Island Line Isle of Wight

The time we spent on the Isle of Wight travelling around the island itself was always made by car; the option of using the car meant we had a lot of freedom. We had enquired about the prices available but were advised that towns like Ryde offer an hour of free parking anyway, so we decided to take the car instead. Whilst we were in Ryde, we decided to travel on the Island Railway, as an enthusiast this was a bit of a special trip as this railway uses 1938 London Underground trains making the rolling stock over 70 years old. There are a total of eight stations on the network as the line stops at Shanklin which is the furthest station from Ryde Pier; however ...  Read the complete review

Little trains! 'Island Line' is the company that runs the train service of the Isle of Wight. The Island has a limited stretch of rail-track which runs from the end of Ryde Pier in the North of the Island, to Sandown on the South-East coast. This actually represents quite a limited route, and doesn't even reach capital town Newport, which is in the centre of the Island. Island Line won the franchise to operate the trains from 1996, and since that time have official become been "Britain's most reliable and punctual train company". This claim may seem impressive, but the shortness of the route (8.5 miles) is probably the reason for the ...  Read the complete review

Island Line...... The Island Line is the only Isle of Wight Railway line and you can bet that the trains are pretty much always on time. The line runs from the top of Ryde pier head all the way along into the town of Shanklin. The stops are as follows. Ryde Pier Head Ryde Esplanade Ryde St Johns Havenstreet Brading Sandown Lake Shanklin. If you were to take the train from the pier head at Ryde all the way into Shanklin the entire trip would take you a little over half an hour but cost you around £5. The trains themselves that operate on the Isle of Wight are in fact old London underground ...  Read the complete review

Island line really doesn't deserve to be classed in the same category as other mainland operators. The Isle of Wight depends on trade from tourism and visits from people around the world make up for a lot of business here. Unfortunately, if you are coming to the Isle of Wight from Portsmouth and you arrive at the end of Ryde Pier, the first thing that you encounter is the worst excuse for a train that there ever was. It's actually worse than the 'Dotto Train', an imitation train that runs on the road - and thats orange! Island Line operates a service that runs from Ryde Pier Head to Shanklin and is in fact the only 'proper' trainline left on the ...  Read the complete review

The Isle of Wight Island line is definately in a class of its own. The line only stretches from Ryde pier head (where you get off the ferry) to as far as Shanklin which is only about 7 miles away. The train stations have seen better days and the trains themselves are old tube trains from London. One of which is painted with dinosaurs all over it to distract you from the ageing of the carriage. The ride you experience on the trains on the Isle of Wight are definately one not to miss, bumpy is not the word!! The only good thing about the trains on the Island is the fact that the fares are much cheaper than the buses. For example a single bus ticket from Shanklin to Sandown ...  Read the complete review