Tour Of Britain Comes The Isle Of Wight — Here's Where To Watch

It's been dubbed one of the biggest sporting events to ever come to the Isle of Wight — Tour of Britain arrives on Sunday (11).

Whether you're a visitor or a resident, here's a handy guide to this weekend's racing (courtesy of Visit Isle of Wight).

The race starts at Eastern Gardens, Ryde at 11am, while it's due to finish at The National Trust’s Needles Battery, approx. from 2.30pm.

Where can you watch the race

There are a host of towns and villages along the route which will provide great spots to watch the race.

From Ryde, the race will pass through Nettlestone, St Helens, Bembridge, Sandown, Merstone, Rookley, Chillerton, Shorwell, Brighstone, Mottistone, Freshwater, Colwell, Yarmouth, Shalfleet, Cowes, Newport, Godshill, Shanklin, Ventnor, Niton, along the Military Road, through Freshwater Bay and up to the finish.

Park and Ride

There is an Isle of Wight Council-run Park and Ride shuttle facility accommodating 200 cars at Bouldnor Mead, just outside Yarmouth off the A3054. The shuttle bus runs regularly and takes you into Yarmouth, stopping for pick-ups outside Wightlink’s ferry terminal, up to the race village at The Needles Landmark Attraction and back again. The service will pause whilst the race convoy passes through the town at approx. 12.15pm - 1pm.

The service is free, however donations to the stage charity, Mountbatten, are welcome.

Cycle Hire

One of the best ways to catch the race is by bike itself! Pre-book your bike at one of the Island’s many cycle shops. Wight Cycle Hire in Yarmouth is offering half-day hire prices.

Or, check out Brighstone Newsagents Bike Hire & Coffee Shop, Route Fifty7, Sandown Bicycle and Beach Hire, Tav Cycles, and White Bike Eco Solutions.

For top tips on where to watch the race on your bike, check out local rider, Tim Wiggins’, off-road route geared towards gravel or mountain bikes here.

The Race Start, Ryde - 11am

The seaside town of Ryde hosts the start of the race, it’s easily accessible via passenger ferry services from Portsmouth and Southsea. There’s an official start race village on the Esplanade and a designated area for the riders and teams along North Walk. You can get your first glimpse of the riders’ at around 8am, as they begin to arrive and start prepping for the event finale. Each rider and team will be presented to the crowd on the main stage during an opening ceremony.  

Ryde Town Council is putting on a big show to send the teams on their way; there’s a RAW samba band, a VIVA drumming workshop and the Island’s own Shademakers will be roaming through the crowd. Up for something active yourself? 1 Leisure are lining up their fleet of spin bikes to offer taster sessions and challenges with Mountbatten, the official stage 8 charity. Plus, there’s bicycle themed face painting and don’t forget to head shoreside to check out the beach art.

It’s a rolling start that’s set to fully get going just before the peloton reaches Nettlestone. The Isle of Wight Distillery is situated on a sharp corner and a great place to base yourself, to watch the riders as they start to break away.

The race then goes through the pretty villages of St Helens and Bembridge, whizzing by the harbour, Brading Marshes and the National Trust’s Bembridge Windmill.

The South

The first sprint of the race happens just after Yaverland, along Culver Parade at around 11.30am. Sandown was once voted the UK’s best beach by Countryfile Magazine readers and Sandham Gardens, just opposite, is a great family friendly spectator spot to base yourself for the morning. Highlights include their Skynets, Go Karts or Golf Adventure.

The Bay Vegan Deli and Coffee House in the town is offering a 10% discount on all orders between 9 and 11am or book a roadside table at the Driftwood bar, or The Bandstand. After the race has passed through, spend some time exploring the picturesque seaside town - including the Wildheart Animal Sanctuary - there’s lots to see and do!

From Sandown, the race heads up to Brading Down, for the first ‘King of the Mountain’ climb (a category one climb). Join Gift to Nature, the Island’s countryside management project, to watch the race and for free children's activities and guided walks around the local nature reserve.

After Brading, the race heads past Arreton, through Merstone and into Rookley, for the first time, before venturing more inland.

At around 1.24pm the race returns to Rookley before cutting through the thatched old town of Shanklin. Look out for members of Shanklin Theatre who will be out in force cheering on the teams! Cowleaze Hill in Luccombe plays host to the second ‘King of the Mountain climb’ (a category two climb) and at 1.40pm, the steep spiralling hills in and out of Ventnor will make for even more exciting viewing.

Fast hair pin declines down to the beach and almost vertical corkscrew climbs back out of the town will have spectators cheering the riders on and holding their breath at the same time! The infamous Zig Zag Road, marks the third and final ‘King of the Mountain climb’ (a category one climb) then it’s on to the final stretch to the finish.     

The races will pass by The Ventnor Winter Gardens, a stunning iconic 1930’s art deco building with amazing views across the Channel. Their Tiki bar will be open offering a BBQ, soft drinks and Sunset Rum Punch. In the build-up to and over the weekend, the Ventnor Bicycle Film Festival hosted by the Ventnor Arts Club and Ventnor Exchange, will celebrate all things two wheels. Find out more. Ventnor based Grazed Knee Cider have also created a special brew called Zig Zag Cider.

