16th June
By Tilly Jones
Content Editor
A student's week away...
©Tilly Jones
National Trust of Jersey, Plémont Bay Woven Puffins
Located along the English Channel, Jersey is a quaint island known for its stunning beaches, coastal cliffs and intriguing military history making it a prime spot for tourists to holiday.
You can access Jersey via boat or aircraft; they have their own airport so you can travel there from pretty much any UK airport and docks for you to hop aboard a ferry from either a UK port in Portsmouth or Poole or from the France and Guernsey connections.
What are you waiting for? Are you ready to sink your feet into the sands of the warmest area of the British Isles?
Explore with me, some places to visit on a budget; you don't need to spend a fortune to have fun!
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“WE TAKE PHOTOS AS A RETURN TICKET TO A MOMENT OTHERWISE GONE."
KATIE THURMES
Sadly my 'to' part of the travel was delayed at the airport.
Our flight had a 2-hour pushback, though this was not going to bother me. Thankfully, my Grandma and I were given a £5 food voucher each to use at Southampton's Airport restaurant and so we bought food provided by M&S and a drink, all from the airport's Costa (not paying much extra toward it). Luckily the 30-minute flight was very smooth and the weather was perfect, this definitely made up for the delay.
Upon arriving in Jersey, St Peter, my Grandpa met us at the airport parking bay and we drove back to their house, with no need for a hotel :)
I unpacked my bag and settled for the evening.
Travelling back from Jersey Airport to Southampton Airport was a lot faster than the 'to' trip and my flight left slightly earlier than scheduled as every passenger was on time and checked in. I did this journey myself and I am very pleased it was successful and easy.
On day 1, 3rd June...
... I went for a walk in the Parish of St Saviour, starting at Archie Rondel, at a car park close to Driftwood Cafe and walking over Fliquet, viewing St Catherine's. During the walk, it rained, however, it was the rain that was scented of summer and I wasn't complaining. Looping the walk to finish at the Driftwood Cafe, I ate a tasty portion of fries and a Juiceburst. They do lovely pots of tea!
Afterwards, I paid Ransom's Garden Centre at St Martin a visit, the weather had picked up nicely so I could go outside to the greenhouses and look at the plants and fruit trees. Though, I made sure to pick up some souvenirs for the family. How could I not?
On day 2, 4th June...
...I caught up with my cousin. We both went to the Aqua Splash because a day at the beach wasn't quite something it was nice enough to do yet. After the thunderstorms, we had the first night or two, the sand conditions were slightly soggy.
The Aqua Splash is located at the Waterfront Centre in St Helier and is a reasonably priced activity for about 2 hours of fun. At around £7 for over 16s and around £5 for under 16s I'd say there is more than enough to do. Provided in Leisure Pool 1 are 3 flumes (2 slides and one tyre ride), waves, a lazy river, water play floaties and a children's pool with access to a sauna and steam room (of which those are age limited to over 16s for safety).
My only issue that day was the tyre ride and lazy river were closed, additionally, the bubble jets in the jacuzzi pool were off with no warm water. It is quite often the case for some form of activity to be closed, in my experience of going a few times previously. During those circumstances, I believe prices should be made lower to compensate.
©Google Results
The staff were friendly, the waiting rooms were nice with good views of the pool and the changing rooms were clean. Even during the Queen's Jubilee week, it wasn't as busy as we thought. Following on from Aqua Splash we went to St Helier town and enjoyed our afternoon, visiting places to eat and drink (Coffee Republic and Yogolicious) for light refreshments and high street shops (Voisin's, De Gruchy's, New Look, Next, Superdrug and more). I like the high street here because there's lots to do, many shops to go in (Voisin's and De Gruchy host other retailers from Superdry to Forever New) and market stalls you can visit indoors making Jersey shopping an all-weather, all-budget activity. My favourite purchase of the day had to be the blue floral jeans from Next, £45.
