Day 3. Brighton Pier and Marina

On By Little Miss TravellerIn South East, United Kingdom, Worthing & Brighton

We were up early once again so that we could make the most of our day, and arrived into Brighton shortly after 9.00 a.m.  As we’d only had a coffee in the hotel room we looked for somewhere suitable for breakfast and soon found the ideal place amongst the labyrinth of narrow lanes in the historic quarter.  We hadn’t actually got lost, but had found an attractive cafe called Lost in the Lanes serving an interesting all day breakfast/ brunch menu.

Lost in the Lanes, Brighton
Lost in the Lanes, Brighton

The contemporary cafe featured an open kitchen, stylish furnishings and friendly staff.  It was a chilly April morning so we warmed up with mugs of frothy cappuccino whilst our food was being prepared.  Our coffees were served in mugs without handles which were just perfect for wrapping our hands around, making me think of buying some when I’m back home.

Lost in the Lanes, Brighton
Inside Lost in the Lanes, Brighton

We’d both ordered a cooked breakfast, one traditional and the other vegetarian.  Having seen the words ‘smashed avocado’ on the menu my eyes lit up and I knew instantly that was the breakfast for me.  Our delicious breakfasts were beautifully presented on sourdough bread with soft poached eggs and the generous portions set us up nicely for the day.  This small independent cafe serves cooked food throughout the day and I’d definitely return again next time I’m visiting Brighton.

Brunch, Lost in the Lanes, Brighton
Our delicious breakfasts at Lost in the Lanes

Ready to start exploring, we enjoyed a gentle stroll through The Lanes with their varied collection of interesting small shops and boutiques.  Our morning walk continued onto Marine Parade, the road running along the seafront so that we could visit the world’s oldest aquarium which has been operating since 1872.  The Brighton SeaLife faces the Palace Pier with standard adult admission at the door £19 but 40% cheaper at £10.50 if bought on-line before visiting.

SeaLife Aquarium, Brighton
SeaLife Aquarium, Brighton

What I liked best about this aquarium was its original Victorian architecture but the displays felt somewhat dated and old fashioned.  As the building is so old I suppose there’s little scope to transform it into somewhere like The Deep in Hull which is so impressive with its giant sized tanks and huge glass walls.

SeaLife Aquarium, Brighton
Victorian arches in the Brighton SeaLife Centre

Brighton SeaLife has many small tanks containing around 3,500 creatures so there is still plenty to see.  My favourites here were not the big fish but rather the delicate seahorses and the jellyfish with their bell shaped bodies and long tentacles.

SeaLife Aquarium, Brighton
Colourful fish at Brighton SeaLife

No visit to the seaside can be complete without a walk on the pier so we crossed the promenade for a stroll along Brighton Palace Pier which we were pleased to find is free to enter.  The pier opened in 1899 replacing the original one that had been destroyed by a severe storm.  It’s a long but fun filled walk to the end of this grand pier which extends 1722 ft (525 metres) and contains a vast array of classic seaside entertainment.

Brighton Palace Pier
Brighton Palace Pier

It was good to note that the deckchairs were free but it was a bit too chilly for sunbathing.  There’s a large indoor amusement arcade with slot machines and other coin operated games and at the sea end a funfair was in full swing with rides for all ages.  The heady aroma of fish and chips mixed with the sickly sweet smell of candy floss filled the air and sales of rock, another seaside favourite were proving popular.  In case you’ve not come across rock, it’s a hard peppermint flavoured cylindrical shaped stick found mostly at the seaside and usually with the lettering of the resort printed along its length.

Brighton Palace Pier
Brighton Palace Pier

We returned to the promenade along the western side of the pier from where we had good views of the British Airways i360 observation tower that we’d enjoyed a ride on the previous day.

Brighton beach
Brighton beach and seafront viewed from the pier

Our stroll continued in an easterly direction along the lower promenade towards the marina which was a pleasant 45 minute walk sheltered from the wind beneath the cliffs.  A classic car event was taking place with hundreds of enthusiasts inspecting vehicles so we paused to look at a few of them ourselves before reaching the marina.

Old police car on display at the classic car event Brighton seafront
Old police car on display at the classic car event Brighton seafront

Brighton marina is approximately two miles from the city centre and although we enjoy a brisk walk we were slightly disappointed to have arrived just a few days too early to take a ride on the Volk’s Electric Railway.  This narrow gauge heritage railway is the oldest operating electric railway in the world and runs along the seafront from the aquarium to its terminus close to the marina since 1883.

Brighton Marina
Brighton Marina

The large marina looked picturesque with numerous boats moored in the harbour surrounded by cafes, bars and casual dining restaurants with outdoor seating making the most of the lovely views.

Coastliner bus service which runs along the Sussex coast
The Coastliner bus service which runs along the Sussex coast

After a refreshing pot of tea we made our way back into the city centre and boarded a Coastliner 700 bus back towards Worthing.  Day tickets allow unlimited travel so we stopped off in the small coastal town of Shoreham-by-Sea as it looked so pretty passing through earlier on the bus.

