Shanklin is a town of great character and charm with many interesting small shops and a variety of hotels and apartments in former Victorian country houses. Sheltering cliffs provide the ideal suntrap position for the seafront Esplanade, where there is safe bathing from a sandy beach, water sports, car parks, hotels, amusements and a host of pubs and restaurants. The first week of August is traditionally Carnival Week with carnival parades in the town and sports and fireworks at the County Ground. Later in August Shanklin Regatta is one of the highlights of the year with a firework finale which lights up the bay.
Shanklin Old Village is a perennial attraction where most of the picturesque cottages clustered around the thatched Crab Inn have now become craft and gift shops or restaurants. Follow the lane from the Old Village to reach Shanklin's famous Chine, a dramatic fissure in the rock where a 45 ft waterfall cascades through boulders and ferns to the shore.