Good places in England to go for a weekend, near the sea

Any thoughts? Brighton seems too obvious, ideally want somewhere with good pubs and nice restaurants, that'll be fun for me and some friends to go to. Not too far from London but that's not too important. My knowledge of this country is still pretty basic...

Whitstable or Broadstairs. Not Bognor Regis.

Broadstairs seconded. Haven't been, but would Whitstable be better for food + pubs requirement?

Isle of Wight?

Swanage is pleasant. Great coastline in Dorset and terrific fish n chips, obviously.

Also I remember Whitby having a cool slightly piratical vibe to it, though I was pretty young when I went.

Whitstable thirded.

A couple of places near, but not quite on the south coast.

Rye is dead nice, you have Camber Sands and Beachy Head nearby and the town has a weird feel all of its own. Also near the coast, also in Sussex, is Lewes, which has a cool castle, great pubs and restaurants, and is within easy reach of Brighton and London.

I was at Whitstable a while back, like about 8 years ago my brother got married there, it was really nice as I recall. Amazing restaurants and seafood.

I had a nice day in Scarborough a few weeks ago - would perhaps second Rye?

Not England... but Pembrokeshire is beautiful, has the best beaches in the UK and some dece food. Bit of a trek from London but its worth it.

Best fish and chips are on the Yorkshire coast if that's yr thing.

(IMO of course before we get into a beach or chip war)

Not England... but Pembrokeshire is beautiful

damn you I pulled out of saying this because he specified England - Milford Haven round to Fishguard is idyllic

i prob should have said britain really cos i don't see why wales would be out (scotland would be far too and norn iron has "the troubles")

salthouse in norfolk. beautiful marshland and pebble beaches, and the best crab you will ever taste. small and obscure enough to be fairly quiet even during peak holiday time

Hm, my knowledge of this subject is a bit limited, but I have been to Brighton and thought it was really excellent. Had a good time in Portsmouth too. I remember fun trips to Scarborough and Whitby as a kid. Blackpool I could not recommend.

I haven't been out west properly, but it's always on telly and looks great. Aren't there supposed to be a lot of good places near Bristol?

Was going to add another vote for Whitstable.

I was in Pembrokeshire a few weeks ago, and echo the comments above- absolutely beautiful, lovely clifftop walks, and some great pubs in St Davids too! Would advise driving, if you can, though- the trains are a pain.

My friends who live in Canterbury have been pushing Broadstairs as if it were some new drug. Also I think Kate went recently?

Went to Whitstable for the day about five years ago - seafood to suit all pockets and not just at the quayside. Beach huts. Bonus: ran into one of my best frineds in a completely surprise, random way.

Far west is always worth thinking about too. Cornwall was great when I went - a sunny early autumn, about ten years ago (I imagine it might be unbearable in high season). Top coastline, St Ives is beautiful (nice light), Padstow's a big foodie town and we had fun communing w/ the Mystical Celtic Soul of Britain, ie stumbling around Tintagel shouting abt King Arthur, then stopping in Glastonbury on the way back & climbing the tor.

& just to expand on my Isle of White suggestion, here's what I said in the rubbish English county poll:

I liked the Isle of Wight on a visit. Bit of delapidated seaside stuff (plus some classic seaside Deco), pretty & lush countryside, ice cream, dramatic cliffs, abandoned military emplacements, shoddy theme parks, & a ton of slightly bizarre lit-history stuff - Swinburne's grave, a seafront shack where Turgenev stayed, etc. Would revisit.

So has Broadstairs been scrubbed up? I know I recommended it upthread, but I went a while ago, & liked it because it was pretty much perfect shabby-genteel seaside - time-warp ice cream parlours, winding streets, peeling bandstand etc.

Aldeburgh has not been mentioned yet and is a nice old town by the seaside in Suffolk, about two hours from Liverpool Street to Saxmundham, then a short busride. It's a bit sleepy around there, and very flat, but there are quite a few old pubs, shops and restaurants, and you can walk for miles along the coast there towards Southwold. Definitely recommend it for a weekend!

Broadstairs is lovely! Has all the shabby seaside delights - arcade, minigolf, fish and chips - but in small numbers, so they don't swamp the prettiness of the town. And the beaches are just fantastic.
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Also, you can get to Broadstairs in 80 mins on the new highspeed train from St Pancras.

