There are lots of ways to do Isle of Wight tours but the most glamorous way has got to be by helicopter! You’ll be departing on a full hour of sightseeing over Portsmouth the Isle of Wight and beyond. It’s a pretty amazing thing to do when in Portsmouth and here’s all the info you need.
Your departure point is Solent Airport formerly known as HMS Daedalus. Just in-land at Lee-on-the-Solent this former Royal Navy Air Station is a convenient and highly appropriate location for take-off. As soon as you’re airborne you’ll be afforded superb views of the bustling area around the Solent.
And of course the area is steeped in marine and naval history. Thanks to the natural harbour’s strategic location the Royal Navy base HMNB Portsmouth is here. It’s also home to the port which leads to main shipping lines to destinations like Cherbourg and St Malo in France and Santander in Spain. It’s also an area that’s hugely popular for leisure boating with yachts and sail boats dotted around the coast.
All of this you’ll see from the air. You get a prime seat from your helicopter as you look down on catamarans cutting white trails through the azure blue waters gasp at the dramatic chalk cliffs that plunge into the sea and generally have a really good nosy at what happens around the marinas harbours and naval docks in and around Portsmouth Gosport and beyond.
A highlight of these Isle of Wight sightseeing trips is the moment you round the famous Needles. Sitting right on the edge of the rocks is the 33m-high lighthouse. Once staffed 24 hours a day 365 days a year by a team of three guards the 19th century lighthouse is now fully automatic. But look closely and you’ll see the incredible helipad perched atop which was added in 1987. We defy you to not get the most incredible aerial photographs of this iconic corner of the Isle of Wight!
You can book individual seats in the helicopter for these Isle of Wight tours or you can get a group of you together for an exclusive charter. The price you pay is for the whole helicopter so up to five you can fly for the full 60-minute tour. It works out cheaper than if you bought five separate tickets and you’ve got the chopper to yourselves for an extra special helicopter ride.
