Review of the Year 2024
20/12/2024 · By Dave Riley, CEO
From all of us at Great Rail Journeys, we wish you a wonderful festive period. Take a look back at 2024 and get a glimpse at our new holidays for 2025.
Read moreEscape to the picturesque Isles of Scilly and enter an unspoilt world with a gentle climate, heavenly beaches and a relaxed pace of life. Based on the main island of St Mary's, spend your days uncovering local treasures, admiring Tresco Abbey's sub-tropical gardens, and visiting the beautiful islands of St Agnes and St Martin's.
While exploring this enchanting archipelago, there's plenty of time to unwind, soak up the peace and beauty, wander along idyllic white-sand beaches, and discover the islands' fascinating history and local arts.
Unforgettable experiences
What’s included on the tour?
Itinerary
Your holiday starts at London Paddington railway station where we are welcomed by our Tour Manager in the First Class lounge before boarding the midday train to Penzance, enjoying the comfort of our First Class seats.
Enjoy the changing scenery from the train window as we travel from the suburbs of London through the rural West Country and into Cornwall's wild open landscapes.
On arrival in the late afternoon, we are transferred by coach to our cliffside hotel, Cape Cornwall Club in St Just, for an overnight stay and an evening meal.
Additional information
Hotels
Enhance your holiday
Spending a night in London before your tour can make such a difference to the first day of your holiday - you can arrive in the capital in good time, relaxed and ready to join your Tour Manager the next morning. You may even want to take in a show on the West End or dine in one of London's famous restaurants. Perhaps on your return to London, you would like to break your journey with an overnight stay before continuing home.
We can book a wide range of hotels in central London or, for our holidays beginning with a flight, at Heathrow, Gatwick, or Manchester Airport for the night before or after your holiday. If you require a quote for single occupancy at any of the hotels, please contact us on 01904 734 805.
Buying tickets for UK train services can be a tricky business - there are so many fares to choose from, each with different rules and restrictions. As you are connecting with an international departure, we strongly recommend that you book a fully flexible ticket to ensure that should the departure times for your holiday change, your rail ticket can allow for these changes.
We can book fully-flexible UK rail tickets from your local station to join your holiday whether this be a European holiday from St Pancras or a UK holiday. The prices are competitive and tickets are not restricted to a particular train or time of day, and in most cases offer you a free choice of routes.
For an up to date quote from your local station, please ask one of our Tour Advisors.
Reviews
4.5 / 5 · 168 reviews
A Wallbank
Submitted 30/Jul
A comfortable well positioned hotel with friendly staff. A very well organised tour manager. We were able to visit 4 of the other islands by boat as well as St Mary's. We were very fortunate the weather which made the holiday.
Collected by Trustpilot
Diane Barker
Submitted 30/Jul
Amazing scenery, exceeding my expectations
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T Cackett
Submitted 28/Jul
A most enjoyable holiday with an excellent tour manager and local guides. The Atlantic Inn, with it’s young, friendly and hard-working staff, was ideally placed for the boat trips and had great choices for a cooked breakfast, although sometimes the more restricted dinner menu was a bit lacking in imagination. Decent room overlooking the harbour. The boat crossings to the off islands can be somewhat “roley” but they are all worth a few minutes of discomfort and the occasional wet feet! However, to get the best experience you must be prepared to do a lot of walking, frequently across rocky, sandy or overgrown terrain. The paths are not well, if at all, signposted but it is difficulty to get too lost as you will invariably find a sympathetic Scillonian who will put you back on track. To use the noun of choice by the islanders - lovely.
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Julian Howells
Submitted 25/Jul
Wonderful holiday break with superb scenery and a relaxing pace. Well organised by a superior Tour Manager who helped enhance our experience.
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Suzanne Nayler
Submitted 20/Jun
lovely holiday, great tour guides, wonderful weather and scenery, lovely people
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Mrs Elizabeth Handbury
Submitted 18/Jun
Wonderful relaxed holiday
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