Has anyone here been to the Isle of Man TT?

My uncle and I have gotten pretty close the past few years. He is wanting me to help him plan and accompany him on a trip to the TT this year. Much like myself my uncle absolutely fell in love with travel a few years before the virus. He had a lot of trips to Eastern Europe canceled and as a result he has an absolute ton of frequent flyer miles burning a hole in his pocket. I’ve been given a generous offer to accompany him to Amsterdam or the UK and then to the Isle or Man TT.

The race has been canceled the past two years in a row. This past year the organizers took advantage of the sad news to focus on logistics and find ways they can improve the event. They seem to be pretty confident right now that it is going to happen this year. Their tone is much different right now.

Its looking like this year might be the year to go on the pilgrimage.

If we have any members who have gone could you please shoot me an email?

Thanks!

I have not but I’m my younger days that was at the top of my bucket list.

Never been, but it’s on my bucket list. It was canceled maybe 20 years ago due to foot and mouth disease. So this isn’t the first time it has been canceled. Covid isn’t helping.

I find myself watching TT videos for hours at a time. No way in hell I could ride like those do. Balls of steel. But I’d love to go watch, it would be the trip of a lifetime.

I haven't been but there was some guys at work that stayed there for a week with their wives. They had great time, and stayed in a flat right on the course. It takes a little doing to get there with the boats and all.

Yup, getting there is a PITA. Fly direct from wherever YOU are into Manchester - the second-largest city in UK - and then a hopper to the IoM. Remember that although it is halfway between mainland UK and Ireland, is is NOT part of the UK, and has its own money laws and taxes. Please note that talking to my old pal Alan Hilton, who runs vintage bike club that competes there every year possible - Matchless bikes IIRC - that prices go through the roof at race time - especially in the run-up to the race week. I'll give him a call and get his own words - he has been going since before bikes had engine in 'em. Did I mention that EVERYTHING costs a lot more during the run-up and race week? Watch this space for a heads- up.

Meanwhile - look through this -

https://www.visitiom.co.uk/blog/ultimate-tt-guide/

This part is very useful - https://www.visitiom.co.uk/isle-of-man/

https://www.visitiom.co.uk/travel-and-accommodation/

https://www.visitiom.co.uk/tra...an-tt-accommodation/

I hope it goes without saying - NO guns, please. Don't even THINK about it.

You'd be surprised......

And just in case anybody here is wondering what all the fuss is about, here's the fastest lap from 2014.....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FdOy80J3dUI

Don't overlook Northern Ireland, either - Dundrod can be just as underwear-filling...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R_CYwziMLdk

You have to book years in advance. There are only so many hotels, etc. “Oh hey do you wan to hit the TT this year?” <—- It does not work like that. I have multiple friends that have gone and one recently deceased, that crated up his own bike and had it shipped there so he could ride his own bike on the course. Most people watch the race (and practice) and pub it up at night so it’s definitely racing and booze vacation.

Tacfoley, I’d be interested in hearing from your friend what he expects as far as crowd size. It would seem self evident that with the race being canceled for two consecutive years there will be a good bit of interest and enthusiasm. I do however wonder if many are reluctant to go out in crowds?

I know this is a difficult question to answer and I appreciate your input. How much do you think covid and two cancelations has tempered the excitement that typically accompanies this event? Do you think it will be packed full like any other year?

Ordinarily I wouldn’t entertain the idea of trying to catch a ferry and spending a day on the island during the TT on such short notice. I’m thinking as soon as the world begins to emerge from the crap and return to normal there will be some surprising opportunities for those eager to travel and live again.

I don’t expect them to cancel again this year. Their tone is much different but then again I didn’t expect it to be canceled last year either.

How hard would it be to catch an early morning ferry over to the island to enjoy a day of racing? Would it be realistic to consider a day trip to the TT possible if I happen to be in that area?

This message has been edited. Last edited by: stickman428,

Let's wait and see what Alan has to say. He pre-booked everything last year while he was there.

The two weeks of the IoM TT are like nothing you've ever seen before, unless, of course, you are used to seeing around a hundred thousand bike fans in one place at the same time.

Taking a car costs a fortune.

Just had an email from dear old pal Neil, who lives in Andreas - 'snot good, I'm afraid -

Good morning to you, ig and the crows -

Well, that’s a difficult one, this is going to be a rather negative reply I’m afraid.

TBH he should think about 2023….unless he already has accommodation booked – everywhere is full, people are casting about in desperation trying to find places to stay already. One of the issues is our useless Government have made the rules for ‘Homestay’ guests (Once a year thing rather than a regular B&B – tax free income) so much harder that loads of folk have stopped doing it.

A friend in the street does B&B but is fully booked, they charge £65 or £75 a night, the 75 is en-suite, 65 uses ‘family’ ie not in the bedroom (but exclusively their use) bathroom. That is on the cheap side for TT, they’re new at it so just feeling their way in. Nice detached modern 4 bed house. Hotels a lot more, quality can, errrrr…. vary.

Ferry (if he can get a booking – will be at odd times or poor days by now, people book a year in advance and bookings have been carried over) from Liverpool or Heysham will be about £560 for two and a car, I just did a test booking. It’s no cheaper for us, despite what rumour says.

No idea about UK car hire, sorry. He could fly to here from Liverpool (Easyjet) or Manchester (Loganair) but I doubt any car hires here are left by this late in the day. Try Athol car hire IRO £800 - £900 for 2 weeks. Getting an auto box may be an issue. He will find driving here TT week….challenging. 12,000 mad bikers on the road. No dual carriageways. Crap Manx drivers. It’s bad enough for us!

Spendies? Well eating mostly, and t shirts….say £100 a day PP? It is more expensive here than the UK due to importing things on the (expensive – see above) ferry. I’d guess about 30% more than you would normally pay for day to day items in the UK. We make it back on less income tax, but energy costs here are astronomical. Of course watching racing is mostly free (sitting on grass banks etc), except a couple of places where you pay for grandstands, again the main start/finish one will be fully booked by now I would have thought.

It is one of those cases that it is so popular nobody has to try very hard, so it can be hard to get what you want/need/will settle for. Bear in mind our population is just over 80,000 and we will get approaching 40,000 visitors over the 2 weeks…..the peaceful island turns into pandemonium for 2 weeks. We love it, but its nice when it stops too!

I can only apologise for the negativity, but that is how things are with TT. It’s dead man’s shoes – people book for the next year while they are here, and people actually visiting here at the time get priority for that.

Hope all are well, etc.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: tacfoley,

Tac, First off thank you so much for looking into this and talking to your friend. I really appreciate it. You have confirmed my suspicions. No worries about it being a negative post, I didn’t view it that way at all. I want to thank you for you looking at the various travel options and the cost associated with each option.

It is probably wise for many reasons to plan a trip for 2023 rather than try to do this last minute. Truth be told I really want to see the event happen and see how that goes before I make plans to attend.

Something as important as this is best treated with proper planning. This really is a pilgrimage of sorts for people like me who love the motorbikes. My new plan is to travel either to Ireland or the UK and then catch a ferry over to the Isle of Man and if possible catch either the Super Bike or Super Sport TT race. That’s probably one of the most popular times to be there so depending on logistics I might catch a qualifying but I’d rather see a race.

Tacfoley, I want to thank you again for the information. I’ll be doing quite a bit of research and might be shooting you an email in the future if you don’t mind as I plan a trip to Ireland or the UK.

Glad I could be of some use, it's a rare event here, that's for sure!!