Isle
of Man tour guide | TheIsle
of Man tour guide |
|---|
|
Travel links:
Online map IoM
Guide No responsibility is taken for accuracy, if in doubt check before travelling. |
DOUGLAS:
Darlo in action at the National Sports Centre - Douglas 2002. Darlington took part in the pre-season tournaments in 2000 and 2002, and a few of us went back for a holiday in 2003.
But sadly the football festival was scrapped after 22 years in 2006. It was scaled down from a whole week to just a weekend for 2005 and visitor numbers not making it pay.
Island tourism officials decided that
it could "no longer justify the funding of the tournament in its present
format."
The tourism minister said: "While agreeing that the festival had helped develop
the Isle of Man’s reputation as a sporting island it was felt the time
had come to move on and plan for the future".
And (splutter) they are looking at a possible rugby tournament in its place.
We decided to to keep the guide up, last updated
in 2003, in case it's useful to other fans - even egg-chasing ones - and
just in case we go back another season.
Venues There is a multi-roomed pub The Quarter Bridge close
by, with a terrace which looks out onto the river as well as a drive-in
Macdonalds not far away. The ground across the river at the nearby Bowl,
also off Peel Road has been out of use for the last two Summers. Maps
of venues
The Ramsey games were at the local club's Ballacloan
Stadium, North Shore, over the harbour bridge and next to a lake - pictured
above. There's a grandstand, which does a decent trade in the bar and
some reasonably priced rolls and pasties.(55 minutes on the No 5 or
No3 bus from Douglas, a scenic 1hr 10 mins by electric tram or 40 minutes
in the car).
There were also some matches at Peel
FC in 2003. The stadium can be found on the A1 Douglas Rd,
on the outskirts of the town, next to Queen Elizabeth II High School.
Click here for a look back at Darlo at the festival in 2002 and 2000 Surfing there Thanks for those who've added links and suggestions. Anything worth adding? Please e-mail us any suggestions |
Travel
By air There are flights via British Airways CitiExpress (ex-Manx Airlines) to Ronaldsway Airport (c10 miles from Douglas, buses connect to Douglas centre - see below) from Birmingham and London Heathrow. Also British European now also run from Newcastle as well as from London City (standard from £175 rtn inc tax), Birminghaml and Bristol (£160). But you can get most if these far cheaper if you manage to book in advance (as cheap as £50 return from Birmingham and Newcastle, £30-50 from London City). The flight time is just under an hour. Ferries The Steampacket line run fast-cat and conventional ferries from Liverpool to Douglas, foot passengers (c£60 rtn) and cars (c£320 for two passengers, seven days), taking around 2.5/4 hours. Contact: 01624 661661
Car hire can be expensive
(£180-280 per week
) for an island with fairly good), if sometimes old fashioned,
public transport. But it helps if you want to explore the north and west
of the island. There's a fairly decent BUS
network, with buses from the airport and to and from Douglas to all parts
of the island. The No1 and No2 connect the airport with Douglas (£1.50)
and run every half hour, while Ramsey and Douglas are linked by the Nos
3 and 5 (£1.95 single, £3.30 return). Scratch-off passes covering buses,
trams and trains are available at £8 a day, £18 for three days and £25 for
five days from bus and tram stations.(Tel 01624 662525)
Although some of the transport is historic on purpose to draw the tourists,
it's integrated. There are horse-drawn trams serving
the promenade at Douglas, which link with the electric trams
out to Peel and Ramsey, which in turn link to the Snaefell mountain
railway; there's also a lovely steam railway to Port Erin.
Accommodation Cunard
Hotel, 28-29 Loch Promenade, Douglas Tel: 01624 676728. Comfortable
enough licensed hotel with lounge bar, decent cooked breakfasts. £25-30
a night.
The Ellan Vannin Loch Promenade, Douglas Next door
to the Cunard, a family hotel, reasonable prices, Irish bar. c £25
a night.
The Chesterhouse Hotel Loch Promenade, Douglas
Comfortable hotel with en suite rooms, restaurant and bar. c£32 a night.
Erin Brae, Queens Promenade, Douglas, Tel: 620829
DAFTS in 2002 opted for RAMSEY
on the north of the island. It's a prettier place to stay, with a couple
of good pubs, restaurants and sea-front.
There is the Mitre Hotel in the main street, which also overlooks the
harbour. Also recommended is the Sulby
Glen Hotel , four miles on the road west of Ramsey town centre - on
the TT course - which is full of motorcycling art and also has a decent
restaurant and good real ales.
Closer to the west is PEEL,
which is certainly worth a visit and is again a quieter alternative to
the Manx capital, with its castle and back streets, it's probably the
prettiest town on the island.
If you'd like to be e-mailed Things to do
The event also coincided with the Yn
Chruinnaght Inter-Celtic music festival at the Grand Island
Hotel, Ramsey, as well as the Manx stock car championships
at Onchan, while there it's also the Isle
of Man International Cycling Week with some road racing in
various towns on the island and the TT course during the same few days -
quite busy then!
