Colwell Bay has more places to stay within walking distance than any other West Wight beach. Heathfield Farm, the main touring and tent park, is about 600m from the slipway, roughly 10 to 15 minutes on foot. Linstone Chine's bungalows and The Bay Colwell's cottages are even closer.
It faces the Solent, not the open Channel, so the water is usually clear and calm and the beach of gently sloping sand and shingle is popular for swimming. The catch is the tide: at high water there is very little beach left. Check the tide table and plan beach time around low water.
Holiday park · Colwell Bay · on the doorstep
Has its own stretch of Colwell Bay, but the Brambles Chine beach path has been restricted after erosion; check before you go.
Chalets
from £90/night
ViewTouring park · Freshwater · 0.4 miles
About 600m from the beach; walk down Colwell Chine Road in 10 to 15 minutes. Premier pitches look across the Solent to Hurst Castle.
Tents, caravans, motorhomes
from £28/night
ViewHoliday park · Colwell Bay · 0.5 miles
On Fort Warden Road, a few minutes on foot from the sand.
Cottages, lodges
from £45/night
ViewCampsite · Freshwater · 1 miles
Pre-pitched tents
from £112.50/night
ViewGlamping site · Freshwater · 1.1 miles
About 2km east by the River Yar; a short drive or a 25 to 30 minute walk.
Safari tents
from £342.50/night
ViewCampsite · Totland · 1.5 miles
About 2.4km south; walk into Totland and along the sea wall to Colwell in around 40 minutes.
Tents, caravans, motorhomes, cottages
from £24.50/night
ViewSmall certificated site · Freshwater · 2.1 miles
Members only · join the Caravan and Motorhome Club to stay
Caravans, motorhomes
Prices on request
ViewNo campsites match all of those.
The sea wall runs south from Colwell to Totland Bay, a flat walk with views across the Solent to Hurst Castle and the mainland. Looking along the coast you can see Fort Albert, a former Victorian gun tower. From Totland you can carry on up over Headon Warren to Alum Bay and the Needles.
Heading north, the coast path climbs to Fort Victoria Country Park, about 1.5km away, and continues along the old military road to Yarmouth. Linstone Chine's own beach path through Brambles Chine was rebuilt in 2023 after erosion, and access has been restricted since, so most people use the main slipway at Colwell Chine.
Colwell Bay car park belongs to the Isle of Wight Council and sits a short way down Colwell Chine Road off the Yarmouth to Totland road (PayByPhone 84014). In 2026 it cost £2.05 for up to an hour, £3.60 for two hours, £6.20 for four hours and £12.50 for 6 to 10 hours, with £2.00 overnight from 6pm to 8am.
There are toilets, a seaside cafe just before the beach, and beach hut shops on both sides of the slipway selling ice creams and wetsuits, with deck chairs and beach huts to hire. The Hut restaurant is along the sea wall to the left. When the tide is in, people wait on the sea wall or in the cafe for the sand to reappear.
Colwell is an easy first afternoon if you come over on the Lymington to Yarmouth ferry. Foot passengers can follow the Isle of Wight Coastal Path west out of Yarmouth through Fort Victoria Country Park and along the cliffs to the slipway, about 3km. With a car it is a short drive through Norton on the Totland road. Fort Victoria, with free parking and a dog-friendly beach all year, is worth combining with a Colwell visit when the tide is in.
Use the Isle of Wight Council's Colwell Bay car park off Colwell Chine Road, PayByPhone code 84014. In 2026 it charged £2.05 for an hour, £3.60 for two hours and £12.50 for 6 to 10 hours, with £2.00 overnight from 6pm to 8am.
Yes. Colwell faces the Solent, so the water is usually clear and calm, and the sand and shingle shelves gently. There is very little beach at high tide, so go around low water.
Heathfield Farm in Freshwater is the nearest campsite for tents, caravans and motorhomes, about 600m from the beach or a 10 to 15 minute walk. Linstone Chine and The Bay Colwell, both holiday parks, are closer still.
Yes. A flat sea wall path runs from Colwell Bay south to Totland Bay, with views over the Solent to Hurst Castle and Fort Albert. It takes about 15 to 20 minutes.
Linstone Chine Holiday Village (Brambles Chine and Cliff End), right on the doorstep.
Stoats Farm Caravan and Camping, from £24.50 a night for two adults, is the lowest price we can find over the next year. Prices change with the season and the day of the week, so put your dates into the calculator on this page.
4 of the 7: Heathfield Farm Camping, The Bay Colwell, Stoats Farm Caravan and Camping and The Bungalow CL.
Not as far as we know. All of them close for part of the winter, so check the opening dates on each campsite's page.
Yes, at Glamping The Wight Way and Stoats Farm Caravan and Camping. Most want fires in a raised pit, not on the ground.
