Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
a royal holiday home from the Regency era, a must-see extravagance of Oriental
design. In the grounds is
Brighton Museum
(p. 266), a decidedly modern col-
lection of furniture, art, and local history; it's free, so pop in at the very least to
see Salvador Dali's
Lips
sofa, which is near the entrance.
For lunch, head down to the seafront near your hotel, to the
Regency
(p. 270), a superb fish restaurant without little fanfare; get an outside table and
a whole crab salad, or grilled Dover sole, or the wonderful fish and chips.
The rest of the day you can wander the streets.
The Lanes
and
North Laine
are little streets filled with quirky designer shops, which cross the main shop-
ping area that is full of mainstream brands.
For the evening, have a drink at the traditional
Fortune of War
pub (p. 267),
spilling out from the beachfront arches. There are plenty of restaurants in the
area, too.
Due South
(p. 269), also under the arches, is casual in a smart,
organic way, while the
Windsor
(p. 272) in the Hilton Metropole—big, white,
chandeliered, and with huge sea-view windows—is more refined.
Day 4: The South Downs
A short drive east and you come to
Charleston
(p. 268), the farmhouse home
of Vanessa Bell, sister of Virginia Woolf, and Duncan Grant. The house is a
place to love whether you're into the Bloomsbury Set of arty intellectuals or not;
it's imaginatively, even crazily decorated from walls to furniture to garden. Aim
to spend an hour or so here (the garden is particularly striking) before getting
your walking boots on. The farmhouse is in the lee of the
South Downs,
the
rolling hills that follow the coast, and just off the
South Downs Way
(p. 276),
the phenomenal walk that goes from Eastbourne to Winchester. If you've set
off promptly this morning, you should still have a good half-day's hike, topping
bare, windy Firle Beacon 217m (712 ft.) in one direction, or passing through
the pretty village of Alfriston in the other. There are plenty of inns and hotels in
the area.
Day 5: Battle & Rye
Just along the coast is a place that was at the turning point of British history. In
the Battle of Hastings, King Alfred was defeated by the Normans, marking the
end of English rule and the start of French. The battlefield is still an emotional
spot and now the site of an award-winning exhibition. It's easy to spend the
morning here, looking round
Battle
(p. 262), the market town that grew up
around the Abbey that William the Conqueror founded to celebrate his victory.
There are various choices for lunch in the medieval streets. For the afternoon,
Rye
is a charming spot. This town used to be a leading sea port until the harbor
silted up; it's now several miles from the sea but still has a river and hostelries
that reflect its history as a place where smugglers gathered. Rye is a place to
walk around and appreciate (you don't come here for any specific attraction).
You could end your day at
The George
(p. 264), one of southern England's
most charming hotels.
Day 6: Margate & Canterbury
Keep following the coast around to Dover, and keep going until you reach
Mar-
gate
(p. 250), one of England's easternmost points. It may take around 1
1
⁄
2
hours. This is a classic English seaside town, a place that fell into disrepair as
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