A Day Trip to Lundy Island: How the Boat Works and Whether It Is Worth It

Short answer: Lundy is reached by boat from Ilfracombe or Bideford, and the schedule is limited and weather-dependent — book ahead and check before travelling. A day trip gives you a few hours ashore. It suits walkers and birdwatchers; it does not suit small children in a hurry.

What Lundy actually is

A granite island about three miles long and half a mile wide, sitting eleven miles off the north Devon coast where the Bristol Channel meets the Atlantic. It is owned by the National Trust and run by the Landmark Trust, the permanent population is in the low twenties, and there are no cars and very little of what you would recognise as infrastructure.

It is visible from Baggy Point at Croyde and from the north Devon cliffs on a clear day, which is how most people first hear about it.

How you get there

By boat, from Ilfracombe or Bideford depending on the time of year and the tides. Sailings are seasonal, limited in number and genuinely weather-dependent — this is open water and the crossing takes a couple of hours. Book ahead and check the day before you travel, because cancellations happen.

There is a helicopter service in the winter months when the boat does not run. Check the current schedule and prices directly before planning anything around it, as both change.

What a day there involves

A day trip gives you a few hours ashore, which is enough to walk a good part of the island. There is a pub, a shop and a church, a lighthouse at either end, and a great deal of very dramatic cliff. The wildlife is the draw for most people — puffins in the breeding season, seals year-round, and a marine conservation zone offshore.

Who it suits

• Walkers — the island is small enough to cover on foot and dramatic throughout.
• Birdwatchers — Lundy takes its name from the Norse for puffin island.
• Anyone who wants somewhere genuinely remote within a day of the Devon coast.
• Divers and snorkellers, for the marine reserve.

Who it does not

Small children in a hurry. It is a long crossing, the ground on the island is rough, and there is nothing that involves a queue or a ride. If your family needs entertaining rather than exploring, The Big Sheep or The Milky Way near Bideford will be a better day.

If the boat is cancelled

It happens, so have a plan B. Ilfracombe has the aquarium, the museum and the harbour. Bideford has Victoria Park, the Tarka Trail and two big family attractions within fifteen minutes. Neither is Lundy, but neither is a wasted day.