Dreams come true for time travellers

Well, put away your passport and enjoy the best of British - the Isles of Scilly.

This cluster of 100 islands lie 30 miles off the Cornish coast , the last weather-beaten chunks of England before the Atlantic throws up its vast barrier with our American neighbours.

The islands' remote isolation has created a unique place unlike any other on the British Isles. It is battered by gales, kissed by crystal clear skies, soaked by Atlantic rainstorms and warmed by the Gulf Stream current.

The result is a place with weather unlike anywhere else in the UK. But there is more to the Scillies than a capricious climate. This is a time-traveller's dream come true. You arrive a generation ago, where tides rather than time dictate the pace of life.

We flew from Bristol airport on a 17-seater aircraft which gave a grandstand view of the Cornish landscape below.

The flight put fun back into flying, and as we neared St Mary's - the largest of the five inhabited Scilly Isles - everyone craned their necks to enjoy the first views of the photo-friendly views.

The surprises kept coming. With only nine miles or so of roads on St Mary's there are hardly any cars.

And this being a Friday tea time, they were all parked up outside the neat homes which bordered the road between airstrip (you can't really call it an airport, but it is) and jetty (you can't really call it a port, but it is).

And then came the spray-splashed transfer to Tresco where we were to spend the next two nights.

There can be few more exhilarating ways to arrive anywhere in the world.

And Tresco is like nowhere else on earth. It is, quite simply, perfection. Small enough to walk round in a morning but big enough to give you a lifetime's memories.

But best of all, it has a world class hotel perched right on the short with the kind of views from its bedroom windows that defy you to close the curtains at night: you simply must wake up to see the sea and sky embracing a coastline punctuated by a dozen islets.

The Island Hotel is stylish and comfortable and the ideal place to relax away the stress of your working life.

From its heated outdoor pool to its incredible restaurant (leaning heavily to local produce, so fish features prominently on the menus), the hotel not only confirmed that Tresco is special, it made its visitors feel special too.

With no private cars on the island, Tresco is the perfect place to strap on your boots and stride out. And the Island Hotel is perfectly placed as a starting - and finishing point - for a day exploring the island.

Paths lead from the hotel gateway to the northern headland where the ruined Cromwell's and King Charles' castles protect the approaches to the island.

An hour or so later and you are in Old Grimsby, the hamlet which passes as the population centre on Tresco.

Nearby is the Scillies' main tourist attraction, the Abbey Gardens which contain a bewildering array of sub-tropical plants.

The garden was the creation of the 'Emperor' of Scillies, Augustus Smith who 200 years ago leased Tresco from the Duchy of Cornwall and set about creating an idyllic community, developing schools-for-all years before they were established on the mainland.

Across the narrow stretch of water separating Tresco and its neighbour Bryher island is the Island Hotel's sister establishment, Hell Bay Hotel.

The island of Tresco has been tamed and smartened up while Bryher remains shaggy around the edges. And the Hell Bay Hotel expresses this characteristic with a more relaxed style to greet visitors.

The owners manage to achieve a friendly feel with all the attention to visitors' needs that you get across the water at Island Hotel, including a restaurant serving food-to-die-for, a nine-hole golf course, gym an sauna.

What both islands have in common, as do all the Scilly Isles, in fact, is that they are carpeted with flowers in the spring.

These really are paradise isles on our own doorstep.Factfile

The name 'Scilly' is steeped in romance. The Vikings called the islands 'Syllorgar' and the Romans 'Sully' (meaning the sun islands). The 'c' was added in the 1500s.

The first settlers arrived from the Cornish mainland over 4,000 years ago.

Remains found on the now uninhabited island of Nornour show that the Romans occupied the islands between the first and third Century AD.

From the Middle Ages onwards, successive fortifications were built to protect Scilly and by virtue, the mainland from potential invaders.

The last two hundred years of history, is associated with the Duchy of Cornwall, who took up the lease of the islands in 1831.

We flew by Skybus, the island's own airline, from Bristol airport, spending two nights at Island Hotel, Tresco, and one night at Hell Bay Hotel, Bryher.

Skybus also operate from Land's End (15mins), Newquay (30 mins), Exeter (60 mins) and Southampton (90 mins).

The Scillonian ferry operates from Penzance, as do helicopter flights.

Travelling between the islands is done by local ferries.

Packages can be arranged to include accommodation, travel and transfers by contacting either of the hotels below.

Hell Bay Hotel: Tel 01720 422 947, email [email protected] (www.hellbay.co.uk). Rooms are from 120 per person per night (dinner, bed and breakfast).

Island Hotel: Tel 01720 422 883 or email [email protected] (www.islandhotel.co.uk). Rooms are from 130 per person per night (dinner, bed and breakfast).Artifacts in Abbey Gardens

THE Abbey Gardens, on Tresco, are home to the Valhalla Museum, a collection of ships' figureheads collected around the shores of the Scillies, which are the most treacherous in the world having experienced more shipwrecks than other sets of islands.

Some of the artefacts were recovered from wrecks while the remainder were washed ashore. Poignantly, they are marked as coming from an unknown vessel.

Figureheads were traditionally placed on the prow of ships only while in port. They allowed illiterate seamen to identify their boats after returning from an alcohol-fuelled shore leave.

Once at sea, the valuable carvings were safely stowed below deck.