11 best things to do on a rainy day on the Isle of Wight

Shipwreck Centre and Maritime Museum

Located in Arreton Barns’ craft village, The Shipwreck Centre and Maritime Museum offers several exhibitions on the Island’s maritime history, including prehistory, shipwrecks, history of diving and submarines.

The ‘Maritime Isle of Wight’ section of the museum shows how ships, and the shipping industry, is central to the Island’s development, and the ‘history of diving’ exhibit features displays of early diving equipment, including early incarnations of suits, pumps and helmets, as well as a diving bell which was invented and used in 1535.

Shipwreck Centre and Maritime Museum. (Image: Shipwreck Centre and Maritime Museum.)

Dinosaur Isle

Sandown Bay’s Dinosaur Isle shines a light on the Isle of Wight’s geological history and the many Dinosaur fossils found on our shores.

Displays include a large dinosaur gallery, skeletal reconstructions of dinosaurs, and two animatronic dinosaurs.

The Sandown site contains more than 30,000 geological specimens.

Dinosaur Isle, Sandown. (Image: County Press)

Medina and The Heights Leisure Centre (swimming)

Located in Newport, Medina has two swimming pools. 

Lane swimming in the main pool is available from 12pm until 12.45pm every weekday, while casual swimming is available from 8am to 9am every weekday, from 1.15pm to 3pm on Saturdays, and from 1pm to 4pm on Sundays.

The small pool also offers casual swimming and swimming lessons throughout the week.

Opening hours are from 6am to 9pm, Monday to Friday, and from 8am to 5pm on weekends.

Medina Swimming Pool, Newport. (Image: Medina Swimming Pool.)

Much like Medina, The Heights Leisure Centre, off Broadway in Sandown, also has two pools.

Owned by 1Leisure, opening times are identical to those at Medina, and One Cards can be used at either facility.

The Heights, Sandown. (Image: 1Leisure)

Waterside Pool and West Wight Sports and Community Centre (swimming)

Ryde’s Waterside swimming complex, meanwhile, offers underwater hockey and has its very own swimming club.

Timetables are available on the website.

At West Wight Sports and Community Centre there's swimming plus many other activities, including a climbing wall.

There's a whole programme of indoor activities on the centre's website.

Waterside Pool, Ryde. (Image: Waterside Pool)

Cineworld (cinema)

Newport’s Cineworld, off Coppins Bridge, shows the latest releases and offers movies for juniors at the weekend and during the holidays.

Customers can use their Unlimited Cards to watch films and receive discount off food and drink, and there is a Baskin Robbins for those who want to tuck into a snack.

Car parking is available and public transport is just a short walk away.

Cineworld, Isle of Wight. (Image: Cineworld)

Ryde Commodore (cinema)

An independent cinema off Star Street, Commodore similarly offers screenings of the latest releases.

Timetables can be found on the website, and while parking spaces in close proximity are limited, public transport is just around the corner.

Commodore Cinema, Ryde. (Image: Leo Leisure)

Snacks and Ladders

Snacks and Ladders, the Isle of Wight's first board game cafe, gives visitors the chance to play a tabletop game while they eat and drink.

The cafe has a huge library of games available, including classics such as Monopoly, Scrabble, and Snakes and Ladders.

The Newport venue is particularly proud of its cocktails, and meals, fresh coffee and cakes are also available.

The cafe is closed on Mondays, open from 12.30pm to 9.30pm on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, from 12.30pm to 22.30pm on Friday and Saturday, and from 12.30pm 17.30pm on Sunday.

Snacks and Ladders, Newport. (Image: Snacks and Ladders)

Rocket Ronnie’s

A pool hall in Newport boasting eleven English 8-ball tables and a wealth of televisions showing all the latest sports.

Rocket Ronnie's has a fully licensed bar, a jukebox, and plenty of seating.

The first pool hall on the Island, you don’t have to be a member to enter – you can just turn up and play.

Once a month, the venue also runs karaoke.

A second site opened in Ryde in 2021 which runs karaoke every Sunday, and dog owners can bring their furry friends along.

Rocket Ronnie's, Ryde. (Image: Rocket Ronnie's)

Wight Aviation Museum

Sandown Airport’s Wight Aviation Museum gives visitors the chance to explore the Island’s huge history in aviation.

The museum has several exhibits, including one which demonstrates how the Spitfire fighter plane was built, and one which shows the various Second World War crash sites on the Island.

The museum also has a VR flight simulator and a replica of the Black Arrow space rocket which was built on the Isle of Wight.

The museum is open from 10am to 3pm on Mondays, Tuesdays, Saturdays and Sundays, including bank holidays.

Isle of Wight Aviation Museum, Sandown. (Image: County Press)

Cowes Maritime Museum

Cowes Maritime Museum celebrates the town’s maritime history.

The museum has an extensive library of photographic and paper archives, covering the sailing, yachting and shipbuilding industries that were prominent in the town.

There is also a large collection of books, journals, and press cuttings available.

Admission is free, and the museum is open from 10.30am to 12.30pm, and from 2.00pm to 4.30pm, on Mondays, Tuesdays, Fridays and Saturdays.

Cowes Maritime Museum. (Image: Google Maps)

What are YOUR favourite rainy day activities? Comment below.