Five Things to Do in Jersey

The Channel Islands are so close to England, yet when you’re there, it feels like a world away. Last week I spent a long weekend in Jersey and we had an amazing time. If you’re thinking of doing the same, here are five things to do in Jersey.

St Helier has a decent size town centre with lots of high street favourites, interspersed with independent boutiques. Pop into Beresford Market for some fresh fish and other seafood or you’re not a pescetarian, cross the street and browse the food stalls at the Victorian Central Market. I promise you, it’s hard to resist the fragrant smells lingering in the air here.

We were lucky in that our host had two spare bikes for us to use. There are loads of bike trails that go around the island varying in level of difficulty and length. A nice flat ride is the road to Gorey along the south coast. Gorey is a lovely village at the foot of Mont Orgueil Castle. We rode from St Helier to this amazing bike trail that follows an old rail line all the way to La Corbiere lighthouse where you have far stretching views across St Ouen Bay.

The track is part of a route that follows the coastline of the entire island, but somehow we got stuck on a sunny terrace on the beach with a bottle of rose. Which brings me to the next point.

This stretch of beach is going to make you feel like you just cycled to the Med. It’s a wide sandy beach which is lined by a boardwalk with lovely restaurants and cafes. We had lunch at Oysterbox which offers fresh seafood, complimented with amazing views

 

For such a small island, Jersey has a very versatile coastline. There are sandy beaches on the south coast, but the north coast consists of dramatic cliff walls dropping into the sea. There is a trail that follows the entire north coast from Grosnez to St Catherine’s.

Well, if you’re this close to France, there has to be wine, oui? We hopped on a local bus that dropped us off in the parking lot of La Mare Wine Estate where we joined a tour of the vineyard and the winery. They also produce brandy, cider, chocolates and Jersey black butter, which isn’t really butter by the way. Of course there was some tasting involved of two of their whites and a red which weren’t bad at all. We stayed for a light lunch at the estates’ restaurant.

 Post by: Our Traveller friend Jaklien van Melick