The capital may be the definition of an urban jungle, but it’s also conveniently close to the coast – and there are lots of beaches near London to escape to with ease.
Technically closest is Southend-on-Sea in Essex, which ticks many of the British-seaside boxes (it has a theme park for a start). For weary Londoners, Brighton’s bright lights and pebble beaches are also just 47 miles away, waiting to fulfil all of your ice-cream dreams - especially for a fun weekend trip from London.
Down on the south coast, Bournemouth may be beloved by students, hen parties and pensioners alike, but even closer to the capital is Milford-on-Sea on the edge of the New Forest, where you can add some history into your coastal adventure.
A little further afield, but worth it for their many seaside charms, places such as Southwold in Suffolk and Folkestone and Margate in Kent are also easily accessible.
If it's sandy beaches near London you're after, you're in luck as the likes of Botany Bay, West Wittering and Camber Sands are accessible for Londoners.
Since you’ve made the effort (and if it’s a classic British just-three-days-long heatwave), you’ll want to stay overnight and luckily there are lots of seaside hotels to book and make your trip last.
These are the best beaches near London to head to as the mercury rises…
1
Botany Bay, Kent
A short drive north of Broadstairs (Charles Dickens’ favourite place to holiday, no less), Botany Bay has white cliffs, chalk stacks and sandy shores – and you’ll be able to hunt for fossils and explore its rock pools, too.
Back in town, there are independent boutiques, fishermen’s cottages and beautiful walks along the clifftops. There’s also a museum dedicated to Dickens, naturally. Drive time from London is a little over two hours.
Where to stay: Enjoy the views for even longer by checking in to the Botany Bay Hotel, right above the bay, with 30 rooms and a seafood restaurant.
2
West Wittering, West Sussex
Just a couple of hours away by car and down on the Sussex coast, West Wittering has a Rolling Stone’s seal of approval: Keith Richards has a home here. It’s not hard to see the appeal – you’ll be able to admire the views of Chichester Harbour and out over the South Downs.
It’s a great place to try out some watersports, too; activities on offer include kitesurfing, windsurfing and stand-up paddle-boarding.
Where to stay: The Beach House is a B&B in the coastal village, with seven cosy rooms and a veranda for drinks (and shade). The beach is within a 15-minute walk of the house, with the bigger town of Chichester easy to reach, too.
3
Whitstable, Kent
Most Londoners need no introduction to Whitstable, possibly their most popular day-trip destination, especially if it’s time for its annual oyster festival every summer. The charming Kent town has a pebble beach, lots of waterfront pubs, vintage shops and a castle.
Don’t miss a meal at Michelin-starred pub The Sportsman, or just enjoy fish (or lobster) and chips on the beach.
Where to stay: Bed down at Hotel Continental, a short stroll from the harbour and high street, with a beach-facing bar that, of course, serves oysters that were harvested locally. Its accommodation options include fisherman’s huts for novelty value.
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4
Eastbourne, East Sussex
A little further east along the South Coast from Brighton, Eastbourne is around two and a half hours by car from the capital, but it’s worth it for the coastal views that await – especially if you hike the clifftop path from Seaford to Seven Sisters.
Where to stay: The Grand along the promenade lives up to its name – this stately seafront building is known as the White Palace, with views of the Beachy Head cliffs, a spa and two restaurants.
5
Folkestone, Kent
With train journeys taking just an hour and a half, Folkestone in Kent is a great choice for when you’re in need of a beach near London. If sand is a dealbreaker, head for Sunny Sands near the harbour, which hosts the town’s annual sandcastle competition for obvious reasons.
Where to stay: Hipsters fleeing the capital will love Rocksalt Rooms, which have all the exposed brickwork, wrought-iron beds and patterned wallpaper you could hope for, only this time with sea views.
6
Ramsgate, Kent
Just north along the coast from Deal and a two-hour drive east from London, Ramsgate in Kent has a lovely marina, miles of chalk cliffs and sandy bays. Visitors can stroll or cycle along the coastal trail.
Architecture fans will enjoy the town’s Regency villas and Georgian terraces, or go on an Augustus Pugin pilgrimage – the Houses of Parliament’s interior designer and his sons worked on several buildings throughout the town.
Where to stay: Another heritage building of note, Albion House was built in 1791. The hotel, on top of the East Cliff, has impressive views of Ramsgate’s royal harbour.
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7
Deal, Kent
So popular with hipsters that it has been nicknamed Hoxton-on-Sea, Deal is one of Kent’s trendiest seaside towns (and there’s some competition).
Vintage lovers will enjoy the many boutiques. There’s also plenty of places to get good coffee, a vibrant arts scene and indie record stores – all just a two hour and 20 minute drive from the capital. It even has its own castle.
Where to stay: Keep things hip by heading to the 200-year-old Rose, a boutique hotel a few blocks back from the beach that would indeed be right at home in Hoxton: mid-century furniture, antiques, patterned wallpaper and a courtyard for co*cktails.
8
Hastings, East Sussex
So popular with DFLs (that’s Down from Londons) that many have now moved there, Hastings is less than two hours from the capital by train (the drive is a little longer, around three hours). The town may be most famous for being a battleground (with the Norman ruins of William the Conqueror’s castle home still there to visit). Other highlights close to the shingle shores of Stade Beach include Jerwood Gallery.
Where to stay: Equally historic is the Old Rectory, which was built in the 15th century and has a walled garden and a cosy lounge with a fireplace to come back for in the winter.
