Isle of Wight, getting around

It is extremely do-able.

The Southern Vectis bus services are very good, and give a myriad of other options to see more of the island. A fun fact, apart from Edinburgh the only place in the UK to provide a comprehensive bus service on Christmas Day.

To the Needles there is the seasonal open top 'Needles Breezer' service which isn't showing yet for this season- but the TT which is there for the end of last season is a shoulder timetable- in May it should be more frequent.

Depending what order you did these three in, if you finish at Yarmouth then rather than returning to Ryde you could take Wightlink over to Lymington Harbour where trains connect back at the Pier Station to Portsmouth via the New Forest- switching at Brockenhurst and Southampton.

If you finish at Osborne House (East Cowes) you can take the Red Funnel ferry back to Southampton, connecting ferry bus to Southampton Central station, then train to Portsmouth.

From Ryde there is also the main line railway to Ventnor and Shanklin (using rebuilt London Underground Trains)- even if you just use that for the short ride from Ryde Town Centre along the pier to the boats at Ryde Pier Head it is great fun. And a main line railway on a pier just isn't something most people do every day (unless you are a commuter on the Isle of Wight- some people commute to London from the Isle of Wight, certainly to Portsmouth and Southampton).

The other thing to maybe work into your day is the Isle of Wight Steam Railway- it connects with the main line trains at Smallwood Junction (a station with no exit- it is interchange only).

There are many glorious days out which you can have on the island with the Southern Vectis bus network- including many a place not on the above list- like Alum Bay (for it's coloured sands), any of the Chines on the south coast, seaside resorts like Sandown and Shanklin, Ventnor (including the Botanic Gardens) and villages like Godshill. Yarmouth (for the ferry) is also a really interesting town- with a lot of history including it's Castle.

A day (especially if you start early and end late) will give you a great introduction to an island which is a very special place, you could easily spend a week there (and many domestic tourists do).

If you can get to see the Needles from the sea they are even more impressive IMO, but possibly not on a day trip.

It is doable BUT you may be pushed for time to see all of them. I spent a morning in Carrisbroke Castle (don't miss the donkeys and the demonstration of how they were used to draw water up from the well).

There's loads to see in Osbourne House and the gardens are super too. Don't miss Queen Victoria's bathing machine, Swiss Cottage (the children's 'play house' where they entertained their mother for tea...) and the walled garden . This took me a whole day!

We spent a week there a couple of years ago, and filled it easily. You could do it in a day, but I wouldn't try it unless you're happy with a fly-by in each location. We didn't have a car, so were were slowed a bit by public transportation, but not unreasonably so. We didn't get to the Needles, but spent a day alone at Osborne House. If you're a royals fan, a whole day there is not too much. There's a lot to see there with tons of interesting history. The gardens should be lovely by May, and the main house and the children's cottage in the woods are wonderful. You can also walk the Queen's beach. Check into advance tickets if you go to Osborne. (I'm not sure they sell them, though.) We were there in the fall and it was pretty busy.