Where to stay in Guernsey: the best areas, with or without a car

The quick answer

For a first visit, especially without a car, stay in St Peter Port. For beaches and sunsets, pick the west coast. For cliff walks and quiet, choose St Martin and the south coast. And if you can spare a night, spend it on Herm or Sark after the day visitors have gone home.

Guernsey covers only about 24 square miles, so wherever you stay, the rest of the island is a short drive or bus ride away. Choosing an area is less about distance and more about what you want on your doorstep first thing in the morning and last thing at night.

The areas at a glance

St Peter Port: best for a first visit and for going car-free

Best for

First visits, eating out, island-hopping

Need a car?

No

To St Peter Port

You're already there

Guernsey's harbour town is the easiest base on the island. Restaurants, pubs and shops are on your doorstep, every bus route starts at the Town Terminus by the harbour, and the boats to Herm and Sark leave from the harbour too. If you arrive by ferry, you step off in town.

The town climbs steeply from the water, so expect hills and steps. Hotels fall into three groups: in the centre, for walking everywhere; on the seafront and clifftops, for views across to Herm and Sark; and on the greener edge of town, for gardens, pools and a bit more space.

Beaches are the trade-off. The nearest are small: Havelet Bay and the Victorian bathing pools at La Vallette, a short walk south, with Fermain Bay further along the cliff path. For big sandy bays you'll take the bus or drive to the west or north coast.

For a treat, The Old Government House Hotel has five stars and a spa in the middle of town. La Frégate and La Piette look out over the water to Herm and Sark. St Pierre Park, on the edge of town, has its own golf course, pool and spa, and the Premier Inn at Admiral Park is the budget option.

The west coast and countryside: best for beaches and sunsets

Best for

Sandy beaches, sunsets, good food

Need a car?

Helpful, but coast buses work

To St Peter Port

About 15–20 minutes by car

The west is Guernsey's beach side. A string of sandy bays runs down the coast, from Cobo and Vazon to Rocquaine in the south-west, and the sun sets straight into the sea. Behind the coast, the parishes of Castel and St Saviour are quiet countryside of granite farmhouses and narrow lanes.

You can manage without a car: the round-island buses, routes 91 and 92, follow the coast in both directions. But it's a spread-out, quieter area, so evenings out mean a taxi, a short drive or an eye on the bus times.

Cobo Bay Hotel and The Imperial Hotel sit right on their beaches, on Cobo Bay and Rocquaine Bay. Inland, Fleur du Jardin, The Farmhouse and Le Friquet are country hotels with their own restaurants and pools, a short drive from the sand.

St Martin and the south coast: best for cliff walks and peace

Best for

Cliff walks, quiet, spa breaks

Need a car?

Helpful; buses run on the main roads

To St Peter Port

About 10 minutes by car

The south of Guernsey is a high plateau that ends in tall cliffs, with a path running along most of the coast. Small coves such as Fermain, Moulin Huet, Saints Bay and Petit Bot sit at the foot of wooded valleys. St Martin, next door to St Peter Port, has most of the hotels here, on the clifftops at Jerbourg and Icart and in the lanes behind them.

The beaches are lovely but small, and most are reached down steep paths and steps, so this isn't the easiest base with very young children or limited mobility. In return you get quiet nights, big views, the cliff path on your doorstep and the airport close by.

Fermain Valley Hotel and La Villette suit a spa or leisure break. Hotel Jerbourg and Saints Bay Hotel are right on the clifftops, and La Trelade is about five minutes from the airport if you have an early flight.

The north: best for families and flat cycling

Best for

Families, sandy bays, easy cycling

Need a car?

Helpful

To St Peter Port

About 15 minutes by car

The north of the island, the Vale and St Sampson, is low-lying and flat, which makes it the easiest part of Guernsey to explore by bike. It has some of the best family beaches, including the wide, sandy bays at L'Ancresse and Pembroke, backed by open common land.

It's more residential than the rest of the island and has fewer places to stay. The Peninsula Hotel, a large family hotel with a pool beside a sandy bay, is the main hotel; otherwise, look at self-catering in the north.

Herm, Sark and Alderney: a night on a smaller island

A third of visitors to Guernsey hop over to Herm, Sark or Alderney. Most go for the day, but staying a night or two is a different experience: once the last boat has gone, these islands are very quiet.

Herm

Twenty minutes by ferry from St Peter Port, Herm is about a mile and a half long, with no cars or bikes. There is one hotel, the White House Hotel, plus holiday cottages and a campsite. It's easy to combine with Guernsey: a few nights in St Peter Port, then one on Herm. Where to stay on Herm

Sark

Under an hour by ferry, Sark has no cars and no street lights. People get around on foot, by bike or by horse and carriage, and in 2011 it became the world's first Dark Sky Island. Stocks Hotel, a family-owned farmhouse hotel, sits alongside cottages, a B&B, glamping and campsites. Where to stay on Sark

Alderney

Further north, Alderney is a short Aurigny flight from Guernsey or Southampton, or, in summer, a passenger ferry from St Peter Port. It's bigger and wilder than Herm and Sark, with cars, a small town (St Anne) and a ring of Victorian forts. Three of its four hotels are in St Anne; Braye Beach Hotel is on the sand by the harbour. Where to stay on Alderney

Staying without a car

Plenty of visitors manage without one: in 2025, the bus was the most common way visitors got around the island (48% used it), ahead of their own car and taxis.

• Base yourself in St Peter Port and every bus route, the ferries and most restaurants are a walk away.
• Elsewhere, stay near a bus route. The round-island routes 91 and 92 follow the coast in both directions and stop at the airport.
• Fares are low. A single journey is £1.70 by contactless card, and visitor passes cost £10 for one day or £15 for two (2026 prices). Buses don't take cash.
• Hire an e-bike for the hills (from about £45 a day), and use taxis for the airport run and evenings out.

If you do drive, the island-wide speed limit is 35mph, the lanes are narrow and most parking is free but uses a parking clock. Our getting around guide covers the local rules, like “filter in turn” junctions.

Booking tips

• How long to stay: the average stay in 2025 was 4.6 nights. Splitting a trip between two bases, say three nights in town and one on Herm or Sark, gives you both sides of the islands.
• Book early for busy dates: summer weekends, the Guernsey Literary Festival (23 April to 2 May 2027) and Liberation Day on 9 May. See what's on for more.
• Hotel or self-catering? Most visitors (62% in 2025) stayed in hotels, but we also list 81 self-catering places on Guernsey. For something specific, browse hotels by type: spa, dog-friendly, beach and more.
• Castle Cornet is closed until about June 2027 while its bridge is rebuilt. You can still see it from the harbour, but plan your days out around it.
• Budgeting: see what a Guernsey holiday really costs for flights, rooms, buses and three sample budgets.

Compare prices on the map

Every hotel, B&B and holiday let on Guernsey, with live prices from the big booking sites. Add your dates for exact rates; you book directly with them and we never add a fee.

Questions

Sources

• States of Guernsey: Travel and Visitor Annual Report 2025
• Visit Guernsey: 2025 visitor and accommodation figures
• States of Guernsey: bus fares and passes
• Guernsey Airport: getting here by bus
• Guernsey Press: Castle Cornet bridge closure
• Guernsey Literary Festival 2027
• Herm Island: where to stay
• Sark Dark Sky Island