Broadstairs is nice and crucially has a sandy beach but the seafront bit is maybe a bit hectic and chain-pubby, but you're not far from Botany Bay which is much mellower. Whitstable has better restaurants and pubs and feels more sedate but the beach is pebbly.

My favourite is probably Swanage in Dorset. Good for country walking, pubs, nice beach, food, mini-golf and assorted bits of tat. And has a steam train that'll take you right into the countryside to Corfe Castle. And it looks like this:

http://www.dorsets.co.uk/photos/data/media/2/swanage_bay.jpg

Admittedly it doesn't look like that very often, being Britain.

broadstairs sixthed or w/e

pembrokeshire is kind of england. someone explained it to me.

Controversial

pembrokeshire is kind of england

Part of it was conquered and occupied by the Normans, and this is sometimes known as 'Little England Beyond Wales', but it does not encompass the whole county.

knowledge dropped

This is really, really making me want to leave London for a couple of months and just cycle round the coast of southern Britain. But a) it'd rain and b) I'd be broke.

http://www.broadstairs-holiday-house.co.uk/images/broadstairs2.jpg

It's nice.

whitstable has the sportsman which has some of the best food i've ever eaten, so it gets my vote

Broadstairs was lovely!

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2589/4023822200_3e6b7a7122_o.jpg

But I went in the off season. I imagine it would be hell in the summer.

But yeah, ice cream parlours, beautiful sands, sea arches - there was decent food if you looked, but I wouldn't say it was a "foodie" town. (Didn't go to any pubs, mind you.) It's shabby in a nice way, kind of ungentrified, not tidied up too much. Great walks. (No mobile reception.) Just the right distance for a weekend.

Cornwall is brilliant - I've been going there recently, but it's a FIVE HOUR JOURNEY - which is part of the point, you want it to be remote when you're on Proper Holiday - but it is not a weekend trip. It's inhumanly pretty but again, I can't imagine what it would be like in high season. I only really like the English seaside in the off season. I'm going back again (St. Ives) in September - tried to convince my mum she wanted to spend a week in a miner's cottage on Carn Marth but she wasn't having it. ;-)

Isle of Wight is just about doable for a weekend, but it's a push. Yarmouth or Ventnor were my favourites.

Ha ha, got one of the view that DC just posted as well...

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2733/4061711492_f59e8a662d_o.jpg

Didn't go to any pubs, mind you

*splutter cough cough*

Yeah Whitstable beats Broadstairs hands down for food and pubs.

http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1157/760192763_0045eeb92e.jpg

So many happy memories of sitting outside this one.

OK, I lie - I went to that pub on top of the Kingsgate Arch but I just had a cup of tea as I wasn't drinking.

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Photos always make Viking Bay look so much *bigger* than it is IRL. I mean, OK, it's not Mousehole or anything, but it takes 2 minutes to walk from one end to the other.

for Woof: http://www.northsea-cycle.com/

Was in Folkestone at the weekend, but don't go there. I only used it as a pushing off point for some rambling around the North Downs. Did go for a refreshing bathe after all that tho.

Would second Aldeburgh, at least, although it's kind of London-by-Sea, the shore is lovely (northermost martello tower in Britain, also the setting for A Warning to the Curious by MR James), and the inland is spooky (marshes/abandoned military sites), the Adnams is great, and there's some good places to eat. Then you've got Southwold and Dunwich nearby (although don't try walking to Dunwich from Aldeburgh, heading into afternoon midwinter, as you'll have to find your way back in the dark.) Some wonderful heathland up by Dunwich as well.

Did a lovely walk from Hastings to Rye last year.

(xp)

man that looks awesome. The wild North! Maybe I should just throw it all away here & set off. I can forage. GR, you can have my books.

Would second Aldeburgh, at least, although it's kind of London-by-Sea

lol rly??!

used to go as a kid all the time

oh shit: walberswick is nice

fly to knock, drive to achill

http://www.beautifulmonde.com/pict/irl_beach.jpg

http://www.achilltourism.com/images/keembay-600x480.jpg

Think that's right abt Aldeburgh - it's a major second-home/'let's raise the kids somewhere nice' location for middle-aged, um... creative? semi-boho? London types who've made or inherited money. My gf knows about this kind of thing, seems to use 'Aldeburgh kids' as shorthand for one variety of noisy posh teenager.

