The English seaside has a status for honking, beeping amusements, noisy stag events and chronic breezes that necessitate erecting a wind-break to maintain the sand out of your sandwiches.
That’s one facet to the English seaside. The opposite facet is fantastic, wild stretches of sand operating to the distant horizon, seafood experiences on the shoreline, barreling surf, buffeting winds for kitesurfing and windsurfing and sand so white it could give the Caribbean a run for its cash.
Whether or not your tastes run to basic seaside resorts, city seashores or lengthy, lonely sands, you’ll discover a seaside in England that lives as much as your fantasy. Right here’s our information to the most effective of England’s sand and shingle shores.
1. Holkham Nationwide Nature Reserve and Seashore – Norfolk
Finest seaside for dunes
Not content material with being one in every of England’s most spectacular nation homes, attractive Holkham Corridor additionally takes care of the beautiful Holkham National Nature Reserve and Beach, arguably Norfolk’s most good strip of dune-backed sand.
As with all seashores on the north Norfolk coast, it is reached by way of a protracted hike throughout the marshes, however what waits on the finish wouldn’t look misplaced on America’s Atlantic coast – infinite sand and tufted dunes wafted by regular sea breezes. Put aside time to discover Holkham Corridor, an impressive Palladian villa constructed to accommodate the Grand Tour treasures of the primary Earl of Leicester.
Planning tip: The Lynx Coastliner bus supplies quick access to a string of marsh-backed seashores round Holkham, from under-explored Brancaster to the charming seaside resort of Wells-next-the-Sea. From Wells, Sanders Coaches’ Coasthopper runs east all the way in which to the Victorian resort of Cromer.
2. Brighton Seashore – East Sussex
Finest seaside for occasion folks
Brighton Seashore received’t win any prizes for sand or serenity, however its assortment of piers, seaside amusements, pale (and revitalized) seafront motels and kiss-me-quick nightlife is the dwelling picture of the English seaside. Brighton’s standing as a hub for worldwide college students, clubbers and the LGBTIQ+ group solely provides to the enjoyable.
On summer time weekends, chances are you’ll battle to search out house for a towel on the steep ramp of pebbles dropping all the way down to the water, however the promenade runs for miles, the pier is full of rides and arcade machines, fish-and-chip retailers abound and there’s loads to do inland, from the wedding-cake-like Royal Pavilion to the quirky retailers and cafes tucked away on the lanes behind the seaside.
Planning tip: After braving the summer time crowds, head for the hills – extra particularly, the hills of the South Downs – for some well-deserved quiet. This excellent sweep of excessive chalk grassland begins instantly north of Brighton, traversed by the stunning South Downs Means strolling path.
3. Woolacombe Seashore – Devon
Finest seaside for households
The seashores of Devon are second solely to the sands of Cornwall within the eyes of holiday-makers, and wonderful Woolacombe Seashore close to Barnstaple is an actual magnificence. Three miles of broad golden sands, dependable surf breaks and a backdrop of rolling inexperienced hills preserve households comfortable from daybreak until nightfall. The tucked-away location in north Devon dampens down the crowds, although it nonetheless will get busy in summer time.
Within the unlikely occasion that you just tire of the sand, strolling trails crisscross the emerald hills of the North Devon Coast Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty instantly inland from the seaside.
4. Viking Bay – Broadstairs, Kent
Finest seaside for ice cream and nostalgia
The attract of this cozy cove at Broadstairs in Kent comes partly from its cute, cliff-enclosed curve of sand and partly from the journey again in time it presents to sun-seekers. On the lanes that slope all the way down to the seaside, Italian-owned gelaterias serve genuine gelato behind Fifties facades, whereas an old school Punch and Judy present entertains the tots out on the sand.
As afternoon turns to night, browse the superior eating places within the streets above the seaside – the meals at the Little Sicilian is the actual Italian deal.
Planning tip: The Kent coast rail line supplies quick access to Broadstairs from London, looping round to close by Ramsgate and Margate, every with their very own stretches of sandy seaside. Margate is loud and energetic, with a well-known amusement park, whereas Ramsgate is extra genteel, with a broad public seaside and a few fascinating secondhand shops.
5. Blackpool Seashore – Blackpool, Lancashire
Finest seaside for seaside motion
Northern England’s riposte to Brighton Seashore, Blackpool Seashore is lengthy, sandy and lapped by mild breakers, making it superb for households, who collect in droves to paddle within the shallows and stroll alongside the broad, wave-patterned sand at low tide. Behind the seaside is one in every of England’s most well-known amusement strips, promising oodles of seaside enjoyable.
