Travel is a big topic for all of us who live on the Island or are moving here so there is a very quick guide
Boat services
Boat services to and from the Island are operated by the Isle of Man Steam Packet Company. It’s actually wholly owned by the Government but run independently.
We have two main services Isle of Man to Liverpool and Isle of Man to Heysham (Lancashire).
Our new boat – ‘ManxMan’ goes back and forth on the Heysham route and also brings in almost all the freight. It’s usually a 3:45 hour journey, pretty reliable and costs about £350ish return with a car. It goes in most weather conditions – but there are inevitable disruptions during winter storms.
The Liverpool route is serviced by our fast catamaran, Manannnan – it’s quick at 2:45 hours but can be a bit bumpy if the sea gets up.
Flights
Flight services are via the Islands only airport – Ronaldsway.
The most popular services are Liverpool, Manchester and London but we can also fly to Birmingham, Bristol, Dublin, Belfast and Edinburgh. The carriers are Easyjet, Aer Lingus and LoganAir – see here for details.
The airport itself is rather nice, but some management ‘issues’ have resulted in a lack of Island ATC staff so the runways are periodically closed with predictable consequences to schedules. (much frustration).
