The Island

A beautiful place to live

The Isle of Wight lies off the south coast of mainland England and covers an area of 147 square miles, with a beautiful coastline that runs for 57 miles.

Slightly more than half, mainly in the west, is designated as an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, with 28 miles designated as Heritage Coast. In addition, the Island also includes a very high number of internationally, nationally and locally important nature conservation sites.

Popular Towns

While the overriding character of the Island is rural, about 60% of the Isle of Wight’s population live within the main towns of Newport, Cowes, East Cowes, Ryde, Sandown and Shanklin.  Newport is the county town of the Island and is the main employment centre.

The local population is approximately 140,000 but that can double in the summer months with the influx of tourists. Houses and other property prices are, on average, lower than most of the south coast, as are rental prices.

Stunning Scenery

The Isle of Wight is well known for the quality of its environment, with its landscapes and coastlines enjoying a high level of special designation and protection.  While this helps to give the Island its unique character, it also presents us with the challenge of protecting, conserving and enhancing the environment, alongside our ambition to facilitate regeneration and development.

Well Connected

The Isle of Wight boasts multiple connections ensuring it never feels disconnected, with journey times across The Solent starting at just ten minutes. In no time at all you can be in the heart of one of two major UK cities, Portsmouth and Southampton. From there excellent road, rail and air links mean that the rest of the UK, and the world, is always within reach.