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Richard Mellor finds peace, quiet and an old-school charm in England’s southernmost isles


DESTINATIONS ISLES OF SCILLY | UK & IREND


d travelweekly.co.uk


espite being only 28 miles from Cornwall, the Isles


of Scilly (pronounced ‘silly’) are wholly escapist. Rather than chain supermarkets, traffic jams or noise pollution, these 140 slow-paced specks – of which only five are inhabited – promise lily-white beaches, Caribbean- colour coral, see-through seas, subtropical gardens and Britain’s warmest climate. There’s a good food scene, lots


of walking and, most enchantingly, an innocent, villagey vibe: doors are left unlocked, and everyone says ‘hello’.


Not that this is a 20th-century time warp. Wi-Fi and mobile- phone reception are the norm, and many hotels and cottages are decidedly luxurious. That goes some way to explaining the high prices, along with the journey from southwest England. Quickest – and most exciting – is riding in a twin- engine plane from Land’s End, Newquay or Exeter to main island St Mary’s on the so-called


Skybus, although these flights are weather-dependent (from £125 return, islesofscilly-travel.co.uk). Ditto helicopter connections from Land’s End to St Mary’s, with a Penzance-Tresco service due to start in spring 2020. Most reliable is the Scillonian


III ferry’s daily, three-hour crossing from Penzance (from £48 return), though, due to a shallow draught, this sometimes choppy journey isn’t for those with shaky stomachs.


ST MARY’S The largest isle, and home to about 80% of Scillonians, pretty St Mary’s is where most Scilly trips start. In twee ‘capital’ Hugh Town, narrow streets house boutiques and live-music pubs. Close by, the Juliet’s Garden restaurant has superb views over Hugh Town’s harbour towards the previously inhabited island of Sansom. See: Ex-prime minister Harold Wilson visited St Mary’s each summer; his modest grave can be seen at the Old Town Church. Older still are Iron Age


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