The Apartment
A few steps from the promenade and the steps and lift to the Viking Bay beach, the apartment is located in the old town of Broadstairs, in a conservation area.
Photographs of the area within a 5-minute walk of the apartment give an idea of the surrounding area
Getting there
By RoadBroadstairs is approximately 75 miles (120km) from London by road. Follow the M2/ A299 dual carriageway until the last 4 miles.
A streetmap of the area can be found here:
Use the +/- to zoom in or out.
By Train
Regular trains run from London Victoria (1 hour 50 mins) or London Charing Cross (2 hours 20) to Broadstairs station, which is within a 10 minute walk of apartment.
By Air
Kent International Airport is the closest airport, approx 5 miles away although flights to this airport are limited.
Gatwick is approximately 85 miles (135 km) away. Fast trains run regularly from Gatwick to London Victoria, where you could connect with a train to Broadstairs. Alternatively, taxis could be arranged from this or other major airports.
Heathrow, Stansted and Luton airports are all slightly further, but still feasible options.
By Ferry
Ferry services operate to nearby ports including:
Ostende (Belgium) to Ramsgate (6km/ 10 minute drive)
Calais, Boulogne or Dunkerque (France) to Dover (36 km/ 35 min drive)
By Eurotunnel
Calais to Folkestone (57km/ 55 minute drive)
We will be happy to provide more detailed help and information on how to get there, depending on your travel preference.
Shopping and other activities
Food shopping is available within a two minute walk, including butchery, bakery, greengrocer, fishmonger, a supermarket and an award winning wine shop and off-licence.The town also contains a wide range of restaurants, a cinema, mini-golf, art galleries, pottery painting and several museums.
On the outskirts of Broadstairs and in the surrounding towns are several large shopping centres with all the major high street stores and supermarket represented.
The North Foreland Golf Course, approx 2 miles away, offers 18 hole and 18 hole 3 par courses (see links below for more details).
The Town and Beaches
Broadstairs is a historic town on the Kent Coast, approximately 75 miles from London, which has been a popular resort for almost 200 years. Charles Dickens stayed for extended periods, and the excellent Dickens House museum shows how Broadstairs and its people were represented in some of his novels.
With 7 different sandy beaches within a short distance ,Stone Bay is a European Blue Flag 2007 award winning beach, and a host of attractions it makes the perfect location for a family beach holiday. The beaches are:Botany Bay
Kingsgate Bay
Joss Bay
Stone Bay
Viking Bay
Louisa Bay
Dumpton Gap.
Many of these have rock pools at low-tide.
Broadstairs hosts a number of themed weeks throughout the summer, including a celebration of Charles Dickens in June and a very popular Folk Week in August. There are regular firework displays during August.
Around Thanet
Within a few miles of Broadstairs are the other interesting towns of Thanet, including Ramsgate, (with ferry services to Ostende), Margate, Sandwich and Deal. Further afield are the coastal towns of Dover and Folkestone with their excellent connections to the continent, Herne Bay and Whitstable and inland can be found rolling Kent countryside with villages and the city of Canterbury.
Links to other sites with information on Broadstairs :
Wikipedia entry with an extensive history of Broadstairs
Link to the Blue Flag beach pages
http://www.stella-maris.org.uk A great site with lots of info about Broadstairs
http://www.broadstairsfolkweek.org Full details of the August Folk Festival
http://www.broadstairsdickensfestival.co.uk Official site with info about Charles Dickens and Broadstairs
http://www.northforeland.co.uk Information on the North Foreland Golf Club, Broadstairs