The Sun Inn

Pub

The Sun Inn in Calbourne is a traditional village pub in one of the quieter, more rural parts of the Isle of Wight. The village sits in the western downland, well away from the main tourist routes, and the pub serves as a genuine local rather than a visitor attraction. The building is old, with stone walls and a low-ceilinged bar that has changed little in character over the decades. There is a pleasant garden for summer drinking, sheltered by mature trees and hedges. The menu covers standard pub fare with some seasonal specials that make use of local produce, and the kitchen has a decent reputation locally. Real ales are available, including beers from island breweries, and the pub keeps a calm, unhurried atmosphere that reflects the pace of the surrounding countryside. Calbourne itself is a handsome village with a ford, a medieval church, and the Winkle Street row of thatched cottages that appears on many Isle of Wight postcards and calendars. The Sun Inn is a good base for walking in the western downs, with footpaths leading towards Brighstone Forest, the Tennyson Trail, and the quieter stretches of the south-west coast. It is not a destination pub in the gastro sense, but it is a proper village local that does the basics well and provides exactly the kind of experience that many visitors to the island are looking for.