Moving from London to Herne Bay

[GreenMum37]

Hi,
My husband & I are looking to move from London to the coast . We work from home so taking the opportunity for a lifestyle change. We have stressful jobs so looking for a slower pace of life. We are mid 40s, enjoy walking with the dog, usual stuff . What’s it like to live in Herne Bay? Any other recommendations?

Ahhhh.....Hernia Bay as its fondly known.... once upon a time...it was predicted to be the next Whitstable (the seaside town next to it that I think is lovely) though not quite sure whats happening with that.
The pier/seafront has been developed over the years and is quite nice however the town itself is still a bit of a dump. There are a couple of independent shops and nicer cafes opening up but its still somewhere that's pretty depressing when it rains.
You don't mention whether you have children or not, so I'm going to presume you haven't (just because I know nothing about schools etc).

As a 40 something I wouldn't want to live in HB but mainly because I love Whitstable (though stupidly more expensive). If you don't mind not living by the sea then Canterbury isn't bad and easy to get to the coast (Whitstable/Herne Bay about a 15/20 minute drive), Margate/Broadstairs/Minnis Bay about 30-40 mins). Faversham could also be somewhere worth looking at, small town but not as depressing as HB and in 'normal' times a good Hop Festival.

Broadstairs or Deal are also worth looking at. Herne Bay isn't that awful, and is cheaper than Whitstable, which tends to be very, very crowded, particularly in the Summer.

Have you spent some quality time in Herne Bay? It is... searches for a euphemism... insular.

thank you, v. helpful!

I wouldn't recommend Herne Bay. I'm in Canterbury but we've got family in Folkestone and I'd choose there if going for a coastal town. Deal also always tops the "best place to live" polls but I'm not a huge fan myself.

I have elderly relatives in Herne Bay , I wouldn’t move there . Walmer is nice for dog walking .

Thanks @floralnomad . We are looking to relocate with my elderly Mum. Can you explain why you don’t like about the area?

It very much depends on where you live in the area. It gets a bad press when compared to Whitstable and having lived in both, I would say Whitstable is over rated and Herne Bay is under rated.

Thanks everyone, it’s a tough decision & big change!

Just to add something, if money was no object, I would move to Tankerton.

For an older person (your mum), Birchington is a popular place and I think there would be a fair amount she could get involved in if she wanted to. The beach at Minnis Bay is a 5-10 minute drive (think there's also a bus that might go down) which is great for dog walks etc. From Birchington there are buses to Canterbury, Ramsgate and Margate and a train line. It sounds good but not great for you maybe as little in the way of shops etc.
Whitstable/Tankerton has a great community feel and there's usually quite a lot to get involved it. Shopping wise, not great mainly small independent boutiques, a couple of good coffee shops etc. Sunny weekends and summer bring pretty much everyone down and obviously the rubbish, traffic problems etc you'd get in any seaside town. Prices are quite high so might be worth looking further out in Swalecliffe or on the road between Whitstable and Faversham...
So much depends in what you are looking for, Deal and Hythe are fairly quiet coastal towns though not much in the way of shopping etc and I don't think there's much in the way of nightlife.
I mentioned Faversham in a previous post which I think could work, easy access by public transport to Canterbury (possibly Maidstone as well) and has the creek. Plenty of places for dog walking.
The villages around Canterbury could be worth looking at but will depend in whether you'll need to use public transport. Littlebourne, Chartham, Blean, Harbledown could all be places to look at as well.

@Delwick, I agree, Tankerton would be my ideal as well. Had a year there until I had to move for work, love the place.

@katscamel thanks so much for your comments, I really appreciate it! We have found our dream house in Hampton, west of Herne Bay so the dilemma is the location .

As long as you have transport then it wouldn't be a bad place to live. Its very residential and am not sure of the bus route so would that work out for your mum or would she feel too isolated if she can't get out and about by herself?.
Apart from that, I can't see any other real issues, though part of HB it really isn't as depressing a place as the town itself.

Thank you @katscamel, she still drives she’s 65 so still independent & happy to explore on her own too. It’s tricky we’ve lived in London for a long time & now we can work remotely we have more options but it’s a hard one . We pretty much work all the time & come the weekend/evening just want to go for a nice walk/ have friends round now we are allowed! Pretty boring but very chilled. If we want fancy dinners/theatre etc we will go to London

Then I think you'll be fine. No need to head to London as there are some good restaurants around and Canterbury has 2 theatres...the mainstream Marlowe and smaller Gulbenkian at the University. Good luck with the move.

My mum is moving down from Scotland to be with us so we are used to the rain!

Whitstable is far nicer than Herne Bay in my opinion though HB is OK, lots of elderly (like Bexhill). Whitstable fairly buzzes and the Tankerton end has a beautiful beach where people can walk their dogs.

Herne Bay is run down and depressing. Whitstable is so overrated with a long high street full of traffic. I like Broadstairs, Ramsgate and Deal. Canterbury is well placed with high speed train to London, but is usually rammed with students and tourists. Faversham is friendly, pretty and has lots going on.

Thanks you lovely bunch, very helpful!

Your mum isn’t “elderly” if she’s only 65!

@Abracadabra12345 You're so right. I got a black belt in martial arts just before my 70th.

Oops sorry guys! She is definitely not elderly!