Day 1: Journey to the Islands — Bournemouth Welcome
Arrive in Bournemouth on England’s south coast for your pre-tour overnight. Settle into your seafront hotel and enjoy a welcome dinner with your fellow travelers—a chance to meet the group and preview the island-hopping adventure ahead. Overnight Bournemouth.
Day 2: Ferry to Jersey — First Impressions
Morning transfer to Poole for the cross-Channel ferry to Jersey. The 4-hour sailing through the English Channel offers your first glimpse of the islands rising from the sea. Arrive at St. Helier, Jersey’s bustling capital. Transfer to your hotel and an orientation walk through the waterfront and Victorian market halls. Evening at leisure to explore St. Helier’s excellent seafood restaurants. Overnight Jersey (3 nights).
Day 3: Jersey Island Tour — Cliffs, Castles & Cows
Full-day guided tour of Jersey. Begin along the south coast at St. Brelade’s Bay, one of Jersey’s most beautiful beaches with its tiny 12th-century Fisherman’s Chapel. Continue to Corbière Lighthouse at the island’s southwestern tip, reached by a causeway at low tide. Drive the dramatic northern coast past St. Ouen’s Bay, a five-mile sweep of Atlantic-facing sand popular with surfers. Visit the medieval Mont Orgueil Castle at Gorey, guarding Jersey’s eastern approaches for 800 years. Throughout the day, you’ll spot Jersey’s famous cows grazing in verdant fields. Overnight Jersey.
Day 4: Jersey at Leisure — War Tunnels or Wildlife
A free day to explore Jersey at your own pace. Options include: the Jersey War Tunnels, a powerful underground museum telling the story of the WWII German occupation through immersive exhibits; the Durrell Wildlife Park, founded by naturalist Gerald Durrell and home to endangered species from around the world; or simply relax on the golden sands of St. Brelade’s or the quieter bays of the north coast. Overnight Jersey.
Day 5: Ferry to Guernsey — St. Peter Port
Morning ferry from Jersey to Guernsey (approximately 1 hour). Arrive in St. Peter Port, one of Europe’s prettiest harbor towns, with its pastel-colored houses climbing the hillside and cobblestone lanes winding between them. Afternoon orientation walk: visit Castle Cornet, an 800-year-old fortress on its own tidal island guarding the harbor entrance, and Hauteville House, Victor Hugo’s exile home where he wrote Les Misérables. Overnight Guernsey (3 nights).
Day 6: Herm — The Car-Free Paradise
Take the 20-minute ferry to Herm, the smallest of the Channel Islands open to visitors—just 1.5 miles long, with no cars, no crowds, and some of the most pristine beaches in Europe. Walk the coastal path around the entire island (about 2 hours) passing Shell Beach with its millions of tiny shells, and Belvoir Bay with its Caribbean-clear water. Lunch at the Mermaid Tavern, the island’s only pub. Afternoon swimming or simply soaking in the peace of an island barely touched by modern life. Return ferry to Guernsey. Overnight Guernsey.
Day 7: Sark — The Island Where Time Stopped
Ferry to Sark, the most extraordinary of the Channel Islands—a feudal fiefdom where cars are banned, tractors are the main transport, and the night sky is recognized as one of the world’s darkest. Sark has no street lights. Your guided carriage tour (horse-drawn, naturally) takes you along high-banked lanes past wildflower meadows to La Coupée, the razor-thin isthmus connecting Great Sark to Little Sark, with 80-meter drops to the sea on both sides. Walk the south coast cliffs for views to the French coast visible on clear days. Return ferry to Guernsey. Farewell dinner. Overnight Guernsey.
Day 8: Return Journey
Morning at leisure in St. Peter Port for last-minute exploring of the Victorian arcades and the Guernsey Tapestry at the gallery. Afternoon ferry to Poole and transfer to Bournemouth. Farewell dinner at your hotel. Overnight Bournemouth.
Day 9: Departure
Breakfast and onward journey home.
