Skomer Island Day Trips

Confirmed prices for 2024 can be seen below.

Between April and August, boats depart Martin's Haven every 30 minutes between 10:00 and 12:00. Return boats run from 15:00 onwards and are allocated according to your outward journey. Please note you cannot change the time you wish to return from the island. There are no boats on Mondays, with the exception of the Whitsun Bank Holiday (27.05.2024).

In September, boats to the island run less frequently depending on demand. There are no day boats on Friday in September.

The Puffins come and go in April as they establish their breeding areas. They are on island May-July and the first Puffins will start to leave in mid-July. The last ones will have left by the end of July.

Skomer is of international importance due to its populations of breeding seabirds. The absence of rats, mink, stoats and other ground predators allows ground-nesting birds like Manx Shearwaters and Atlantic Puffins to thrive. If rats were introduced to the island, even accidentally, they would decimate our seabird populations. This has happened on islands around the world.

- All luggage must be closed - unsealed luggage, including open bags and carrier bags will not be permitted to land.

- Pack all luggage yourself in a rodent-free environment and please ensure no rodent has accessed to your luggage before boarding.

- Do not leave your luggage unattended in Martin’s Haven to ensure rodents cannot enter your bags. 

- Do not bring anything that might present a threat onto the island. This includes plants with root balls and compost including potted herbs, seeds etc.

We are committed to making Skomer Island as inclusive as we can. We want as many people as possible to be able to experience the wonders of our wildlife-packed island. Find our full EDI and Accessibility page here:

Accessibility & Inclusivity on Skomer Island

Points for day visitors:

• Whilst we take every care to make Skomer as physically accessible as possible, the 87 steps upon arrival and thin paths around the island make it impossible for wheelchair users to visit. We appreciate that many of our visitors will need a little longer to get up the steps to the welcome point and can adjust our welcome talks accordingly – giving separate talks to those needing a more time is always an option. For those who are pregnant or need to stop more frequently, we can advise on places to rest and take shelter. 

• All our toilet and bathroom facilities, for both day visitors and overnight guests, are gender-neutral. 

• From 2024, we will have a printout version of our welcome talk available on arrival on the island.

• As the island is home to millions of seabirds, we unfortunately can’t allow dogs on the island, even guide dogs. If you are blind or partially sighted, there is the option to be chaperoned around the island by a member of staff if organised in advance.

If you or a person in your group require an adjustment to make your time with us more enjoyable, please do contact our Skomer Island Visitor Officer, skomer.vo@welshwildlife.org.

The National Trust operate two large Pay & Display Car Parks: one at Martin’s Haven and one at Marloes Sands. Both are suitable for cars and recreation vehicles.

The Martins Haven carpark is a 5 minute walk from boat embarkation point. It costs £7 daily (National Trust members go free). It can be paid for on the paybyphone app (car park no. 803527), however we recommend bringing coins as signal in this area can be poor.

The post code to follow is SA62 3BJ & What3Words///blogging.panoramic.takers.

Marloes Sands and Mere carpark is a 45 minute walk along the coast path to the boat embarkation point in Martins Haven. It also costs £7 daily (National Trust members go free). For fantastic views of the islands of Skomer and Skokholm offshore and bird watching through the Marloes Mere reserve.

The postcode to follow is SA62 3BH & What3Words///sunset.lands.knowledge.

Please note that The Wildlife Trust of South & West Wales has no affiliation with this car park.

To relieve pressure on the carpark at Martins Haven and rural community of Marloes, please consider your transport options before travelling. Car sharing and use of public transport will also help to reduce the environmental impact of your visit.

By Public Transport

The nearest train stations are Milford Haven and Haverfordwest. Taxi Services are available and will cost approximately £22-£25 from Milford Haven area and £35 from Haverfordwest. The 400 Puffin Shuttle is coastal route that runs between our departure point in Martin’s Haven & St Davids. This route operates daily from 25th May to 29th September 2024. You can find a list of all Pembrokeshire bus routes here.

Fflecsi Pembrokeshire is an on demand bus transport service operating in north west and south west Pembrokeshire.

Fflecsi operates across the peninsula linking the coast with Haverfordwest and Milford Haven. The service is available anytime between 7.30am and 6.30pm (Monday to Saturday). Customers can book by downloading the Fflecsi App from the Apple App Store or Google Play Store. Alternatively you can book by phoning 0300 234 0300 (Monday-Saturday: 7am-7pm and Sunday: 9am-6pm). Visit the Fflecsi website for more information.

By Car

From Haverfordwest, follow Dale Road (B4327) for just over 10 miles, before following signs on to Gay Lane in Marloes. Please observe the 20mph speed limit through the village. Stay on the main road through the village and continue straight on for 1.5 miles. Do not turn off until you reach the National Trust carpark at the end of the road. Please be aware that this road is narrow and windy and uses passing places.

Parking

The National Trust operate two large Pay & Display Car Parks: one at Martin’s Haven and one at Marloes Sands. Both are suitable for cars and recreation vehicles.

The Martins Haven carpark is a 5 minute walk from boat embarkation point. It costs £7 daily (National Trust members go free). It can be paid for on the paybyphone app (car park no. 803527), however we recommend bringing coins as signal in this area can be poor.

The post code to follow is SA62 3BJ & What3Words///blogging.panoramic.takers.

Marloes Sands and Mere carpark is a 45 minute walk along the coast path to the boat embarkation point in Martins Haven. It also costs £7 daily (National Trust members go free). For fantastic views of the islands of Skomer and Skokholm offshore and bird watching through the Marloes Mere reserve.

The postcode to follow is SA62 3BH & What3Words///sunset.lands.knowledge.

Please note that The Wildlife Trust of South & West Wales has no affiliation with this car park.

• Food - there is no café or shop on Skomer. You must bring all food you require with you on the day.
• Water - we are unable to fill up your water bottles on the island as Skomer is not connected to a mainland water supply and water is limited. Please bring enough water with you for your trip. Bottles of water can be purchased for £1.00 at the Sales Point and Visitor Centre.
• Bins - there are no bins on Skomer. We ask that you take all rubbish home with you at the end of the day. Please note that this includes apple cores, banana skins, etc.
• Binoculars - binoculars can be hired for £5.00 on the island.
• Toilets - there are four compost toilets on Skomer. These can be found at the centre of the island at the Farm.

Throughout the season there will be times where the boats to Skomer are cancelled because of adverse weather conditions. 

We will update you as soon as we have information about bad weather - if we have to cancel we will email you and full refunds will be automatically triggered. In the meantime you can keep up to date with whether day boats are running on the Skomer Boat Twitter Feed. 

Please see the below document for useful local contacts.