Best Beaches To Visit From London This Summer

London might be a landlocked city but that doesn’t mean that you can’t reach a nice beach in under 2 hours travelling. Though it is landlocked, London has a long standing relationship with the sea, its River Thames flowing into the North Sea and this being the reason that the Romans built the city where it is today. Guests of London hotel deal special offers will probably have visited some of the canals, rivers and ponds within the English capital, but thanks to nippy transport links it’s easier than ever to visit the great British seaside this summer.

With southern, eastern and western shorelines easy to visit from London, this blog will explore some of the best beaches that you can visit on a day trip from the city.

Brighton 

Brighton is just an hour from Victoria Station on the Southern Rail line and about an hour and a quarter from London Bridge and Kings Cross on Thameslink services. Being so easy to reach from London, the East Sussex based city itself has been nicknamed “London on the beach” thanks to its similar culture, attitudes and general energy. Whilst the city itself is chockablock with historic landmarks, shopping opportunities and entertainment districts, the pebbled beach promenade evokes both modern and traditional aesthetics, complete with its iconic Palace Pier funfair and arcade as well as plenty of beach bars and clubs. However, for those who want a quieter time in Brighton, there’s plenty of space towards Hove or the Brighton Marina that are more relaxing. 

Camber Sands 

Located on the border of Kent and Sussex, Camber Sands is a vast sand dune-laden stretch of beach beside Rye Harbour. Easy to reach for guests of accommodation Paddington London via Ashford trains in just under an hour and a half, Camber Sands is a much more remote option for beachgoers visiting from the capital. If you want a little bit more of the beach town life, head over the river to Rye, where traditional pubs and a history of smuggling add character to the sleepy harbour town. 

Margate 

Located on the jutting point of Kent, Margate is reachable for guests of the Chilworth Paddington Hotel via Southeastern trains in just an hour and a half from Kings Cross St Pancras. Margate has become such a popular seaside retreat for Londoners that many have even moved there. This is unsurprising, nuch like Brighton, the centre of Margate is teeming with cultural attractions and vintage shopping options. It even has its own theme park, Dreamland, and an art gallery dedicated to works of JW Turner (a former London migrant to Margate) and contemporary artists. Again, the central beach area of Margate can get a little crowded on the weekends, so venture a little further round the cliffs to enjoy quieter stretches of beach. 

Birling Gap 

There’s often talk of the “White Cliffs of Dover”, but many people forget about the white cliffs of East Sussex. Birling Gap exemplifies the vast beauty of the English Channel’s coastline and is a slightly longer route for guests of Paddington hotel special offers due to the need to take a bus from Eastbourne once you arrive at that town by train. Alternatively, it’ll take about an hour and a half to drive from London to Birling Gap. The area itself is quiet, beautiful and sits within the longest stretch of coastline in the south that hasn’t been built up. This is definitely one for those looking for a more tranquil beach outing.