GR, you can have my books.

Thanks but actually that North Sea cycle looks amazing - completely combining two of the things I'm currently most desiring to do - spend a load of time in Northern Europe and cycling around. Goddam, if I get some kind of payout soon, I'm doing this.

xxp even better thru the eyes of John Hinde

http://themidnightbell.com/tmb/image/hinde.jpg

poster's own photo from same spot, facing out to sea

https://dl.dropbox.com/u/818963/Photos/Achill%20scenery/Achill%20%283%29.jpg

cycling down there this weekend, actually

Much prefer Broadstairs to Whitstable - much less affected and London-at-play.

I also love the utterly neglected west Cumbrian coast, though I'm not sure anyone would want to stay in any of the coastal towns. Or if there is anywhere you can stay in them. But if you're in the lakes, well worth visiting Whitehaven's new museum, Maryport's new aquarium, then driving up to Silloth for fish and chips in a town that feels unchanged for 50 years.

http://www.lakesfarmholidays.co.uk/allonby2.jpg

Just don't order a taxi whatever you do

oooooooooooooooooooo

Oh, and Lulworth Cove is glorious of course, though pretty full even off season.

this is a timely thread for me - i'm trying to arrange a seaside weekend for a group of dudes, one of whom may or may not be getting married shortly after. i'm struggling not to use the S word, here. can anyone suggest a good seaside town with a few decent pubs and some surfy/outdoorsy-activity potential? somewhere that isn't Newquay, preferably.

Woolacombe was my first thought, but i'm struggling to get the accomodation. what's Croyde like?

Went on a stag weekend to Croyde about four years ago. The place we stayed was ideal as it was detached from the main pub/B&B, they didn't have to suffer the 'high sprits' of our group. I think it was called the Thatched Barn, from looking at google maps, I can't remember a great deal. It was a fairly short walk from the beach (can't remember that either). The locals were fairly accommodating, they put up with us which was very nice of them.

is cromer staggable?

Not been to Cromer. Anyone know if Brancaster on the Norfolk coast is nice? I'm going there soon.

I am thinking about one of the following

Hunsanton . Aldeburgh . Southwold . Wells-next-the-Sea

i like those north norfolk ones... when it's sunny. trying to remember which one i liked most. had kind of a crescent thing going on.

I've been to Hunstanton and liked it, but it's a real old-fashioned seaside resort: sticks of rock and Kiss Me Quick hats, and a splintering helter skelter. It's got nothing in common with Aldeburgh, Southwold or Wells-next-the-Sea. You will not get a good meal out in Hunstanton.

I have visited Aldeburgh, Southwold and Wells-next-the-Sea. My top recommendations would be Southwold or Wells-next-the-Sea with the latter perhaps edging it. Southwold is very picturesque and fairly genteel. Wells-next-the-Sea is a bit rougher round the edges, as I recall, and has a lovely beach with sand dunes (this extends along to the beach at Holkham, which I also like). I didn't much like Aldeburgh - picturesque but a bit twee and characterless. I have only driven through Hunstanton so can't really comment on it.

i think it's holkham i like. not really attached to a village iirc.

There is a very small village but it's a little bit inland and adjacent to Holkham Hall.

http://www.multimap.com/s/SlOvYCLW

I quite love Aldeburgh but I've only ever gone there when there was something at the festival to see in the evening (as a twee teenager making daisy chains for b britten and p pears' graves) - I imagine it would get a bit wearying if you didn't have something to do.

Have done some awesome day-trip walks in the seven sisters country park - I second whoever recced Beachy Head, it's glorious (if sort of tainted by the suicide spot aspect).

I've been to Hunstanton or "Sunny Hunny". Had a pint in the Mariner's pub, not sure I'd eat there.

admrl, this is the thread I was talking about. Lots of good advice on here IIRC.

Also meant to say, about country retreats, if you don't mind self catering the National Trust does some excellent deals on short break cottages (which can mean anything from a medieval tithe barn to a wing of a mansion in Cornwall) - that might give you remoteness and quaintness but not sure about luxury, mind you.

Thanks!

I have to say I'm being tempted by Broadstairs, even though it scared someone on another thread!

