Following my trip to Ramsgate I was inspired to visit Thanet again. This time, with help from Visit Thanet, I decided to visit Broadstairs just a couple of miles along the Kent coast.
I travelled on the high speed train (Southeastern Railway). Journey time from St Pancras to Broadstairs was 1 hour 25 minutes. I stayed overnight at the Bay Tree Hotel.
Sunrise at Viking Bay, Broadstairs
The hotel is perched on the cliff tops and is only a short walk from the town centre and beaches and makes a great base. Our room was called Maple, a second floor double with triple aspect sea view. It had the epitome of a picture window with a gorgeous view over one of Broadstairs seven beaches at Stone Bay.
Picture window view over Stone Bay.
The hotel has recently undergone a major refurbishment The style and attention to detail are beautiful and made this a great place to stay.
Our room was top right in the photo. The gorgeous and friendly Bedlington Terrier is the hotel's dog Ben.
Also, if you are a Harry Potter fan the hotel boasts a unique collection of limited edition artwork on display in the public spaces.
Some of my favourite shots that I took along our walk along the coast visiting all seven of the bays at Broadstairs.
1. Viking Bay, a beautiful traditional seaside beach. 2. Chalk arch at Kinsgate Bay. 3. Kinsgate Castle, Kinsgate Bay. 4. Before dawn at Stone Bay 5. Sunrise at Viking Bay
One thing I have always enjoyed about the Great Birtish Seaside is beach huts. I love the proliferation of styles, the brightly painted fronts and the pure quirkiness that they bring to the coast. Broadstairs has beach huts a plenty on all of its seven bays, though perhaps the ones at Viking and Stone Bays were my favourites.
Sunshine yellow and sea blue beach huts at the back of Viking Bay. So summery.
Early morning reflection at Stone Bay.
There are may things to see and do in Broadstairs.
Dickens House
And plenty of great places to eat and drink. Unfortunately I didn't have time to try them all!
Morelli's with it's amazing 50s interior is a must for coffee lovers and gelato officianados like me
I had a really delicious locallly caught crab sandwich at the very quaint, nostalgic and simply charming Bessie's Tea Parlour, a winner in the Taste Of Kent Awards.
After chasing around the town for sunset on Saturday evening, we opted for tapas at the highly recommended Alboriño. The highlight for me was a roasted cauliflower with a black olive tapenade. The restaurant was obviously popular (always good sign) and so we had to come back a bit later. Make sure you book ahead.
Also as with every seaside town there are many great fish'n'chip shops.
Here are a few more shots that capture the essence of our trip to Broadstairs.
And of course #TheManWithTheUnionJackUmbrella came too!
Broadstairs is a great little seaside town with oodles of charm and being only a short distance from London is an ideal place for a week long or weekend break. I had a great time there and will look forward to a return visit.
Finally a short video I made during the weekend and some links you might find useful.