Andreas at the north of the island is officially closed to non based aircraft but is sometimes a useful diversion if Ronaldsway becomes weathered in
Nah, I flew in there a couple of years back. Give them a call (if you can get hold of them!), lady I dealt with was very friendly and had no problem with me leaving the a/c there overnight while I stayed with my folks who live in the local village. Runway could do with some work - when landing, just fly down it in ground effect until you find a good spot and set her down!
Beats all the extortionate prices and faffing about that goes with Ronaldsway, and you can fly straight in there, no need to go to EGNS first.
Also, weather is usually considerably better in the flat North of the island, between north of Snaefell and the point of ayre...
Regards the crossing, did this trip many a time from Tatenhill, always went Hawarden then crossed straight from somewhere west of Flint, just to avoid Liverpool's zone.
Enjoy the flight, whatever route you take, but as somebody mentioned above, keep one eye on the weather at all times approaching the island, it literally can change just like that!