Brighton

Londoners' favourite seaside city: the exotic, opulent Royal Pavilion, the lively Brighton Palace Pier and the quirky shops of The Lanes, with the dramatic Seven Sisters cliffs and South Downs National Park close by.

Brighton sits on the south coast of East Sussex, England, and together with Hove to the west forms the city of Brighton and Hove. Just about an hour from London by train, it has been Londoners' favourite seaside escape since the 19th century and is now known for its diversity and inclusiveness, artsy atmosphere and nightlife. The main sights are all within walking distance: on the seafront are Brighton Palace Pier, the ruins of the West Pier, the i360 observation tower and a long shingle beach; to the north are the Royal Pavilion and Brighton Museum, next to The Lanes and North Laine, packed with antique jewellers, second-hand shops, independent cafés and street art; to the east are Volk's Electric Railway, Sea Life Brighton and the Marina, from where you can follow the Undercliff Walk to the village of Rottingdean. The surrounding countryside is part of South Downs National Park: Devil's Dyke and Ditchling Beacon overlook the Sussex Downs; to the east lie the historic town of Lewes, the village of Alfriston and Charleston farmhouse; and along the coast the Seven Sisters, Birling Gap and Beachy Head are England's classic chalk cliffs, about an hour from the city on the No. 12 bus. Around an hour's drive west is Arundel Castle, and to the north are Sheffield Park and the Bluebell Railway. Seasons: May–Sep is best – May brings the Brighton Festival and Brighton Fringe, and early August Brighton Pride (when hotel prices soar); winters are windy and wet, but from October to February you can watch starling murmurations over the West Pier at dusk. Getting there: trains from London Victoria or London Bridge take about 1 hour, and from Gatwick Airport about 30 minutes; in town, walking and buses are all you need, and in summer the Breeze buses run up to the South Downs. The beach is shingle, so bring sandals. Allow 2–3 days: one in the city and 1–2 for the cliffs and South Downs.

Top sights

• Royal Pavilion – The seaside palace of the Prince Regent, later George IV. Its exterior is in an Indian Mughal style, while its interior is lavishly decorat…
• Brighton Palace Pier – A Victorian pleasure pier opened in 1899, extending more than 500 meters into the sea, with arcade games, roller coasters, and fish and chi…
• The Lanes – A labyrinth of narrow lanes left from the old fishing village, with jewelry shops, antique stores, restaurants, and cafés packed together.
• Seven Sisters Cliffs & Cuckmere Haven – England's most classic white chalk sea cliffs. From the coastguard cottages at Cuckmere Haven, look back at seven rolling white cliffs.
• Brighton i360 – A slender 162-meter observation tower, with a circular glass pod that rises slowly to 138 meters, offering views over the coastline, the So…
• North Laine – Brighton's most distinctive neighbourhood, home to hundreds of independent shops, second-hand stores, graffiti walls and vegan cafés.
• Brighton Beach & Seafront – A pebble beach about 8 km long, with pubs, galleries and volleyball courts under the promenade arches keeping the seafront lively from morn…
• West Pier – A Victorian pier opened in 1866 that, after fire and storms, survives only as rusted iron skeletons in the sea. Its silhouette at dusk and…
• Volk's Electric Railway – Opened in 1883, the world's oldest electric railway still in operation, where small cars take a leisurely ride along the beach toward the m…
• SEA LIFE Brighton – The world's oldest operating aquarium, opened in 1872, where you can see sharks and turtles beneath Victorian Gothic brick arches.
• Brighton Museum & Art Gallery – A museum in the gardens of the Royal Pavilion, with highlights including Art Nouveau and Art Deco collections, fashion, and Dalí's 'Mae Wes…
• Brighton Dome – A performance venue converted from the Prince Regent's stables. ABBA won the 1974 Eurovision Song Contest here, and it is the main venue of…
• Brighton Marina – A large yacht marina beneath the white chalk cliffs, home to restaurants, outlet shops and sightseeing boats, and the starting point of the…
• Undercliff Walk & Rottingdean – A seawall path along the base of the chalk cliffs, leading from the marina to the village of Rottingdean, where Rudyard Kipling once lived…
• Devil's Dyke – Britain's deepest V-shaped dry valley on the South Downs, with green slopes and Sussex fields spread out below, where paragliders are often…
• Ditchling Beacon – A high point on the South Downs at 248 meters, crossed by the South Downs Way, from which you can walk to the twin Jack and Jill windmills.
• Lewes Castle – A castle with twin mounds built after the Norman Conquest. Climb the tower for views over the old streets of Lewes, the county town of East…
• Birling Gap – A gap in the cliffs at the eastern end of the Seven Sisters, with steps down to the beach below and views of the chalk cliffs and the Belle…
• Beachy Head – Britain's tallest chalk sea cliff, about 162 meters high, overlooking the red-and-white striped Beachy Head lighthouse in the sea below.
• Alfriston – A medieval village in the Cuckmere Valley, home to the National Trust's first property, the thatched Clergy House.
• Charleston – A rural base of the Bloomsbury Group, where Vanessa Bell and Duncan Grant painted almost every surface of the farmhouse with murals.
• Sheffield Park and Garden – A landscape garden designed with input from 'Capability' Brown, where four lakes reflect autumn red leaves and rhododendrons, one of southe…
• Bluebell Railway – A heritage steam railway run by volunteers, crossing Sussex fields and woodland, with its route carpeted in bluebells in spring.
• Wakehurst – Kew's 'wild botanic garden' in Sussex, home to an Elizabethan manor, woodland valleys and the Millennium Seed Bank.
• Arundel Castle – The family castle of the Dukes of Norfolk, combining a Norman motte with a Victorian Gothic palace and overlooking the town in the Arun Val…
• Long Man of Wilmington – A 72-metre hill figure of a man holding two staffs, carved into the north slope of Windover Hill in the South Downs. It is one of England's…

Where to eat

• Terre à Terre – An iconic vegetarian restaurant in The Lanes opened in 1993, twice voted Best Restaurant at the local BRAVO awards with…
• Burnt Orange – A popular wood-fired sharing restaurant in The Lanes, offering Michelin-recommended Mediterranean-style small plates an…
• Riddle & Finns (The Lanes) – An oyster and champagne bar in The Lanes opened in 2006, featuring candlelit high tables, an open kitchen, and highly p…
• Bincho Yakitori – A cozy Japanese yakitori joint on Preston Street, featuring a weekly rotating charcoal-grilled skewer menu, once ranked…
• The Little Fish Market – A 20-seat seafood tasting menu restaurant converted from an old fishmonger's in Hove, helmed by chef Duncan Ray and lis…
• Bardsley's – A four-generation family-run fish and chip shop established in 1926, offering both dine-in and takeaway, and highly rec…

Itineraries

• Sussex and Kent Coast in – East from Brighton: white cliffs, the 1066 battlefield and the old town of Rye, on to Canterbury.