England's Seaside Towns

Southwold, Suffolk, photograph taken from the pier.
Copyright © Gill Rickson - Creative Commons License

Situated on England's east coast in the county of Suffolk, Southwold is well known for being a quiet and peaceful seaside resort. In spite of that or maybe because of that, it is a popular place for people to visit.

It has a pier and a beach which is some shingle, some sand. Unlike Bournemouth or Brighton, it has no clubs for dancing and drinking into the early hours of the morning so it's ideal for a quiet, relaxing holiday.

Southend's seafront from the Pier

Southend-on-Sea was the traditional place for Londoners, particularly Eastenders, to go to visit the seaside. It's always been full of 'kiss me quick' hats, fish and chips, seafront bingo parlours and candyfloss. It's definitely a place for fun.

It is famous for its long pier which has a small railway along its length to take people to the end if they don't want to walk. There are theatres and music venues in the town as well as amusement arcades right along the seafront.

When we lived in London we would go to Southend for the day, taking about £20 (British Pounds) in change between the two of us. We would walk along the seafront going in and out of the amusement arcades and play the machines. When our £20 ran out, that was it - we stopped. We only ever did this once or twice a year and we always felt we had had an inexpensive, fun day out doing something we would never normally do.

A Holiday Caravan Site

The choices of where to stay in during a seaside holiday haven't changed much since I was a child. Almost all seaside resorts have hotels, bed and breakfast places, self-catering holiday apartments, caravan sites (see picture above) and campsites. Holiday camps are also an option in some seaside towns.

Hotels and B&Bs vary as much here as they do in other places but you can judge their quality by their AA ratings, the higher the rating, the better the establishment. Self-catering apartments are usually fairly basic but adequate for a stay of a week or two. They come with kitchen cookers, refrigerators and other basic equipment. They usually have pans, crockery and cutlery too. You should also check whether they supply bed linen or you have to supply your own. This all applies if you rent a caravan too.

Campsites may take either touring caravans (those people tow on their cars), motor homes or tents. Some take all three while others just take tents or caravans and motorhomes.

Caravan and campsites sometimes have a communal centre with entertainment or a bar and restaurant. Sometimes they have a store selling various basic things that holidaymakers in tents and caravans might need like bread, milk, newspapers, canned food, etc.

Holiday camps, like the one pictured below, provide a 'chalet', usually just a one room, for each family or perhaps two rooms for larger families or those with older children. There is usually a lot of entertainment provided like stage shows in the evening, entertainers to amuse children during the day, a swimming pool, games rooms and other activities suitable for all ages. They are usually a very economic way for a family to have a holiday especially as three meals a day are often included in the price.