Brighton hugged the shore, sleepily, as the fog hung low in the air whilst we navigated our way through the busy streets to our parking. College kids, angsty and teenagey, fill the pavements in hoards casually avoiding the onslaught of European school trips. Looking down the steep hill we should be able to see the sea and the horizon yet we see nothing but a thick haze.
To get to Brighton, from London, you can get the train from London Victoria although we decided to drive. The drive is about 1h20m and is simple and easy at around 10/11am, avoiding rush hour on the m25 and there is a massive availability of parking spaces, although it may be worth pre-booking during school holidays and summer weekends.
We arrived hungrily, me verging on hungry-angry, so set off in search of brunch, after wandering around for about 30 minutes and debating for a while about where to eat we settled on Jamie Oliver’s Italian. This award winning menu offers plenty of variety, uses British sourced meat and sustainably sourced ingredients. The interior is an eclectic mix of quirky and industrial, the service is quick and the food is delicious we settled on Tomato Bruschetta and Silky Pâté Bruschetta for starters, The Tuscan pizza and Gennaro’s Chicken Club for mains and finished with an espresso and cappuccino to give us an extra kick for the day, since we both seemed to be quite tired. The restaurant although busy, was not loud and was filled with a wide variety of people, families, couples, work friends, solo diners and even those who were just there for a quick snack. It seems to be quite a buzzing place in Brighton and although not ‘independent’ like many of the other options on offer around the area, it certainly has this feel about it.
I, stupidly, thought that Brighton would be as warm as London ignoring all my past experiences in Brighton when I seem to draw the bad weather to this sea-side town. So arrived without a jacket meaning we had to go in search of a jacket… after traipsing Napo, my boyfriend, around multiple different streets, shops, and getting a tiny bit lost I finally found a jacket in Bershka, Churchill Square. Although tiring, and feeling guilty for bringing him to Brighton to spend so much time just looking in shops, it definitely showed the wide variety of shops on offer, a great mix of franchised shops and independent retailers, a great shopping centre with wide variety filled with clothes that I love since these shops cater to the demographic with a slightly more alternative fashion sense. Although it’s not a place you’d go solely for shopping it’s definitely something to do if you find yourself with plenty of time!
The Lanes are a cute, peculiar, diverse, and interesting mismatch of vintage jewellery stores, quiet coffee shops, vintage clothing stores and speciality stores where I'm sure that if you look hard enough you could find anything and everything. It’s Brighton’s answer to the bazaars of Istanbul or Marrakech but in a quintessentially British fashion. They make for a chilled out few hours wandering around, browsing and discovering a memorable keepsake of your trip to Brighton instead of the stereotypical postcard. Shops not to miss are Choccywoccydoodah, Beyond Retro, The Lanes Armoury. Secondarily is North Laine, once a slum but now considered the cultural and bohemian quarter of Brighton don’t miss out on Snooper’s Paradise, Digs Decorative Interiors and Brighton Books. Come here for a coffee or delicious lunch, vegan or veggie is definitely on offer from many of the independent cafes around the area!
Head to the seafront for the afternoon spend your last two hours of sunlight meandering up and down Brighton Palace Pier, although definitely a place that has seen better days this attraction has a great atmosphere, the air is filled with laughter and if you don’t fancy walking on the old crooked and rickety wooden boards with gaps between them that may as well be equally just as wide they have recently installed a metal walkway for the faint hearted that you can stick too! Don’t miss out on the arcade, have a go at some of the 2p and 10p machines and loot them for all you can get! We won multiple candies but lost all of our 2 penny pieces! The
arcade is such a good laugh, for a challenge in a group, each takes £3-£5 and see who can win the most prizes. Head to the end of the pier for the attractions including a haunted house, log flume, roller coaster, bumper karts, waltzer and carousel. Don’t miss out on buying some traditional Brighton Rock for a souvenir, although mint is traditional strawberry or fruit is better (in my opinion). Add a sugar mouse, if you have a sweet tooth, for an extra and snack away on it while chilling out on the pier. Lastly if it's a beautifully sunny day, and not too windy, grab one of the free deck chairs set up your space and have a 20-30minute chill and chat.
It was far too hazy for us to catch the sunset, so we didn’t wait, but sat on the beach nonetheless. On a sunny day the beach will be packed - especially in summer but don’t let this discourage you… Brighton is notorious for having some incredible sunsets so spend your last 30 minutes chilling on the beach to catch the sunset, take some golden hour pictures and listen to the waves lap on the shore. Even if it’s cold but clear wrap up warm take something to sit on and it will definitely be a memorable way to finish your day!
This trip was short and brief at only 5 hours and we definitely didn’t do everything Brighton has to offer so below I've listed a few of the things I'd love to do over a weekend in Brighton and things I'm gutted we didn’t get to do this time! Thanks for reading x
Brighton Bucket List
i360
Sea Life Centre
Dum Dums Donutterie
Nine Tattoo shop
Redroaster coffee co.
Artist Residence
