Herm
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Herm

Herm

Tiny car-free Channel Island east of Guernsey, known for cliff paths and Shell Beach.

Herm is tiny — a mile and a half long and half a mile wide — and entirely car-free. It sits three miles east of St Peter Port, Guernsey, and the fast catamaran crossing takes about 20 minutes. Around 60 people live here year-round; in summer day-trippers arrive to walk the clifftop paths, swim off Shell Beach on the north end, and eat at the island's single pub, the Mermaid Tavern.

There are no crowds in any meaningful sense. The island is privately leased from the States of Guernsey and managed as a single estate. There is a small shop, a pub, and an 11th-century chapel. That is more or less everything.

Shell Beach itself is worth the trip — the beach is composed almost entirely of broken shells carried in by the Atlantic rather than sand, and the water in summer is clear and relatively warm. The southern cliffs offer views across to Sark and the private island of Jethou. If you are based in Guernsey and looking for a quiet half-day, Herm is an easy and rewarding excursion.

Guide

Getting There

The only way to Herm is by boat from St Peter Port, Guernsey. The Travel Trident ferry runs the 20-minute crossing several times a day from Easter to October, less frequently in winter. Tickets are sold at the Guernsey harbour office and aboard.

Sailings depend on the tide — Herm's harbour dries out at low water and the bigger ferries divert to the Rosaire steps on the south coast instead, a longer walk into the village. Check the schedule.

There is no airport on Herm and no cars. From the harbour you walk everywhere. Day-trippers normally catch the last ferry back around 5 or 6 pm; staying overnight requires booking the small White House Hotel or one of the self-catering cottages well in advance for summer.

Guide

Things to Do

Herm is for walking, swimming, and lying down. The clifftop coastal path circles the whole island in three hours at an easy pace, with constantly changing views of Sark, Jethou, and the Guernsey coast. The northern beaches — Shell Beach and Mousonnière — are the swimming destinations; the southern cliffs are for views. The village at the harbour is the only built-up area, with a single pub, a chapel, and a small shop.

Herm gets day-tripper crowds in July and August but they thin out within ten minutes of the harbour. By 5 pm when the last ferry to Guernsey has left, the island reverts to its 60 permanent residents.