Ah, but that was Matt DC, he scares easily. Besides, he said up this thread that it was nice, so he's changed his tune. Clearly.

Broadstairs is really pretty and quaint - in a way that is really quite unspoiled for somewhere so close to London. The town curves around this little tiny bay - there's a big hotel called The Albion right in the centre, overlooking the beach, which is supposed to be really nice. I stayed in an itty bitty little fisherman's cottage called Barnaby's Lodge which was just perfect, it was literally a few steps from the big arch that lets out onto the seafront. Plus, lovely ice cream parlours up on the clifftop promenade. Fantastic sea walks in both directions, you can walk all the way to Ramsgate at low tide (I didn't quite get all the way to Margate going the other way because I was waylaid by that sea arch with the pub on top of it.)

I'd go there again myself! But, erm, I'm taking my mum back to Cornwall for my holiday.

That sounds perfect!

Rye in Sussex is nice and near Dungeness which is kind of unmissable imo.

Not been to Cromer. Anyone know if Brancaster on the Norfolk coast is nice? I'm going there soon

Cromer is like Hunstanton but more so. I love it but food v. hit and miss.

Brancaster lovely with good food at the White Horse (although even there it's hit and miss). Really if you're going to North Norfolk for food get fish and chips from Wells and sit on the harbour wall watching the crabbers. It's a cliche, but it's lovely.
(or get a coolbag to keep yr chips warm and drive down to the beach and sit on one of beach huts verandahs looking out to sea...classic)

Oh yeah, and we had a week in Southwold at the end of July (which is why I missed this thread I bet) and it was one of the best weeks I've had in the UK. Terrific food everywhere, lovely beer, house next to the beach, great pier. However I did hear a woman say "Are you going for a power walk later Samantha?" and a man say "It's a Chardonnay, but don't think of it as a Chardonnay", both v. loudly, so you know, that's the price you pay for having a decent deli...

Yes I wanna see Dungeness

Both of us went to UEA so Norfolk is maybe a little too familiar (though I would love to go back some time)

arrrrgggh no chardonnay convos

This thread is amazing to me. I've hardly heard of any of these places.

I probably need to do a revive of some "things to do in St. Ives with a 60-something mum in tow" thread at some point. I think we're missing the September Festival - or will be in town for only one day of it. Tate St.Ives is small, IIRC but there's still the Barbara Hepworth museum and you can't swing a cat without hitting some hippie artsy craftsy stuff or other. (The Shire Horse is long gone and closed so no rave pilgrimages I guess.)

amazed at the broadstairs love here but i suppose my views might be coloured by the fact it's the place the G family go to die

Haha (sorry maybe that isn't funny)

I am mystified at the state of the "domestic" "tourism" "industy" in the UK. Having spent so much time away there's so many places I am interested in seeing when I go back but nobody seems to know shit about them/ have much to say!

Like, even when I want to drive out to Bumfuck, Arizona, I can find a friend with cool tips on things to see close by and some gem of a motel on Tripadvisor

ilx does suffer a tad from london autism

I will stan for the English seaside any day of the year.

It's probably just sheer perversity, given that half my family lives in glamourous locations known for their beaches, like California and South Africa, yet I persist in loving Broadstairs and Cornwall and Norfolk and even sodding Eastbourne because I've canonised mine own childhood memories.

Last week or the week before there was a whole Guardian Travel section about the British seaside which I read cover to cover, going "hrmmm, Lincolnshire... Skegness is so very bracing, must try it... oooh, Llandudno, I quite fancy walking around The Orme..." etc. etc.

I fully plan on going to die in Broadstairs (though I think former generations of Tregaskins used to have a habit of doing so on the Isle of Wight) so this is part of its appeal.

"things to do in St. Ives with a 60-something mum in tow"

I do believe my 60-something mum went to St Ives last year, will try to remember to ask her what she liked next time I phone, though the answer will prob just be "pottering around"

we're on first name terms with the crematorium xp

anyway the ice cream place in broadstairs is Morelli's

"things to do in St. Ives with a 60-something mum in tow"

Take your camera to the beach and take lots of photos cos the light is AMAZING and when the tide is just right, it looks like the sand all around is sealed under a thin veneer of glass. Take your walking boots, take the bus or something to witchy old Zennor and walk back along the coastal path. Lots of standing stones nearby if you're into that sort of thing. Get a seat outside the Sloop and watch tourists get mugged by the seagulls. Boat trips out to seal island or wherever. Eat pasties, drink beer and be merry.

