Driving on the Isle of Wight | Car Hire and Travel

Exploring the Isle of Wight by car is one of the best ways to experience our island’s stunning coastline, countryside and charming seaside towns. Whether you are planning family holidays or short breaks, car hire gives you the freedom to discover the Isle of Wight’s hidden beaches, scenic driving routes and fantastic eating out places at your own pace. From iconic landmarks to local attractions and exciting things to do, the Isle of Wight offers unforgettable adventures around every corner. With flexible car hire options available, you can easily travel between award-winning beaches, historic villages and attractions while making the most of your holidays.

Isle of Wight car hire

Exploring the Isle of Wight by car gives visitors the freedom to discover our island’s stunning coastline, picturesque villages, hidden beaches, and popular attractions at their own pace.

Premier Rental offers reliable and affordable car hire services, with a modern fleet of manual and automatic vehicles suitable for couples, families, and groups. Flexible short and long-term hire options are available, alongside convenient Meet & Greet services at major ferry terminals including Fishbourne, Yarmouth, East Cowes, and Ryde. With competitive pricing, friendly local expertise, and island-wide delivery and collection services, Premier Rental helps make travelling around the Isle of Wight simple, comfortable, and stress-free.

Roads to not miss

Military Road

This stunning 13-mile route, from Freshwater Bay to Chale, takes in the magnificent south west coast and gasp-inducing views across the chalk cliffs of Tennyson Down and to Dorset in the distance are the undoubted highlight. If you fancy pulling over, then the National Trust car parks at Compton Bay and Brook give easy access to the dinosaur fossil laden beaches that are popular with locals and visitors alike.

A cream tea at Isle of Wight Pearl near Brighstone is another treat to break the journey.

Middle road

This undulating route from Carisbrooke to Freshwater is framed by dramatic downland and pretty farms. At Calbourne, stop off for a pint at The Sun Inn, and divert into picturesque Winkle Street with its thatched cottages.

Further along, you will pass Tapnell Farm, one of our island’s top attractions, home to the renowned restaurant, The Cow. Back in 1970, around a quarter of a million people descended on this farm to watch Jimi Hendrix, The Who and other rock gods play at the legendary Isle of Wight Festival.

The Downs road

As with most places, height gives an added dimension to views of the landscape. One great road to explore for amazing vistas to all corners of our island is The Downs Road, which leads from Downend on the outskirts of Newport across the spine of our island before forking off to Brading or Ryde.

Before you reach this junction though, you can drop down into delightful Newchurch with its wooden spired church, Pointer Inn pub and The Garlic Farm, home to one of the Isle of Wight’s most iconic products.

Along the route into Brading, you will find a pull-off car park where you can grab an ice cream and pause to enjoy the stunning vistas across Sandown Bay.

Couple walking through Godshill

Spectacular viewing spots!

There are lots of accessible downland spots on our island and Culver Down on the eastern tip is a nice little drive with a car park and a pub, the Culver Haven, at the top next to the monument.

More than 700ft high at it's peak, St Boniface Down near Ventnor offers stunning views across our island, as well as of the English Channel. St Boniface is the island’s highest point.

Villages not to miss

Why not plan a route through our charming villages, and get your passengers to keep their eyes peeled, they may spot one of our native red squirrels.

Brighstone and Shorwell are two pretty villages worth a visit, each with their own pub and delightful cottages galore. Carry on through equally lovely Mottistone, Hulverstone and Brook.

Godshill is another popular charming village, boasting a lovely church, tearooms galore and even a model village.

Over in the east, Bembridge, Seaview and St Helens are all worth a stop-off for a coastal stroll.

Eat and drink

Wherever you go on your travels, the Isle of Wight has some fabulous pubs and restaurants which may be off the beaten track, but are well worth a visit.

The Highdown Inn, Totland, offers the perfect place to sit back and unwind - as well as enjoying some delicious local seafood, or, if you are out west, how about the Wight Mouse at Chale, which looks out over the Military Road and West Wight coast.

The White Hart Inn, Havenstreet, is a stone’s throw away from the Isle of Wight Steam Railway, offering the chance to stop off for a bite to eat - before checking out one of the only remaining stations from our old island lines. Over at Bembridge, park at the nearby car park and take a short stroll to the Crab and Lobster, where you can enjoy the shellfish in its name while looking out over the ocean where they came from!

If you're looking for a place to stop off and eat, have a look at our eat and drink section to find something which suits you.

Family enjoying ice cream at Osborne

Picnic with scenic views

Why not fill up a picnic hamper with some of the delightful local foods available across our island and take yourself on a magical tour around our island. Stop for a break and a bite to eat in some areas of outstanding natural beauty.

Parking on the Isle of Wight

We all know the perils of trying to park in an unfamiliar town and village but here, we have given a few hints and tips of where you can park using the Isle of Wight Council parking permit and using the PaybyPhone app.

Petrol stations are to be found at major supermarkets around our island and there are still some independent stations at Freshwater, Northwood and Sandford near Godshill among others.

Electric vehicle charging points

Our island has a number of electric vehicle charging points available at key locations, ensuring you can keep your battery topped up while exploring.

Isle of Wight taxis

The Isle of Wight has an abundance of reliable and trusted taxi firms to choose from. Whether you fancy a trip around our island or want to be dropped off at one of our attractions.