Worth visiting are Peel Castle, the Laxey Wheel (the world's biggest
water wheel) with the Snaefell mountain railway nearby. You can also drive
around the TT course, on two or four wheels, which is obviously the main
road most of the year. Another bikers' mecca is Murray's Motorcycle Museum
at Snaefell.
For outdoor types, the island is renowned for its bird-watching and golf, while for indoors, there's
the Gaiety Theatre
and a cinema in Douglas.
Tourist office:
Banks:
Internet cafes:
Post Offices:
|
Eat and
drink It's all about personal preferences, but
though there may be many pubs in Douglas, there are very few good ones. Not that that bothered Gavin (pictured above)
Either aimed at tourists or at locals who prefer quantity over quality.
The good news, the licensing laws mean most boozers stay open until midnight
- and we know of a couple near the harbour that are heaving by 10.30am! There's an exhaustive (and possibly exhausting) Manx Pub Guide, but here are a few we've sampled ourselves which may whet a whistle or two: Quid's Inn Promenade, Douglas Does like it says. Unashamedly aimed at footie fans - you pay a quid to get in via turnstiles and all drinks are a quid (or they were last time, or near as damn it anyway). Apart from a few silly yobs from Stoke or Burnley misbehaving in 2000, it was OK if you like your boozers cheap and basic.
The Rovers' Return 11 Church Street, Douglas (pictured above) Run by a Blackburn Rovers fan, although entry sometimes restricted during the tournament, although they were a little more relaxed over the wearing of colours. It's the nearest centrally to a decent pub, dark with atmosphere and the local Bushy's brew. Also very good grub - decent servings of hot food with lashings of chips. Open from 12 midday.
The Prospect. Prospect Hill, Douglas Worth a stop if walking to the match. There aren't many pubs here which look and behave like those on the mainland, and this is one of them, attracting the local office crowd rather than tourists. Neat and modern lounge, serving decent meals too. Was run by ex-Sun model Debbee Ashby on last visit, to give it novelty value.
Foresters Arms. St Georges St/Athol St, Douglas Decent enough local that does Okells.
The Quarter Bridge (pictured
above) Peel Road, Douglas Mines Tavern. Laxey tram station Okells pub near the tram station, with beer garden. Friendly, a couple of local real ales on, although not the stout on our return visit. Also serves food.
Elan Vannin West Quay, Ramsey Refurbished and renamed and now (at long last in Ramsey) a Bushy's pub, this has a choice of three beers, including a guest and some Belgian bottled alternatives. Also serves food at lunchtime. Was the DAFTS HQ for the duration in 2003! The Trafalgar West Quay, Ramsey CAMRA-recommended harbourside pub with Okells and Cains, voted Okell's pub of the year in 2001. Was the DAFTS HQ for the duration in 2002! The Royal George, East
Quay, Ramsey Decent boozer with food in the town centre,
Okells Bitter and Mild.
The White House, 2 Tynwald Rd, Peel The Creek Inn, Station Place, Peel
An OK pub with decent food near the sea-front.
On the trail of ale
Back in 2000, DAFTS enjoyed a trip around
Okells Brewery on the outskirts of Douglas, and there was a "real
ale trail" in 2002 run by toursim officials during the football festival
week!
The Tourist Board in 2002 ran a "Passport for the Manx Real Ale Trail,
" which could be bought from the tourism office in the ferry terminal
for £11.00. Telephone 01624 644644. There was also an online
ale trail map
Restaurants In Ramsey, Timms
Bistro, 5 East Street, is just off the harbour and is recommended
for its wonderful seafood and steaks (01624 817967, Tues-Sun, open
until 10pm) - we never got as far as the dessert menu, we were always
too stuffed! There's a decent vegetarian choice, unlike so many other restaurants of this type and the welcome from David Timms is friendly.
Ramsey's only curry house is also Spice of India, 8 Peel Street, but
luckily it's a decent one with some nice variation dishes alongside the
traditional curry menu(open until 12 midnight - bring your own alcohol,
no corkage). We also tried Arriba tapas bar, 22-25 St Paul's Square
(Tues-Sat, 6pm-9.30pm, 01624 814692), which had dishes from £1.50
to £5 and had a varied choice, if its setting in a shopping parade is
a little odd. Also recommended is the Lotus Chinese, 13-15 Parliament
St (01624 812205), 5.30pm-11pm, 12am Fri-Sun - it looks a little
shabby from the outside but is very comfortable inside and the food is
excellent.
In Peel, apart from The Creek pub, there is some well cooked food, as well as cream teas, at the Harbour Lights Cafe on the quayside, while you must try the wonderful range at the Davison's ice-cream parlour nearby.
|
|
||||
End
of an era 
