Getting here

Start your holiday early – leave the car at home and take the train!

Pack a picnic, grab seats on the left hand side of the train (facing direction of travel), and if you are coming from a distance / want some more leg room, don’t forget to find out about Weekend First - £10 extra each way gets you in to first class.

Then, suitably settled in, enjoy the ride! The line beyond Exeter offers truly stunning scenery, at one moment running along sea walls at Dawlish, the next climbing the edges of Dartmoor. The highlight? For us it is Brunel’s sublime Tamar Bridge.

Even better – look at the price!

We are not sure how they can do it but First Great Western’s Heli-Rail deal offers fantastic value on combined rail – helicopter / ferry ticketing( 0845 6010573). Throw in the free shuttle bus to the heliport and that you can forget the car parking charges (and the long drive) and it becomes a ‘no brainer’. Why drive when a combined rail and helicopter ticket from Exeter costs less than the return helicopter fare from Penzance! If you are being really smart you will compare standard rail fares with the Heli-rail deal as the Heli-rail fares start to creep up if you are coming from beyond Devon – we get the Heli-rail deal from Exeter and then buy standard returns for the bit of our journey north from Exeter.

From London: Do it with your eyes closed – after all you have always wondered what it is like to travel by sleeper. The sleeper service from London Paddington is excellent and remarkable value, bringing you to Penzance refreshed and ready for your onward trip to Scilly. There is unfortunately an annoying gap in return sleeper services on Saturdays (our normal changeover date is Saturday) so for the time being sit on the right hand side of the train and enjoy the view! If enough folk tell us that they want to use the sleeper we will look to shift our changeover date.

Words to the wise:

The helicopter is noisy – there is no shame in wearing earplugs. Best place to sit – we head for the tail – good views in either direction and great views through the cockpit at take off.

The Scillonian – Is a great way to come to the islands but do bear in mind that it is not a huge cross channel ferry with fancy stabilisers and that it does have to run out into the Atlantic - Don’t risk the start of a fantastic holiday – take your preferred seasickness remedy – you probably won’t need it, but as they only work if taken in advance, why risk it?

For further ‘How to get here info’ visit the Simply Scilly website.

Driving – Try Google Maps or the AA routefinder.

From St Mary’s airport to the house - We take a taxi – inexpensive and they will take you to the door – they know where the house is! Contact the TIC for numbers 01720 422536.