The harbour at Shoreham-by-Sea
The harbour at Shoreham-by-Sea

Old cottages and modern apartments mingle happily along the riverside and harbour and a gleaming glass and steel bridge built six years ago offered us some fine views up and down stream.

The bridge across the River Adur, Shoreham-by-Sea
The bridge across the River Adur, Shoreham-by-Sea

Just across the road from there is the charming town centre with a pedestrianised high street where we found a good selection of small shops, cafes and at one end the Norman church of St. Mary de Hawa.  Buses run at 10 minute intervals so we only had to wait a few minutes to return to Worthing and with a bus stop almost outside the hotel door it was very convenient.

Shoreham-by-Sea
The pedestrianised high street in Shoreham-by-Sea

After a little rest, we wandered along to the centre of town for fish and chips which always seem to taste better at the seaside and then it was on to the Connaught Theatre to see the comedy play Caroline’s Kitchen which was on a regional tour following a successful London run.

The Connaught Theatre, Worthing
The Connaught Theatre, Worthing

The art-deco Connaught theatre started life as a cinema in 1914 and was extended in 1935 to become a theatre.  It’s usually the other way round with theatres becoming cinemas which I think is quite sad.

The Connaught Theatre, Worthing
Taking our seats for the evening performance of Caroline’s Kitchen

The play itself was fast paced and funny and we were so engrossed in the story-line that its two hours seemed to pass in the blink of an eye and it was the perfect way to end our day!

The Connaught Theatre, Worthing
The art-deco bar at the Connaught Theatre, Worthing

If you have enjoyed reading this post you may also be interested in the following:

Other posts in this series:

A short break in Worthing and Brighton

Similar posts:

Great Yarmouth, Norfolk

A day at the seaside in Bournemouth

Sopot Pier, near Gdansk, Poland

 

Advertisement

52 thoughts on “Day 3. Brighton Pier and Marina”

  1. Pingback: Day 4. Liverpool – Exploring The Wirral – Love Travelling Blog

  2. Pingback: Day 1.  A day at the seaside in Blackpool  – Love Travelling Blog

  4. the italian language specialist

    Hi there! Wanna come to Italy one day? We are an italian language school and offer different kind of courses. Take a look on our blog and don’t miss the chance for such an amazing time here in bella Firenze! 🙂

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply
  5. Diana

    Great post! Your breakfast in the photo looks amazing. I should seek out Lost in the Lanes (what a name, too) when in Brighton, and it sounds like a hidden gem!

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

  11. Brighton is such a cool place isn’t it? Looks so much nicer in your warmer weather photos than we experienced back in January. Loads to see and do of course and the pier is fabulous. So pleased its been kept in such a great condition.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

  12. Enjoy reading your blog and was amused to see as I read it that I was seeing the very same play “Caroline’s Kitchen” in New York City this evening. Having seen it, I would sum it up as a Jerry Springer inspired romp that is a prop crew nightmare.
    Keep up the good work.
    Walter Thinnes

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    1. What a coincidence Walter that you have also just seen ‘Caroline’s Kitchen’ now on in New York City. It’s a small world! Thanks so much for your much appreciated thoughts, it’s so nice to hear from you. Marion

      Like

      Reply

  13. Looks so wonderful. I am glad that You presented Brighton, the place, where my son visited when he was young. We have not been there, but is looks worth for a visit. Photo showing “Victorian arches in the Brighton SeaLife Centre”, is my favorite one. Thank You sharing this post with us.

    Have a wonderful day!

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    1. Thank you Matti for taking an interest in this post on Brighton. It is so nice to read that it brings back some fond memories of your son’s visit awhile back. It’s a lovely town with its pier and magnificent pavilion. Hope you are enjoying a good week as well. It’s sunny here hope it is with you too!

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

    1. It’s my pleasure Linda. It’s so nice to read that you found this post useful. Hope you’ll get over to England soon and manage to fit in a visit to Brighton. Just an easy one hour train ride out of London. Thanks for your welcome thoughts.

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply
  16. Anonymous

    Brighton Pier looks incredible. I’m about to start making plans for an England trip soon and this is one of the places I have already written down that I would love to see.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    1. Yes, definitely recommend going to Brighton as it’s such a lovely seaside resort with lots of interesting things to see and do. Easy to get to as well as it’s only an hour by train from London, Thanks for your welcome thoughts, they are much appreciated.

      Like

      Reply

    1. Brighton is actually very sophisticated being only an hour by train from London and I’m certain you would enjoy a visit. Yes, it’s great when a visit somewhere coincides with a play – we had a great evening Coral. Thank you for your much appreciated thoughts.

      Like

      Reply

Leave a Reply

Fill in your details below or click an icon to log in:

Gravatar
WordPress.com Logo

You are commenting using your WordPress.com account. ( Log Out /  Change )

Twitter picture

You are commenting using your Twitter account. ( Log Out /  Change )

Facebook photo

You are commenting using your Facebook account. ( Log Out /  Change )

Cancel

Connecting to %s

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.