The sun is out, the temperature is continuing to soar, and the weekend is officially here. And that, my friends, is the holy trinity of happiness, in my opinion. If you listen carefully enough, you might just hear the faint sound of Londoners slapping on their sun cream and frantically scouring the web for the fastest way to get to the seaside. But for those of you that have landed on this little corner of the internet, one of those jobs has been done for you. We can’t apply the Factor 50 for you (obviously), but we can point you in the dreamy direction of one of the best beachy spots near London. You’re very welcome.
Perched peacefully on the Kent coast is a lovely little seaside town that serves up both charm and history by the bucket-load. Whilst its slightly trendier next-door neighbour, Margate, has been somewhat hogging the limelight lately (a sentence I certainly never thought I’d be writing back when I was growing up there); Broadstairs is like the slightly quieter – and marginally less cool – older sibling. But it’s most definitely still worth paying a visit and spending a sunny day, soaking up everything that this quaint and oh-so quintessential seaside town has to offer.
Broadstairs, Kent
Broadstairs truly boasts everything you could possible want from a seaside town – in (buckets and) spades. With seven sandy beaches scattered along the coastline, there’s ample space to pop down a towel, build yourself a sandcastle, or splash about in the water. The largest and liveliest of Broadstairs’s beachy offerings is Viking Bay. But if you’re looking for something a tad more tranquil, then Stone Bay or Joss Bay might be more up your street sand dune.
Broadstairs certainly isn’t thin on the ground when it comes to wonderful local places to eat, drink, and be merry. Posillipo will top my recommendation list every time, though. Grab yourself a table outside and watch the sun go down with a huge bowl of pasta and a glass of wine the size of your head in hand. You certainly won’t regret it.
There’s, of course, all of the classic coastal activities available here, too. You can spend a small fortune in the arcades, play a round of mini-golf, visit the bandstand, and stuff your face with fish, chips, and doughnuts. But if you like your seaside towns to come with a big dollop of culture on the side. You’ve hit the jackpot here.
Broadstairs is particularly prominent due to its literary links to Charles Dickens. It was his favourite staycation spot and he even rented a home there. Bleak House is the very spot in which Dickens supposedly wrote parts of several of his most notable novels. The town and some of the people who resided within it are also though to have inspired characters and settings in some of his work. Bleak House sadly isn’t open to the public (although it’s worth wondering past it if you’re in the area because I can confirm that there is, in fact, nothing bleak about it), you can step inside the Charles Dickens Museum – which does what it says on the tin, really.
Getting to Broadstairs from London
Broadstairs is within very easy reach from London, with regular trains heading there directly from London Victoria and St Pancras International. The latter is ever so slightly speedier, taking under 90 minutes. The drive to Broadstairs from London is approximately 2 hours, and there is pay-and-display parking near the seafront and dotted around the town. It does get pretty busy in peak season, though.
