Hastings
Logistics:
Fast trains from London Bridge to Hastings take 1 hour 23 minutes. Slower trains via Brighton available from Victoria.
The beach and main attractions in Hastings are a 10-15 min walk from the train station. There are several busses connecting the train station to the Stade area as well as surrounding towns which makes Hastings a great destination if one or more people in your group can't do as much walking.
We like to combine Hastings with a visit to the Battle of Hastings battlefield in Battle or a day spent exploring Rye and enjoying the sand dunes at Camber Sands if we stay for a weekend or longer.
Sample Weekend Itenerary:
If heading down for the day or weekend we tend to skip the paid attractions (Hastings Castle, Smuggler Adventure, Aquarium) and instead focus on enjoying the town, beach and pier. We will usually look up the tide times and plan our time at the beach for low tide as the shingle beach can get quite rough and steep (read not safe for kids to play in the water in) at high tide. Head towards the pier to find some sand at low tide.
Sample Week Itenerary :
Since we had to cancel a trip to Austria due to Austria making it onto the UK Covid Quarantine list, I had to come up with a last minute UK holiday to make both the kiddo and myself get over being sad about not seeing the grandparents. Luckily a last minute room became available at the White Rock Hotel and so we decided to spend an extended bank holiday weekend in Hastings.
DAY 1 (THURSDAY)
Since we traveled to Hastings on a THURSDAY we took the 10.24 train from London Bridge to Hastings. We couldn’t leave earlier because the Network Railcard discount can’t be used before 10 on weekdays. After spending some time at the beach (it was low tide when we arrived so plenty of sand to play with towards the pier!) we headed to St. Clements Restaurant in St Leonard.
After checking into the hotel, we went for a walk along the sea front towards the old town and got caught in a down pour. Luckily Di Pola’s gelato place wasn’t far.
DAY 2 (FRIDAY)
The weather forecast for FRIDAY was lots of rain, so I planned to get the 3 in 1 ticket for Hastings Castle, Smuggler Adventure and the Blue Reef Aquarium. Initially the plan was to do the Smuggler Adventure and Aquarium on Friday and wait with the castle for better weather, however plans changed when the foretasted rain didn’t seem to arrive and we ended up doing all three activities in a single day.
Since none of the attractions open until 10.30am, we started the day (which was surprisingly rain free at that point!) with a visit of the Stade, Hasting’s working land based fishing fleet. While the kiddo initially was more interested in his bubble wand then the fishing boats, his interest was caught when a fisherman threw some fish remains back into the water and hundreds of seagulls suddenly descended in a mad frenzy.
On the walk from the Stade to the West Cliff Lift we made a quick stop at the Cornish Bakery on George Street for a hot drink and pastry breakfast. The kiddo also enjoyed a wander around Chess Square at Butler’s gap and would have loved to go wild in the old fashioned candy store.
Arriving at the top we were taken by the stunning views across Hastings and along the coast. The kiddo did what he seems to do everytime he comes across an open field theses days, run as fast as he could across the field and towards a steep hill. There were even more views to be enjoyed from the top of the little hill and the kiddo was ecstatic about a bunch of rocks he could climb up and down and around leading us eventually to Hastings Castle. If you don’t fancy our adventurous approach to the castle, there is also a fairly flat, paved path leading the the castle gates.
After a picnic lunch with a view on the green space outside the West Cliff Lift (there is also a fairly big playground here, but the kiddo was to excited for our next activity to have any time for a playground), we walked across to the Smuggler Adventure. While we are buggy free these days, if you do bring a buggy you will have to carry it down quite a few flights of stairs before storing it at the entrance to Smuggler Adventure.
Once we got back to the outside world we took the West Hill Lift don (again, no wait) and popped into Monelli’s Sourdough Pizza right next to the lift.
With full bellies it was time to head to our final attraction of the day, the Blue Reef Aquarium. In order to get there we hopped onto the Hastings Miniature Railway which runs the 1/2 mile from Marine Parade to Rock-A-Nore where the aquarium is located. At the time we used the train there was no queue, but some long queues were forming over the weekend.
We got to the aquarium around 1.45pm (which I thought would be a good time as younger kids might be napping) and had to join a queue as the aquarium was currently at capacity. Luckily we had our mini kite in the bag, so the kiddo ran around with the kite while we had to queue for a good 30 minutes to get into the aquarium.
After our aquarium visit we walked past the fishing huts back towards Marine Parade and the playground. However, the weather turned quickly and we got caught again in a downpour and had to pop into Di Pola’s for some more gelato.
DAY 3 (SATURDAY)
On SATURDAY we cycled 12 miles along the coast to Pevensey castle, the landing place for William the Conqueror’s army in 1066. My main reason for going there was that I have an English Heritage membership and am always eager to explore new places and that it allowed us to explore yet another bit of 1066 history.
I totally underestimated how cold it would be to cycle along the coast at 9am in the morning and when we arrived at the castle the kiddo was freezing and not in the best mood for exploring. It’s a shame because I think on a warmer day, the kiddo would have really enjoyed running around the castle grounds.