©Google Results
On day 3, 5th of June, I went to visit my cousins' family and spent most of the day there catching up and eating lunch with them. It broke up my week nicely.
For my fourth day in Jersey, 6th June...
... the weather had picked up a lot and was really warm and sunny. I went for a circular walk starting at Sorel Point, via Devil's Hole. I caught more than glimpses of one of Jersey's gorgeous coastlines (overlooking St Mary's Greve de Lecq beach and Sark Island in the distance) and various wildlife (Birds of Prey, Kestrels, Sparrows and species of Sheep; the area is known for keeping Manx Loaghtan).
Being about 4-5km in distance across a high, grassy clifftop and country lanes makes for a relatively safe 1 hour of exercise. You're only not safe if you put yourself at risk by standing near the edge.
Later in the day, my Grandparents and I went to Driftwood Cafe again for some refreshments. Driftwood Cafe is in a really good spot; you have access to the beach, the sea which is safe for swimming and watersports, a free car park, free public toilets and free public showers.
©Driftwood Cafe by Tilly Jones
Further into the evening, I caught up with some old friends at St Aubin's. I took a peek inside the gallery where you can find handmade keepsakes and paintings then walked along the front. We ate at Fort View Cafe and had some divine homemade doughnuts.
©Fort View Cafe by Tilly Jones
On day 5, 7th of June...
...I took the day pretty casually, popping to St Helier town again for some more shopping with my Grandma, we refreshed ourselves at the Brasserie in De Gruchy's to start our day, their cake selection was divine!! My favourite purchase of the day was from my Grandma, I'd gotten first-class honours in some modules at university and she treated me to a dress I liked from Forever New in De Gruchy's. Though we didn't stop there, the market was fruitful as ever and USC (part of Sports Direct) tempted me to some trainers.
Later in the day, we retreated to Driftwood Cafe for dinner where I had the Tempura of Prawns, fries with salad and my favourite ever Lipton Mango Iced Tea.
For my final day spent in Jersey, June 8th I made sure to venture to Plémont Bay on another circular walk.
My walk was filled with pleasant scenic views, great sunny weather, terrain I enjoyed walking on and photo opportunities galore :)
For lunch, we spent it at the welcoming Colleen's Cafe at St Mary, overlooking Greve de Lecq Beach.
Then, in the evening for my last dinner in Jersey, my Grandparents, my cousins' family and I took off to The Caffe Ristorante Italia where I had a Blackcurrant Lemonade to drink, the Scampi Fritti for my main and attempted to eat the generous serving of Banana Split for dessert. I enjoyed myself and the venue is very accommodating for large groups, and the friendly staff made us feel welcome. I couldn't recommend the food enough.
©Greve de Lecq
©Tripadvisor
It just makes sense to end this with a photo of me at the Driftwood Cafe seeing as I went there 3 times.
My week in Jersey was the first time I have ever travelled somewhere on a plane solo. I was lucky to have had some family over there to make me welcome and bring me back to my English-French roots, allowing me to rekindle many childhood memories.
From a student traveller's point of view, I would have been able to afford this trip myself because I believe that, yes Jersey's costs of living are very high compared to a lot of places to go in the UK, but if you travel economy, manage your money and spend it effectively you aren't likely to cost yourself a bomb. For activities, I chose to complete many self-guided walks, rather than join tour groups which saved a packet and chose menu items that weren't off-the-scale expensive when eating out. Though I was treated to my food which I am grateful to my Grandparents for, I was cost aware.
Even in town, I tried to keep my purchases to a minimum and not go all-out (I only got a few things for myself and made sure to buy some gifts for others back home).
Overall, I had a really amazing week and I recommend Jersey as a holiday destination. You can't go there and not go to a beach.
If you decide Jersey is a place you'd like to visit, the places I've visited and walked are definitely worth trying.
What are you up to this Summer holiday? ☀️
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