Port Erin (Manx: Purt Çhiarn – Lord's Port) is a village on the southwest coast of the Isle of Man. Most tourists just day-trip, and it's a very quiet place in the evening.

Understand

It used to be a fishing village, collecting scallops and crabs off Bradda Head, but the harbour is small with limited shelter. At low tide you can see the scraps of the breakwater built in the 1860s to improve the port, but it was destroyed by a storm. From Victorian times to the 1960s Port Erin was a holiday resort. In 2021 its population was 3730.

Get in

Port Erin is 15 miles southwest of Douglas the capital and ferry port, and 6 miles west of Ronaldsway Airport (IOM ^IATA).

Buses 1, 2 and 11 each run hourly from Douglas to the airport, Castletown, Port Erin and Port St Mary, so the combined service is every 20 min. The last bus is around 9PM, with a night bus N1 just after Friday midnight. The direct bus from Peel has been axed, travel via Douglas. The bus terminus in Port Erin is the railway station.

1 Port Erin railway station is the terminus of the narrow-gauge IOM Steam Railway, which operates mid-March to end of October. Four trains a day take 70 min from Douglas via Castletown and Port St Mary to Port Erin.

Get around

Walk, the town is compact. Bus 28 runs mid-June to Aug: Sa Su hourly from Port Erin to Port St Mary, Cregneash (for village museum) and Calf Sound at the south tip of the island.

South Star Taxi are on +44 7624 344440.

See

• Port Erin Railway Museum, Station Rd (50 yards west of station). mid-Mar to Oct: daily 9:30AM-5PM. Small display of the railway's history. Free with rail ticket. (updated Apr 2023)
• St Catherine's Church at the corner of Promenade and Church Rd is Anglican, built in 1860.
• 1 Milner's Tower is the focus of hikes onto Bradda Head, the clifftop north of the bay. It's in the shape of a lock and key, in memory of William Milner a Victorian safe-maker and philanthropist. The headland, which rises abruptly to 382 ft (116 m), was mined for copper from the Bronze Age to 1874.
• 2 Meayll Circle is a mile south on Darragh Rd. See Port St Mary for this and other prehistoric monuments, Cregneash crofting village, the perilous Chasms, and The Point at the southwest tip of the Isle of Man.
• 3 Ballachurry Wetland is a nature reserve on Church Rd A29. It's free to access 24 hours.

Do

Victorian engraving of Bradda Head

• Port Erin beach has white sand. Angling from shore is permitted.
• Sauna: Kishtey Çheh midway along the beach is a charming cylindrical hut where you have a 30- to 60-min session, then plunge in the bracing sea.
• Erin Arts Centre (Laare Ellynyn Phurt Chiarn) puts on various shows and events. It's on Kerrin Victoria, the cul-de-sac off the Promenade.
• Hike: Raad ny Foillan, The Way of the Gull, is a 95-mile footpath around the Manx coast. Its best section is the two mile clifftop between Bradda Head and Fleshwick Bay.
• Boat trips: Shona explores the coast, with landings on the Calf of Man.
• Paddleboards: Port Erin Paddleboards rent SUPs.
• Aquabikes chunter round the bay. They're a sort of pedalo between outrigger canoes, how come the Polynesians never thought of these to reach New Zealand?
• Golf: Rowany GC is north edge of town. White tees 5722 yards, par 70.

Buy

• Shoprite on Bridson Rd is the town supermarket, open M-Sa 8AM-9PM, Su 9AM-6PM.
• Convenience stores are Robinson's next to Shoprite, and Co-op Food by the railway station.
• Spar filling station is 100 yards east of the railway station, open M-Sa 7AM-9PM, Su 8AM-8PM.
• Bridge Bookshop on the Promenade has many titles of local interest. It's open M-Sa 9:30AM-5:30PM.

Eat

• 1 Cosy Nook (Foraging Vintners), Shore Rd IM9 6HH, ☏ +44 7624 321692. Th-M 10AM-9PM. This is now a pop-up beach bar and cafe run by Foraging Vintners, whose main outlet is by the harbour. (updated Apr 2023)
• Versa, Station Rd IM9 6AJ (by station). Th-Sa 11AM-3PM, 5-9PM. Superb little restaurant, more like a private tasting. (updated Sep 2023)
• Port Erin Chippy & Diner is by the railway station, open M-Th 11:30AM-2PM, 4-9PM, F-Su 11:30AM-9PM.
• La Gusto is a pizza takeaway on Shore Rd near the harbour, open Su Tu-Th 5-10PM, F Sa 5-11PM.
• 2 Breagle Glen, St Mary's Rd IM9 6JJ, ☏ +44 1624 835767. Tu-Su 5-11PM. Stylish reliable Indian restaurant. (updated Apr 2023)
• 3 Bradda Glen Restaurant, Bradda East IM9 6PJ, ☏ +44 1624 837713. W-Su 11AM-4PM. Good place for meals or light bites and coffee after a hike to Bradda Head. (updated Apr 2023)

Drink

• Foraging Vintners by the harbour is a winery and bar, they also make cider. They're open W-Su noon-10PM.
• Bay Hotel on Shore Rd near the harbour is a trad pub with meals, open Su-Th noon-11PM, F Sa noon-midnight. They don't have rooms.

Sleep

Cosy Nook is right on the beach

• Falcons Nest Hotel, Station Road IM9 6AF (100 yards west of railway station), ☏ +44 1624 834077. Simple central hotel with 39 rooms, open all year, dog friendly. They also have self-catering apartments. B&B double £95. (updated Apr 2023)
• Athol Park Guest House, Athol Park IM9 6AF (100 yards south of railway station), ☏ +44 1624 832355. Small comfy B&B with a Chinese restaurant - some staff speak Mandarin or Cantonese. No step-free access or lift. B&B double £100. (updated Apr 2023)
• 1 Balmoral Guest House, Promenade IM9 6AG, ☏ +44 1624 833126. Small welcoming hotel on the beachfront. No step-free access or lift. (updated Apr 2023)
• See Port St Mary for Glendown campsite at the east edge of town.

Connect

Port Erin and its approach roads have 4G from Sure and Manx. As of April 2023, 5G has not rolled out on the Isle of Man.

Go next

• Port St Mary is a similar small resort two miles away on the east coast.
• Calf of Man is an island nature reserve reached by boat trips from Port Erin or Port St Mary.
• Castletown was the Manx capital until 1874, and has a well-preserved castle.