Yes, Jersey is one of the easiest places in the British Isles to travel solo: everyone speaks English, the island measures only about 14 by 8 km, and buses reach nearly every beach and sight.
The hard part is cost, because Jersey has no backpacker hostels. Campsites run roughly £15 to 30 (US$19 to 38) per tent a night in summer, and simple guesthouses £80 to 150 (US$100 to 190). Bus rides cost about £2.30 to 2.80 (US$3 to 3.60), and the big heritage sites such as
Mont Orgueil Castle charge around £15 to 20 (US$19 to 25). Camping and self-catering, plan on £55 to 85 (US$75 to 115) a day.
Three to five days is right for Jersey: two days covers the southwest coast, while five lets you loop the whole island without rushing.
With
2 days, stick to St. Helier,
Elizabeth Castle, St. Aubin and the cliff walk from
La Corbière Lighthouse to
St. Brelade’s Bay. With
3 days, add Gorey, Mont Orgueil Castle, the War Tunnels and Jersey Zoo. With
5 days, you can also walk the northwest headlands at Grosnez and Les Landes. Distances are short: St. Helier to Gorey or to Corbière takes 30 to 40 minutes by bus, so you can move base easily or stay put in one town.
Yes, you can get around Jersey comfortably without a car, using LibertyBus services and the coastal footpath.
Almost every route starts at Liberation Station in
St. Helier and reaches the far corners of the island in 20 to 45 minutes, including Gorey, Corbière, St. Ouen’s Bay, Plemont and Jersey Zoo. Single fares cost about £2.30 to 2.80 (US$3 to 3.60), and multi-day tickets cut the cost if you ride several times a day. Services are most frequent from May to September and thinner on Sundays and in winter. The coastal path runs roughly 77 km around the island, and bike rental costs around £15 to 25 (US$19 to 32) a day.
The essential stops in Jersey are
Mont Orgueil Castle,
Elizabeth Castle,
Jersey War Tunnels,
Jersey Zoo and the southwest coast around
St. Brelade’s Bay.
Mont Orgueil towers over Gorey harbor, 30 minutes east of St. Helier by bus; allow 2 to 3 hours. Elizabeth Castle sits on a tidal rock in St. Aubin’s Bay, reached on foot at low tide or by amphibious ferry. The War Tunnels in St. Lawrence tell the 1940 to 1945 Occupation story underground. Durrell’s zoo in Trinity needs 3 to 4 hours. Finish with the 5 km cliff walk from
La Corbière Lighthouse to St. Brelade’s Bay and an evening in
St. Aubin.
If time is short in Jersey, skip the inland reservoirs, the long town-to-countryside walks and the sandy but busy town beach at St. Aubin’s Bay.
Queen’s Valley Reservoir and
Val de la Mare Reservoir are pleasant strolls, but they cannot compete with the coast, which you reach from almost any point in 10 to 20 minutes. The
Trinity to St. Helier Walk takes half a day through lanes you can see better on the coastal path.
La Mare Wine Estate is fun on a rainy afternoon, though the £15 to 30 (US$19 to 38) tours are optional. Spend the saved hours at Corbière, Gorey or the northwest cliffs instead.
Yes, our itinerary-planner does exactly that. Set your trip length in days, give your interests and travel style, optionally give start- and end location and/or some mandatory stops you would like to include and the itinerary planner creates your personalized routes for Jersey in seconds. Try it out!
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