Enjoy Island Hopping during the Channel Islands Heritage Festival
The Channel Islands Heritage Festival celebrates a group of small islands with a big history; the 2016 festival will honour the Islands’ timeless relationship with their coastline and the sea.
The Channel Islands past is woven into its present and its heritage is just one of its many outstanding features.
Capture the spirit of the Islands’ history and plan your short break today taking in what each of our islands has to offer.
The 2016 Channel Islands Heritage Festival takes place from Friday 25 March to Tuesday 10 May.
Island Hopping around the Channel Islands Heritage Festival
Guernsey is a great launch pad for exploring the smaller Channel Islands, and there’s no better time to explore the Bailiwick of Guernsey than during the Channel Islands Heritage Festival, where special events and activities will take place over a six week period.
The sister islands of Herm, Sark, and Alderney can all be reached from Guernsey in under an hour and each have their own characteristics, charms and peculiarities. Plan to spend a night on each of the islands over the festival to really take advantage of the archipelago and its heritage.
Top island hopping activities during the Channel Islands Heritage Festival:
1. Puffins and Silver Mine Kayak Tour in Herm
Herm
17 April, 3 May
Explore the tiny island of Herm, its long unspoilt beaches, secluded coves and wild seascape, on a kayak tour to spot its iconic puffin population and discover Herm’s secret silver mine.
Time: 11.00-13.30
Price: £35
Meeting place: Shell Beach, Herm Island
2. Alderney Lighthouse Tour
Alderney Lighthouse
27 March, 3, 10, 17,24 April, 1, 8 May
Discover the fascinating history of Alderney’s Lighthouse, its historical machinery and significance of its location on special one hour tours. What’s more, you can combine a tour of the lighthouse with a trip on the Channel Islands’ only railway, which travels the length of Alderney from Braye Station.
Time: 15.30-16.30
Price: £4 per adult £3 per child
Meeting place: Trinity Lighthouse, Quesnard Point
3. Alderney Harbour Open Day
Alderney Harbour
2 May
A day-long programme of events and activities at Alderney Harbour will include pot making, live music, readings from the past, re-enactments, talks by divers and fishermen and RNLI demonstrations.
Time: Events all day from 10.00
Price: FREE admission
Venue: Alderney Harbour
4. Scrambling on Sark
Sark
6, 7, 8, 10 April, 5, 6, 7, 8 May
Climb over boulders, crawl through caves and trek across rock pools on a guided scramble around Sark. A series of tours – of varying difficulty – will be organised over the six weeks, including a scramble through Sark’s Gouliot Caves, the most spectacular cave system in the Channel Islands with huge chambers and pools, an arduous trek to a rarely visited part of Sark’s coastline and an off-the-beaten track exploration to Little Sark, the island’s southern peninsula.
Times vary
Price: £12
Meeting place: Sark Visitor Centre
5. Lovely Lihou walking tour
Lihou
26 April
Accessed by a cobbled causeway from Guernsey exposed only at low tide, Lihou is home to a number of historically significant buildings, a marine reserve and stunning coastline. Explore German bunkers, passage graves, Napoleonic batteries, ice age raised beaches, a medieval priory and the famous Venus Pool, among other Lihou novelties, on this three hour walking tour – sturdy shoes are a must!
Time: 13.00-15.45
Price: £8
Meeting point: L’Eree car park (opposite Taste of India)
6. Military History walking tours of Alderney
Alderney
25 March, 1, 8, 15, 22, 29 April, 6 May
Learn about Alderney’s intriguing history on one of the themed walks, including a visit to the island’s Roman defence site known as the Nunnery, a walk around Alderney’s harbour with talks on the various harbour defences, and a tour of Victorian fortifications, Fort Albert and Fort Château à L’Étroc.
Time: 14.00-15.00
Price: £6
Meeting points vary, check here
For more information about these events and other events happening during the Channel Island Heritage Festival visit www.visitchannelislands.com
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