Isles of Scilly Travel Guide

Introduction

43km (27 miles) SW of Land's End

Off the Cornish coast, the Isles of Scilly, a cluster of small granite masses, are warmed by the Gulf Stream to the point where semitropical plants thrive. In some winters they never see signs of frost. They're the first landfall most oceangoing passengers see on journeys from North America. Charles, the Prince of Wales (who is the duke of Cornwall as well), makes regular visits to Scilly.

Five inhabited and more than 100 uninhabited islands are in the group. Some are only a few square miles, whereas others, such as the largest, St. Mary's, encompass some 77 sq. km (30 sq. miles). Three of these islands -- Tresco, St. Mary's, and St. Agnes -- attract visitors from the mainland. Early flowers are the main export and tourism is the main industry.

The islands experience some of the harshest winds of winter, raging in from the Atlantic, but in summer they are the fairest isles in the queen's kingdom. Unlike the rest of Britain, there is subtropical...