Isles of Scilly England Cornwall Travel Postcard

The Isles of Scilly lie scattered like a necklace of emerald gems just off the tip of Cornwall’s Lizard Peninsula, where the Celtic Sea laps against windswept granite shores. Warmed by the Gulf Stream, these five inhabited islands—and many smaller islets—are draped in vivid gardens and cloaked in wildflower meadows that burst into bloom from spring through autumn. On St Mary’s, the largest island, pastel-painted cottages cluster around Hugh Town’s harbor, where fishing boats and pleasure craft bob against a backdrop of verdant hills and the crumbling ramparts of Star Castle. Further afield, Tresco’s Subtropical Garden spills with palms, tree ferns, and exotic blooms rescued from remote corners of the globe, while St Martin’s rolling sand dunes and pristine beaches—most famously on White Island—invite long, solitary walks beneath sky-wide horizons. Despite their small scale, the Scillies boast a rich tapestry of history and seafaring lore. Bronze-age burial cairns and standing stones hint at ancient ritual sites, while wrecks from medieval and Napoleonic eras lie hidden beneath turquoise shallows, drawing snorkelers and maritime archaeologists alike. Puffins and shearwaters wheel above offshore skerries in summer, and otters play among the tidal pools at sunset. Local farmers tend flower farms that send millions of daffodils, freesias, and narcissi to the mainland each spring, a delicate industry shaped by the islands’ mild climate. Come evening, the horizon glows with unpolluted starlight, and the only sounds are the whisper of sea grasses and the distant hoot of owls—reminding visitors that on the Isles of Scilly, nature’s rhythms still set the pace of island life.