I am terrified that my mum is going to try to turn it into some kind of busman's holiday and potter round visiting every single church in the town and making the acquaintances of all the vicars.

OMG Morelli's, I had their Tiramisu ice cream om nom nom nom.

I took photos with my iPhone back in April during the 4 hours I was there, and they just came out *incredible* - I thought they were kidding on Coast about the quality of the light but they so weren't. I would be perfectly happy to sit around and sketch tin mines like I did last time but I think my mum would get bored. And thing is, standing stones and hiking around would be *brilliant* for me, but my mum's mobility is not great. Our cottage is, like 50 yards from the Sloop so that should be great.

The Sloop is a bit shit really, but the location is great. The churches are alright, there's always the graveyards to have a bit of a wander around in. Oh, there's the Leach pottery too, amongst all the other studios.

And yeah, if your mum's not that agile, don't take her on the coastal path cos it's pretty tricky in places.

broadstairs' western esplanade on google street view looks like when you reach the edge of the map in a FPS game

Yeah, I have walked enough of the coastal path to know that this is not something my mum could handle. She's getting shot up with steroids or something to make her more mobile before she travels but I'm aware that hiking is out of the question. This is why we are not staying in a miner's cottage on Carn Marth boo hoo ::sad Aphex Twin fan phace:: - but we did look at several villages for mobility options and even though St. Ives is hilly, it's quite compact - hence why I got a cottage 50 yards from the seafront.

Lots of great tips on this thread. In 8 years of living in England I've only been to Ilfracombe/Woolacombe and some of the North Norfolk coast (Brancaster/Burnhams/Wells) in terms of seaside holliers. Brighton is an obvious next destination but Southwold and Broadstairs are now also on the list.

broadstairs' western esplanade on google street view looks like when you reach the edge of the map in a FPS game

Ha, so it does.

Coming from Herne Bay I am disappointed but unsurprised to see no mention of it alongside all these other north Kent coast towns.

Going to Broadstairs this weekend, just for a day, and I have a lazy question. If you were going to walk in one direction along the coast, which is better -- west to Thanet, or south to Deal? Thanks!

Better for what? For sea arches and beautiful beaches and stunning views? Probably head West.

If you want to walk to a destination eat a meal and come back, walk South/East along to Ramsgate, sit and have a nice meal overlooking the marina.

blargh, directions are so confusing in that part of the country. I forget how it sticks out. For sea arches and views, turn left, towards Margate. For marina side dining, turn right towards Ramsgate.

Got it. Thanks!

(Was looking for the sea arch direction, so that's great.)

That walk to Kingsgate Bay is great, lighthouses, sweeping vistas, castles (ancient and modern) AND a sea arch. And I forgot, there is actually a pub along that way, the Captain Digby, with amazing views. Highly recommend it, personally.

Took the kids on a day trip to Broadstairs last week. Exciting news: it now has mobile phone reception. Not so exciting news: your mobile phone thinks it's in Belgium, so the roaming charges militate against using the phone.

haha i love the idea of a country slyly annexing territory via mobile phone reception

Damn. The utter lack of mobile reception in Broadstairs was an important plot point in a horror story I was writing... (though actually you always could get Ramsgate reception if you went up the ridge by the bandstand)

Thanks for the recommendation! We made it past the Captain Digby, somehow. Enjoyed the more secluded parts of the walk; Margate also had more to it than I was expecting.

Coming from Herne Bay I am disappointed but unsurprised to see no mention of it alongside all these other north Kent coast towns.

spent a late autumn afternoon in 1998 staring out to sea there, then wandering around what seemed to be the ultimate dilapidated seaside town. It was the tired & melancholy tail of a fun holiday, and it seemed fortuitously suited to our mood. For all that I remember that day fondly, I've got no idea what it would be like to stay there, or visit it in season.

hope "Chuck_Tatum" liberated the viking boat and went on the fucking rampage

I'm amazed I haven't contributed to this thread or the Kent one (thought prompted by checking ILXOR's coastal Kent recommendations).