Our trip to Littlehampton
With Winter in the not too distant future and Halloween decorations popping up in shops, it doesn’t seem long before we’ll be taking the winter jackets out and finding those long lost gloves.
But the Autumn and Winter months also means the southern beaches aren’t as full, making for an ideal time to visit without all the crowds. You can admire all the landmarks, try all the attractions and build a sandcastle without having to wrestle for space.
For many in and around London, this will involve a trip to Brighton, somewhere I have called home for 15 years, but along the coast there are some gems that offer the same quality of experience but without all the crowds, enter Littlehampton.
How do I get to Littlehampton beach?
We’re based in Burgess hill and it’s an easy direct train lasting about 50 minutes and we got a four seater to ourselves which was brilliant.
We also met the most friendly and hilarious ticket conductor, who had a chat with us about crabbing in Littlehampton and offered his recommendations on where to eat, what a nice lad. We had plenty of space and comfortable seats, while we looked out at the coastal towns we had contemplated moving to over the past few years.
If you’re heading from London then your best option is to hop on a Southern train from London Victoria. You will see some trains heading straight to Brighton, but you instead want the Littlehampton train, which turns at Preston Park, heading right along the coastal path through Hove, Shoreham and Worthing and taking about 1 hour and 45 minutes.
You can easily buy your ticket on the app with no booking fees, while it’s also an incredibly useful app to keep an eye on train timings. The app automatically picks the most cost effective fare for your route, so you don’t have to worry about working it out yourself.
East vs west beach
You have two beach options when you visit, both a very close walk from each other. East Beach is the main area people tend to visit, which has nearby attractions and a small amusement park, plenty of cafes and a happy and lively atmosphere throughout the summer. It’s also where the majority of dog owners go with their pets.
Then if you cross over the River Arun, you will find the West Beach, this one is ideal if you prioritise peace and quiet and aren’t as fussed about facilities. Now declared a local nature reserve, you’ll find sand dunes and a saltmarsh, plus you may even spot some crabs along the beach, something locals highlighted to us to look out for.
You will occasionally find families strolling along West Beach fossil hunting, looking for a Shepherd’s Crown fossil, which is a fossilised sea urchin dating back millions of years. If you do decide to do this, make sure to wear decent shoes, you don’t want to walk over flints with bare feet as they can be quite sharp.
The beach
It’s always worth considering the tides when you visit any beach, whether you plan on swimming or just want to make the most of the expansive area of the beach. There are two high and two low tides each day. East Beach will have more sand exposed during low tide, which is ideal if you want to play some beach games or even go crabbing.
You can check a tide timetable for Littlehampton before your visit so you get your timing right. Generally around 7am is low, while it’s at its highest point around 1-2pm, therefore getting there a bit earlier can most certainly be worth it, not to mention there won’t be many others around.
If you don’t fancy dragging all the beach bits down with you, then you might want to visit the Beach Goods and Gifts store along East Beach, where they sell items like a bucket and spade, swimming goggles, snorkel kits, inflatable rafts, towels, sunglasses, windbreakers and flip flops.
In fact, if you’ve forgotten to bring your swimming costume then this is a great back-up option as they had them available in-store in all different sizes.
Where can you eat?
Well you can’t visit the British seaside and not eat some fish and chips. You have a number of options as you walk down from Littlehampton station to East Beach, including some right along the beach, however the biggest queue was for Fred’s Fish and Chips.
We spoke to a few locals queuing up and asked why they opted to eat here, one responded by saying “tourists will go for a chippy with a nice view, but all the locals eat here, it’s the best in town”.
But if you plan on spending the day around the beach then you might want something nearby and this is where East Beach Cafe offers an amazing solution.
They have seating inside, ideal if a rain cloud comes along, while they also have outside seating, where you can soak up the sun and enjoy your chips.
The outdoor seating is dog friendly, while they have a water bowl outside. They also have doggy ice cream, which makes you feel less guilty as you tuck into a feast alongside them.
You can get loaded chips with Katsu Curry or Truffle Mayonnaise, some battered fish and chips with mushy peas, sausage rolls, ice cream, hot and cold drinks, plus they do breakfast options before 11:30am.
If you fancy something sweet, Meltz is an ice cream parlour very close to East Beach, while they also make a decent coffee.
If you head a little further along, near to the skatepark and the Norfolk Gardens Pitch & Putt, you’ll find The Beach Club, where they have a selection of hot and cold food, plus desserts and cocktails. You can also book watersport activities from here.
The best activities for families
If you’re heading along with children then on your way to the beach, you might want to stop off at Harbour Park Amusements. It’s free to enter, plus they have a decent cafe where you can relax while the children go on the rides.
If you want to make a day of it, you can pay for an unlimited wristband and get as many rides as you want. It’s actually up to £6 cheaper if you order this online versus paying when you arrive. Considering the cost of the rides adds up quickly, this can save money if you think you’ll go on more than 4-5 times.
They have something similar on Brighton Pier and I can promise you’ll be surprised how quickly you reach five rides when you have an unlimited pass.
The Water Chute is a great option if it’s sunny and you don’t mind being splashed a bit, while the Waltzer is always a classic, plus they even have a mini golf course.
Just before you reach Harbour Park when heading South from the station, you’ll also find Oyster Pond, which has pedalos available to hire. You’ll see swans on the water or along the side, while you should also keep your eyes out for crabs and people crabbing. It’s also a great area to have a picnic if you don’t fancy eating out, with a nearby Sainsbury’s, Iceland or Lidl’s where you can pick up some lunch.
If you love the idea of hiring a pedalo but want somewhere a bit larger than Oyster Pond, then you could walk further to the East until you reach Mewsbrook Park, which is a much larger pond, while they have both pedalos and boats, in case you don’t fancy working up a sweat.
Another way to keep the children amused is on the Land Train, going along the East Beach pathway, while it’s also useful if you don’t think they would be willing to walk the whole way along the coastal path or if someone is less able to make that walk within your group.
It starts off near the H.M Coastguard and then heads all the way across East Beach. They allow dogs onboard, while you can sit as a four facing each other.
Can you hire out a boat?
There are a number of charter boat trips available to book around Littlehampton, predominantly focused around fishing.
The ‘Hold Fast’ charter boat is available for hiring out, as well as Inshore reef ground wreck trips and fishing trips. You can have up to 12 passengers onboard, with trips mainly varying from 5 to 12 hours, making it a full day activity.
If you head to Littlehampton Harbour then they have a number of charger vessels available for angling and diving trips. It’s important to only use listed owners of these vessels, as any others will not be legally registered to offer this activity.
We'll definitely be back!
Our trip to Littlehampton was unbelievable, we had a brilliant day by the beach and had the opportunity to take our dogs to a new town, plenty of new sights and smells for them. The train was also so convenient, with plenty of room and easy to navigate. Plus taking the train rather than the car meant that we could catch up on emails as well as chat through our plans for the day. No need to worry about where to park or whether we’ll get caught in traffic.
We’ve not often been beyond Worthing along the coast and I’m so happy we did, it was such a lovely area and the locals were all so friendly.
About the author:
Tom Bourlet runs the couple’s travel blog SpaghettiTraveller with his wife Raquel, having started in 2012. They’ve travelled across the globe, from a safari in Kenya to relaxing in the Maldives, a road trip across the USA and backpacking through South America. The travelling couple now predominantly focus their time on UK and European city breaks, as well as mini breaks with their two dogs.