I'll visit Ellan Vannin and need some help, please

Hello and please forgive me, if I disuse this part of the forum.
I want to visit the Isle of Man in April 2017 and need some advice.
First of all:
Will there come more lessons of SSiManx? maybe @adriancain
Are there places where I could try my little knowledge of the language? Language centers. meet-ups of learners, pubs where Gaelg-speaking locals meet?
Can I get around on the island by bus or train or do I have to hire a car?
Is it easy to find accomodation or would you recommend to book in advance?
I will (hopefully) arrive Sunday 23.April by plane and leave Thursday afternoon or Friday morning by ferry-boat.
Any advice, where to go, where to stay, what to see is appreciated.
Thank you in advance, Brigitte

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Yes - don’t think they’ll be very long now - there’s been a lot of extra work done in the last couple of months, I know… :slight_smile:

Other stuff, if Adrian doesn’t notice this, I’d recommend getting in touch with Culture Vannin: http://www.culturevannin.im/

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:smiley:Diolch yn fawr or Gura mie mooar ayd , I’m happy to hear this.
Thanks, I’ll try to contact Culture Vannin next year.

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Hi there! You’re right that @adriancain is the guy to ask about Gaelg meet-ups, but I can tell you a thing or two about the transport situation. You can certainly get to most places by both bus and train, and if you’re going to be doing a lot of moving about, there are 1-, 3-, 5- and 7-day bus passes available. There are also a more expensive version of the passes which work on the trains too, but they’re quite pricey.

The trains are mostly a tourist thing rather than normal public transport, and as such are more expensive, slower and less frequent, so if you just want to get somewhere the buses are your best bet. However they’re also well worth doing for the experience, and can be lovely on a nice day. There are two: the steam train which heads south round the coast to Port Erin via Castletown, and the electric one which heads north up the coast to Ramsey via Laxey. There’s also a little spur of the electric train which heads from Laxey off up Snaefell (highest point on the Island) from which there are fantastic views on a nice day. :sunglasses:

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Hi @brigitte and hope you are well. You can email me at adrian@culturevannin.im if you like and we’ll sort all this our for you. You’ll be fine with the bus especially if you want to stay in Douglas, Peel or the South. There’s plenty of Manx sessions going on and I can let you have a list of them nearer the time. Looking forward to meeting up. Adrian

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Thank you, Kinetic. I’m happy to hear that I can get around by bus, because I wouldn’t like to drive all the time on my own. Did you ever try to go by bike (bicycle, not moto-bike)?

Thank you Adrian. I don’t know now, where to stay, so I’ll have many questions to ask. Am I right, that you’re working for Culture Vannin? Do you have an office in Douglas?

I work for Culture Vannin and our offices are in St Johns next to the Bunscoill. I run a number of morning classes in St Johns for parents so you might think of staying in Peel which is close to St Johns. That might work better than Douglas.

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