Hotels in Shanklin

Shanklin is built around its Chine, a steep wooded ravine cutting from the clifftop down to the beach that has drawn visitors since it opened to the public in 1817, its ferns and waterfalls once admired by Keats and painted by Victorian tourists. Below the cliffs, the Old Village keeps thatched stone cottages and the 17th-century Crab Inn along narrow lanes that have changed remarkably little in outward appearance over two centuries.

The beach itself is a long stretch of sand backed by cliffs, reached by a lift down from the Esplanade above. It is a gentler, more old-fashioned resort than its livelier neighbour Sandown along the same bay, with faded Victorian guesthouses rather than modern hotels or a big nightlife scene. Stay near the Old Village for the Chine and the thatched lanes on your doorstep.