicle. Given the high price of the transportation of your own vehicle you may want to explore hire car costs in the Isle of Man as an alternative. The fastcraft only operates in the summer months, but you can travel to Liverpool Birkenhead on the conventional Ferry, the Ben My Chree which takes 4hrs 15 and travels once or twice a week in the winter.
How to get to the Isle of Man from Heysham Port. The Ben My Chree conventional ferry also sails from Heysham Port to the Isle of Man twice a day every day of the year except December 25th. This sailing takes 3Hrs30 and is considered the main route. This ship also carries vehicles and you can travel either with your vehicle or as a foot passenger. Foot passengers are priced the same as the Liverpool route, from £44.00.
How to get to the Isle of Man from The Midlands. From the Midlands you can fly from Birmingham with https://www.flybe.com/
The journey takes 60 minutes and there is one flight each day. Average price of a return ticket for one person is £74.00 in winter up to £97 in summer. For these prices it is worth booking in advance.
How to get to the Isle of Man from the South and South/West. From the South and South/West, there are lots of options.
EasyJet operate direct flights from London Gatwick, Bristol and Luton https://www.easyjet.com From London Gatwick there are two flights a day on Monday, Thursday and Sunday and one flight a day Tues, Wednesday and Saturday. The flight takes approximately 80 minhttps://www.easyjet.comutes. The return ticket price from this airport will vary considerably with the volume of traffic and how far ahead you actually book. However it is possible to fly mid August for £59.00 per person return if you are willing to plan well in advance and winter return flights can be as low as £49.00 per person.
Bristol airport to the Isle of Man takes around 55 minutes and operates one flight departing on a Friday and Sunday. During the summer months EasyJet fly Friday and Monday https://www.easyjet.com. Take off time is 19:15 on the Friday and the return journey is 20:40 which lends itself rather well for a weekend break away. Prices vary, but if you book in advance your mini break will cost in the region of £45.00 per person return. You can’t beat that price for a short break ‘abroad’.
EasyJet operate out of Luton between March and the end of August each year with three flights a week (Monday, Wednesday and Friday) up to the end of June https://www.easyjet.com. From July onwards there are two flights a day (Monday and Friday) until the end of August. The journey will take 75 minutes and a return ticket will set you back about £52.00 per person if booked in advance.
You can also fly from London City with British Airways https://www.britishairways.com twenty one times each week with a choice of up to four flights a day. Although London City airport has many appeals over London Gatwick the price of your ticket with British Airways will cost you between two and three times your EasyJet ticket from Gatwick. For most travellers ease of access to the departure airport will also influence their final decision.
How to get to the Isle of Man from Scotland. From Scotland you can fly from Edinburgh direct with Loganair https://www.loganair.co.uk/
The flight time is around 60 minutes and the flights operate Monday and Friday during the winter with an extra flight on a Sunday during the summer months. The ticket price is approximately £110 return per person.
Between May and December 2017, Passengers could choose to travel from Glasgow direct to the Isle of Man, hopefully this service will run again in 2018. The flights were operated by Eastern Airways https://www.easternairways.com/destination/isle-of-man and on line bookings were handled by Flybe. https://www.flybe.com/
How to get to the Isle of Man from Northern Ireland. Northern Irish Passengers can fly from Belfast City airport with Eastern Airways https://www.easternairways.com/destination/belfast-city with on line bookings again being handled through the flybe website. Ticket prices are steep at £157.00 per person return. If this service is operated again in 2018 the prices of tickets booked in advance may be more competitive. The flight takes 40 minutes.
Be careful when booking a flight as Flybe offer several non direct flights a day from Belfast City to the Isle of Man operated by Flybe themselves, only one flight a day is a direct flight. The flight time is usually 11.20am direct to the Isle of Man.
You can also sail from the Port of Belfast to the Isle of Man from Easter onwards on the Ben My Chree, journey time is 2hrs45 https://www.steam-packet.com
There are two sailings each week between Easter and the end of August then one sailing each week in September.
How to get to the Isle of Man from Southern Ireland. Flying from Dublin to the Isle of Man is easy with two flights a day Monday to Friday and one flight each day Saturday and Sunday. The flight time is only 50 minutes and the flight is provided by Aer Lingus https://www.aerlingus.com/ and operated by Stobart Air. With advance planning it is actually possible to get a return ticket price of less than €100 per person.
Sailing from Dublin to the Isle of Man is also operated by the Isle of Man Steam Packet Company https://www.steam-packet.com
The sailings are serviced by the fast craft Manannan and take 3Hrs approximately. There is one sailing a week from March to September and there are three gloriously giddy weeks in July where there are two sailings each week. This is the time to travel if you can only spare a few days.
However you choose to travel to this jewel in the Irish Sea, you can be sure that it will feel like you have travelled abroad. The Isle of Man is the same but different… For many, the Island casts her spell and enchants them, drawing them back again and again.
Now you know how to get to the Isle of Man….don’t be a stranger.