What to do on the island of Jersey? Beaches, food, hotels and tunnels

It’s an island that is closer to France than to England — yet it is part of the British Isles. 

It’s home to miles of tunnels built during World War II — but by German rather than British soldiers.

And it has lower taxes than the U.K. and its own financial rules.

The island of Jersey, in the English Channel, is only five miles long and nine miles wide but has plenty for visitors to see, according to Amanda Burns, CEO of tourism agency Visit Jersey.

“We pack quite a big punch,” Burns told CNBC by phone. “What’s really interesting is … the geological uniqueness of the island, through to the history and the heritage,” she said.

Located about 120 miles from England — and 14 from France — Jersey attracts visitors who travel to the island via ferry or a short flight.

Though English is mainly spoken, Jersey has its own language, which isn’t used anywhere else in the world. Jerriais, sometimes known as “Jersey French,” developed over several centuries and is still used on the island.

A recent tourism campaign that highlights Jersey’s quirks has made the island’s mainland European influence a point of attraction.

“Curiously Brit…(ish),” is how the campaign describes the island — “the air of British familiarity gives way to a curiously continental feel,” it continues.

Visitors are also encouraged to explore Jersey’s food, such as the island’s potatoes, called Jersey Royals.

The potatoes can be bought only in Jersey or on mainland Britain. Although there’s no official connection with Britain’s royal family, Jersey Royals had Protected Designation of Origin, or PDO, a label given by the EU to food products that have the strongest links to the place in which they are made. Since Brexit, the potatoes have been placed in a similar U.K. program.

Jersey business owner Marcus Calvani founded a company on the odd-shaped Jersey Royals that don’t pass selling standards — he makes vodka with them, bottled under the name Fluke.

“It takes 11 kilos of Jersey Royals to make one bottle,” Calvani said. “It’s got a beautiful mouthfeel that’s … kind of silky and viscous. And the weird thing you get from it is a slight honeydew melon vanilla on the nose.”

Calvani borrowed the name from the potatoes’ original moniker: Jersey Royal Fluke, named when farmers were experimenting with growing the vegetable in the early 19th century, after the decline of cider orchards. Bottles will be available in the upscale department store Harrods later this year, priced at around £50 ($61) each.