Ventnor

View from the Winter Gardens

Ventnor Beach

RAF Ventnor, former WW2 radar station

Marc Tuckey in opening shot of 'Around The Island Tour'

Ventnor is without doubt one of the steepest towns in Britain. With a population of around 6,000, it is renowned for its antique and collectable shops. Built on terraces in the cliff face in similar style to the Italian Riviera, the town is known as the ‘English Madeira’. 

The road down to the esplanade resembles a ‘turn pike’ and is quite spectacular as it passes the Winter Gardens and the beautiful water cascade which flows through the rock-face gardens. 

Ventnor is noted for its unique warm climate due to its south facing location which is shielded from northerly winds by St Boniface Down which, at almost 800ft above sea level, is the highest point on the Island. 

On the summit of St Boniface is RAF Ventnor, the second world war radar station which played a significant role during the Battle of Britain.

The Botanic Gardens have over 3,500 species of the world’s trees, shrubs and plants with special displays housed in a Temperate House. There is a coach and car park here which used to be the site of the huge Royal National Hospital for Chest Diseases which was demolished in 1969. This is a favourite ‘haunt’ for ghost hunters and the site was the venue featured in our DVD; ' An Overnight Vigil At The Botanic Gardens'.