You do not see much of the Fairy Bridge from the road. It is a plain stone bridge over the Santon Burn at Ballalona, on the parish boundary between Santon and Malew, and most people cross it at speed on the way between Douglas and the south. The custom is what matters. Anyone crossing is expected to wish the fairies a good morning or say "Hello fairies". Not doing it is thought to bring bad luck. Bus Vannin buses play a recorded message reminding passengers to observe the Manx tradition as they approach.
The trees and railings by the bridge are covered with notes, ribbons, photographs and messages, many of them addressed to the fairies and many left by visitors. Riders at the TT and Manx Grand Prix are said to make a point of greeting the fairies before racing, and some blame crashes on riders who forgot.
The history is less clear than the custom. An 1874 guidebook already described Ballalona as a spot sacred to the revels of the fairies. The greeting itself seems to have been pushed hard to holidaymakers from the mid-twentieth century and may owe more to tourism than to older belief, though it sits comfortably with the older Manx habit of speaking politely of "themselves". The Ordnance Survey, meanwhile, once marked a Fairy Bridge in Braddan, across the Middle River near Kewaigue, and some islanders will tell you that is the true one and the A5 bridge is the stand-in for visitors.
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