Due to the kiddo’s constant moaning the visit to the castle was a very quick one and then we headed into the Castle Cottage Tearoom in order to warm up and brighten the mood with a treat.
For our cycle back to Hastings we went along the coast and I told the kiddo we can stop whenever and wherever he wants to explore. Even though the bike route leads away from the coast before Normans Bay, I kept cycling onwards along the coast, thinking it must be possible to get through with the bike somehow. Turns out I was wrong, and since I was too lazy to backtrack all the way we ended up going down an adventurous short cut along Waller’s Haven that took us across a scary train crossing and required us to climb over a fence with the bike. On the plus side, there were lots of tasty blackberries along the way.
The kiddo’s first stop requests was as we arrived at the promenade in Bexhill-on-Sea. There is play equipment built into the landscaping along the whole promenade and the kiddo enjoyed running from one structure to the next. Nothing fancy, just some simple ropes and tunnels.
Eventually we got to the De La Warr Pavilion, the first public building in Britain to use a welded steel frame, which was built in the 1930s in order to attract more visitors to this seaside town. The architect/engineering student in me was quite keen to have a closer look. The kiddo was more excited about the flags on the beach showing that it is life guarded and meaning that he would be allowed to go for a swim.
After the swim the kiddo passed out on the back of the bike and I enjoyed the cycle along the coast back to Hastings. For the evening we had a booking at the Boatyard Hastings, the restaurant in the Hastings Contemporary gallery that is accessible without a gallery ticket on Saturday evenings and all day Monday when the gallery is closed. The views from the restaurant terrace are amazing.
DAY 4 (SUNDAY)
On SUNDAY we did a day out at Camber Sands. After the kiddo was so cold after our morning cycle yesterday, I decided that today we would take the train to Rye and then cycle from there to Camber Sands.
Trains from Hastings to Rye go every hour and both stations have accessible access from platform to street. When you walk out of Rye station you can already see the first cobbled lane lined by medieval, half-timbered houses, taking you away from the station and up into town. Some of the bigger lanes have a strip of tiles in the middle of the lane, making it more comfortable for buggies and bikes.
Our first stop was St. Mary’s church in the centre of town.
Next up was a walk around town during which we checked out Mermaid street (the kiddo wasn’t old enough yet to really understand the fun in some of the quirky house names) and popped into the Rye Heritage Centre. I would have been keen to check out the town model and accompanying audio & visual show, but this wasn’t available at the time of our visit. So we had a quick go at the penny arcades before heading out again.
Next up was Rye Castle which looks a bit too shiny these days thanks to restoration efforts going a bit over the top. We enjoyed the views across the Romney Marshes and the kiddo enjoyed climbing onto the canons and counting canon balls. It’s kinda weird to think of Rye as a Cinque Port, considering how far away from the sea it is. Similar to Pevensey castle.
We didn’t get a chance to visit Lamb House (now managed by National Trust), so we’ll have to come back for that some other time (and maybe read some of the Mapp and Lucia stories first).
Now that we had ticked off our culture for the day, it was time to head to the beach. The cycle route from Rye to Camber Sands is quite pleasant and is mostly separated from the road, so could do with kids on their own bikes. The ground for most of the path is light gravel though, so not ideal for road bikes.
After a brilliant time at Camber Sands we cycled back to Rye and onward to Winchelsea. Instead of sticking to National Cycle Route 2, I followed the instructions of the Cycle Streets app and ended up with a slightly adventurous but totally awesome cycle through the middle of sheep fields and past Camber Castle through Rye Harbour Nature Reserve. If you want to find this path turn from Winchelsea Road into Harbour Road and then follow the public footpath through the fields that runs in parallel to the river Brede.
From here we followed National Cycle Route 2 which includes a steep climb up Battery Hill before going through Hastings Country park and descending down into Hastings Old Town via steep Old Saints street. The annoying thing is that even though you climb all these way up, there are barely any views because the cycle route is mainly going through built up areas and forest.
Once back in town we met up with some friends and enjoyed some more time at the Hastings Beach Playground, followed by rides on Hastings pier. For bank holiday weekend the pier had on some live music and the kiddo enjoyed running around the pier with his kite and looking through the slates down into the water.
DAY 5 (MONDAY)
MONDAY was our last day in Hastings, and we spent the day hanging out with friends at the beach. We got to enjoy one last dip in the sea and the kiddo was excited about a little pool that formed for a while in the rocks as the tide was going out. We also enjoyed some cinnamon roles from Judges Bakery on High Street (recommended by London & Leap) which are only available first thing on a weekend morning we were told.
Since I wasn’t organised and the bank holiday Monday was the last day of the Eat Out to Help Out scheme it was a bit tricky to find a place for lunch that met the kiddos request of sitting indoors and serving apple juice even though it was already 2pm. Eventually I ended up at the Cafe @ Stade.
After lunch the kiddo passed out on the back of the bike and we caught the 3.30pm train back to London.
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