Take your decide from seafront pubs, fish-and-chip takeaways and cheesy arcades filled with slot machines, or the thrills and spills of Blackpool Pleasure Seashore and the views from the Blackpool Tower. It’s every little thing you’d anticipate from the English seaside, however the noise and crowds would possibly ship some guests fleeing for the hills.
6. Kynance Cove – The Lizard Peninsula, Cornwall
Finest seaside for appreciating the weather
With golden sand and butterfly-blue waters, Cornwall’s seashores nudge near Caribbean and South Pacific territory, solely with out the palms and with breaded scampi instead of barbecued conch. The sandy strips in busy vacationer hubs similar to Penzance, St Ives and Porthcurno are mobbed in summer time, and the crowds can get so overwhelming that soccer pitches are pressed into service as overflow automobile parks.
We charge Cornwall’s quieter seashores, similar to wave-lashed, rock-strewn Kynance Cove on the Lizard Peninsula, the place fingers of white sand curl between craggy outcrops, churning white horses fill the air with spray and the steep stroll down from the automobile park deters fair-weather beachgoers.
Planning tip: Cornwall is England’s prime browsing spot, with among the finest waves between October and April, when the vacationer crowds skinny out. Probably the most well-known breaks are round Newquay and Bude in North Cornwall; for first timers, the extensive seaside at Polzeath has a surf school and loads of house to observe.
7. Bamburgh Seashore – Northumberland
Finest seaside for historic landmarks
What’s to not like a few seaside with a fort? Seashores get wider and wilder (and a bit colder in summer time) as you head north in England, however the sands at Bamburgh are astonishingly pretty and backed by the looming ramparts of Bamburgh Castle, utilized by English kings earlier than being revamped by the Victorian industrialist William Armstrong.
A tremendous spot for windswept walks, the seaside faces the Farne Islands – thronged by birdlife and residential to a busy monastic group earlier than Henry VIII’s damaging falling out with the Catholic church – and strolling paths proceed alongside the shore to extra coves, caves and castles.
8. Southwold – Suffolk
Finest unconventional seaside city
Suffolk has seaside cities aplenty, however eccentric Southwold stands out from the pack for its calm method, dainty city heart and fairly assortment of seashores, from the groyne-crossed sands close to the pier to the dune-flanked Denes Seashore, which seems like a wilderness regardless of being strolling distance from the Excessive Road.
The city behind the sand is relatively pretty too, with a central lighthouse, the fascinating satirical arcade machines of the Under the Pier Show and wonderful wafting smells from the Adnams Brewery.
Planning tip: Southwold is a good base for exploring the bird-filled nature reserves of the Suffolk Coast. Bitterns, curlews and marsh harriers are simply among the species noticed within the beach-fronted coastal marshes at RSPB Minsmere and Dunwich Heath.
9. Whitby Seashore – Yorkshire
Finest seaside for book-lovers
It’s not simply the interesting sand that earns Whitby Seashore a spot on the checklist, it’s the setting. This extensive, shallow strand is backed by a row of rainbow-colored seaside huts and the homes of Whitby rising steeply to the spectral ruins of Whitby Abbey.
Amongst different claims to fame, this was the spot the place the world’s most well-known vampire made landfall in England as he pursued his would-be bride in Bram Stoker’s Dracula. It’s a quintessentially English spot, and good for households in addition to goths and horror followers.
Planning tip: After visiting the seaside and abbey, head for the upliftingly lovely trails of North York Moors Nationwide Park for some peaceable contemplation.
10. West Wittering Seashore – West Sussex
Finest seaside for wind and water sports activities
The indented strip of shoreline dealing with the Isle of Wight is dotted with seashores that draw kitesurfers and windsurfers like moths to a flame. The seashores at Bournemouth and Sandbanks close to Poole are well-known hubs for board fans, however we propose evading the crowds at close by West Wittering, on the mouth of Chichester harbor in West Sussex.
This extensive and fantastic Blue Flag–rated seaside has tremendous sand, a collar of dunes and shallow waters that are perfect for browsing, windsurfing, kite-boarding and stand-up paddleboarding.
Planning tip: Should you need assistance getting out onto the water, classes in browsing, windsurfing, kite-boarding and stand-up paddleboarding are provided by 2XS, simply again from the sand close to the seaside cafe and automobile park.