Down the road, Whitwell, Niton and Chale will be dressed for the riders and cameras and Blackgang Chine’s characters will leave the park for the afternoon… watch out for dinosaurs, pirates and cowboys amongst others on the roadside, cheering on the teams.  Further along the coast, the Isle of Wight Pearl will provide spectators with beautiful panoramic sea views on one side and the peloton whizzing past the other.  

The West Wight

Just before noon, the riders will head through the quaint village of Shorwell, The Crown Inn offers excellent viewing of the race, as does the Three Bishops pub in the pretty village of Brighstone - listen out for St Mary’s church bells as the race passes through!  

The National Trust’s Mottistone Manor and Gardens is also a highlight on the west Wight route, their lovely tea garden serves drinks, light meals and cakes. Chessell Pottery is another great roadside spot, owner Mark Giddens is a big cycling fan and will keep specators entertained throughout the day by showing the whole race live. 

On the Island’s middle road, Tapnell Farm, is another excellent family friendly base for the day - or weekend, check out their Tour of Britain accommodation offers.

The race heads through the town of Freshwater for the first time around 12:27pm. The popular The Vine pub has direct viewing access to the race and is hosting a ‘Cycle and Cider Festival’ and all day BBQ.

Starting on Sunday 4 September and running throughout the Tour of Britain race duration, the team at West Wight Sports & Community Centre are holding daily spinning challenges, to coincide with the day’s stage.  

10 minutes up the road, Yarmouth Harbour Commissioners will be hosting a pop-up ‘Cycle Hire Hub’ in front of the Harbour office in partnership with Wight Cycle Hire, encouraging visitors to jump off their boat and onto a bike. Just outside the seaside town you can watch the second sprint of the race, before the riders head north and power on through the winding roads to Cowes.   

The race heads back to the West Wight again at around 2pm, on the approach to the finish line. Riders will face 39km of hard cycling along the Military Road, a long scenic stretch with views of white cliffs and out to sea.

With this section of road closed to traffic between 1-3pm, Compton beach is a great place to set up and picnic for the day or get settled in at Freshwater Bay, where Isle of Wight Bars are serving from their double decker bus bar and local food vendors will be operating. The National Trust’s car parks at Brook, Hanover and Compton Chine will be open (charges apply to non-members) and their van will be serving drinks and snacks at Hanover.

Dimbola Lodge Museum and Galleries will be dressing up their iconic Jimi Hendrix statue for the afternoon and also hosting a tea party at their Tearooms to cheer on the riders.

Central and North Island

Newport is the capital of the Island and the race passes straight through the town centre at lunchtime! There’s lots to see and do in Newport over the event  weekend, with a big screen in St James’ Square where you can watch the race stage in Dorset on Saturday, and watch as it navigates the Island’s roads on Sunday.

Saturday will see an emphasis on car free day, so consider leaving the car at home and come to see some sustainable travel demonstrations and find out about cycling the island with local group Cycle Wight. There will be a local market organised by Market Days CIC and family friendly entertainment and activities including acrobatics displays and face painting.

The Museum of Island History will also be open free of charge Sunday from 12 to 2pm, hosting a special cycling display to mark the race and in Gunville, keep an eye out for their ‘recycle your bicycle’ competition and BBQ.  

The sailing town of Cowes will be focusing on bikes over boats and is a great place to cheer on the riders in their third and final sprint of the race. The race passes through at around 12:50pm but from 10:45 head to the official COWES Tour of Britain Fanzone at Northwood House, presented by event travel sponsor Red Funnel, in partnership with Northwood House. In the heart of Cowes, the Fanzone offers a big screen to follow the race, live music, a bar and promises to be a great day out. Watch the Island stage from start to finish on the screen AND have the chance to cheer competitors on as they race through Cowes. Free entry with no booking required. 

The finish, The Needles approx. 2:30pm

The race culminates with a two-kilometre climb up to the National Trust’s Needles Battery. The final 400 metres averages a gradient of 9.6%, making it the toughest ending to any Tour of Britain in modern history.

There’s a host of activities at the official finish race village and The Needles Landmark Attraction. There are two large screens showing the whole race; one in the village and one on Festival Street, along with live entertainment from local musicians.

No visit to the Landmark Attraction would be complete without a chairlift ride down to the beach or a boat ride out to view the multicoloured sand cliffs and Needles Lighthouse. Another great spot to watch the race as it reaches the finish is Warren Farm’s roadside field. Their farm shop and the Wight Horsebox bar will be open all day. Their tasty Hog Roast is a must too! Marconi’s Cafe and licensed Tea Rooms will be serving throughout the day and outside stalls will feature the Island’s world-famous Mermaid Gin & Vodka and beer from Goddards, one of the local breweries.    

Parking on site is limited to 300 cars, which can’t be pre-booked, and organisers have arranged extra bike storage facilities for the day. Visitors are encouraged to cycle or use the park and ride shuttle at Bouldnor Mead.