9
Camber Sands, East Sussex
The dunes and white sands of Camber Sands are close to the town of Rye in East Sussex, where cobblestoned lanes are lined with medieval houses – history buffs will enjoy a trip to the red-brick one-time residence of Henry James, Lamb House, which is now a National Trust property; and a tour of the 14th-century Ypres Tower, which today is Rye Castle Museum.
Where to stay: Four miles away from the beach. the George in Rye is a charming hotel in a building dates back to 1575, with an original Georgian ballroom still used for weddings and banquets today.
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10
Brighton, East Sussex
The most popular immediate choice when it comes to beaches near London, Brighton is easily reached by train services that can take under an hour. From the world’s most famous burnt-out pier to the iconic pavilion and the shopper-pleasing labyrinthine Lanes, the coastal city will fulfil all of your rock, fish-and-chips and ice-cream needs.
Where to stay: Bed town for the night at the Artist Residence, a Regency townhouse on the seafront that has been transformed with the help of artists who received free board in exchange for their creativity.
11
Margate, Kent
Once-dilapidated Margate has seen an influx of fashionable sorts and now has the Turner Contemporary gallery. Its artistic credentials are set to expand when Tracey Emin transforms a former bathhouse and mortuary into an art school and museum. The arrival of Dreamland, the vintage theme park and event space, also helped to put the Kent town on the map.
Where to stay: For somewhere equally artistic to spend the night, book in at the Albion Rooms and enjoy the vintage interiors that are an homage to the band the Libertines – riffs on their lyrics appear throughout.
12
Climping Beach, West Sussex
Climping Beach is just between Littlehampton and Bognor Regis on the drive down from London, which should take around two hours and 20 minutes. Trains services rom London Victoria to Littlehampton are a similar duration.
The quiet shingle beach – whose claim to fame is starring in Doctor Who in the 60s and 70s – is in keeping with the other stretches of shoreline in this part of Sussex, but the sand is revealed once the tide goes out. Where to stay:
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13
Hythe, Kent
Take a trip down past the Kent Downs Area of Outstanding Beauty to Hythe, a market town on the edge of Romney Marsh, just along the coast from Dover. Direct trains from London Bridge station will take just under two hours. There are independent boutiques to browse on the high street, and you’ll also be able to go surfing and windsailing.
Where to stay: A short drive from the coast, Port Lympne is perfect for families – children will love having neighbours in the reserve that include spectacled bears, lions and tigers.
14
Milford-on-Sea, Hampshire
All the way down at the edge of the New Forest on the Hampshire coast (drive time: about two hours and 20 minutes), but worth it for the beautiful coast that awaits, Milford-on-Sea and the nearby former fishing village of Keyhaven look out to sea to Christchurch Harbour and the Isle of Wight. Walk along the clifftops, admire the colourful beach huts or visit Hurst Castle, a fort built by Henry VIII.
Where to stay: Since you’ve come all this way, you may as well stay the night – and the Beach House, in a Grade II-listed building overlooking the Needles.
15
Southend-on-Sea, Essex
Officially the closest beach to London (a mere 42 miles from the capital) and the proud owner of the longest pleasure pier in the world, Southend-on-Sea is under an hour away by car and the same distance on wheels. And it’s all you could possibly hope for from the great British seaside (i.e. arcades, fairground rides, just-fried doughnuts, bright blue ice-creams and candy floss). Even closer to London is Leigh-on-Sea, of co*ckle-shed fame, which has lots of maritime pubs along the marina.
Where to stay: You’ll be able to get home easily enough, but Roslin Beach Hotel, steps from the seafront, is there to try and make you stay a little longer.
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16
Southwold, Suffolk
So picturesque that people splash out six figures on rainbow-coloured beach huts here, Southwold in Suffolk is the definition of a postcard-perfect British seaside town. It’s just under three hours by car from London; by train, you’ll have to board a service at Liverpool Street bound for Darsham or Halesworth (changing in Ipswich) and make the 20-minute journey to Southwold by cab. It’s worth it for the pier, the promenade and the Electric Picture Palace (a revived vintage cinema).
Where to stay: At the Swan on the marketplace, fuchsia four-posters, lime-green sofas, a brewery and a distillery await.
17
Bournemouth, Dorset
The South Coast’s answer to Miami, Bournemouth is a two-hour drive south of London on a good day (it may take a little longer to reach the heatwave destination du jour on a hot one). The sandy beaches stretch for seven miles, with the Isle of Wight in the distance. Like all self-respecting British beach towns, there’s plenty of fun to be had along the pier, with a zip-line, fairground rides and an arcade. Where to stay:
18
Maldon, Essex
Maldon in Essex may be mostly famous for its sea salt, which has been harvested here since 1882, but it’s also somewhere that offers refuge to Londoners on a sunny day, since it’s less than 90 minutes from the capital by car. Families will enjoy a visit to waterfront Promenade Park, which has a splash park, playground and zip-wire. Where to stay:
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19
Mudeford, Dorset
Just east from Bournemouth along the South Coast, Mudeford is surely one of the most picturesque parts of the country, helped along by its colourful beach huts, which regularly sell for six figures. Across the spit, there’s a café with a terrace – it’s an idyllic spot for a glass of white wine and some moules frites in the sun. Where to stay:
20
Birling Gap, East Sussex
If you’re hoping to escape the heat in the capital and see one of the most iconic sights in Britain at the same time, head down to the East Sussex coast and locate Birling Gap. This is the beach where you’ll be able to spy the Seven Sisters chalk cliffs. It’s a great choice for families, since the rocky shore is perfect for rock-pooling and fossil-hunting. Also nearby is the highest sea cliff in the country, Beachy Head. Where to stay:
