Moving to Lewes

[Cherries590]

Our house is sold and we’re on the move, but alas we don’t know where to go! My husband is very pro-Brighton and I am ‘nearly’ until I go there. It’s, ahem, vibrant. I’m wondering about Lewes and am hoping there’s some people out there who’ll be able to give me a heads-up? Ive also thought about Worthing, Chichester, Newquay, Exeter… I’ll be homeless in 8 weeks, I need to make a decision! Thanks all :)

I like Lewes more than Brighton but I don’t live in either. Lewes is nicer and seems like there is less crime. Lewes is less cosmopolitan but better for schools…awful lottery for Brighton I think…

Thanks for this :) I don’t need to worry about schools, luckily

You will find November 5th celebrations interesting and different, if you have never seen them.

What do you want? Lewes is lovely but traffic can be awful. Do you want sea? Downs? Town/city/village? Does it have to be Sussex??
There’s lots of lovely places about.
Chichester has the theatre and some nice shops and restaurants. Worthing has some lovely restaurants and the sea. Brighton is very busy and I’m glad we don’t live there (I work there).

Hey @PipsM thanks for this. I’d like the sea, but figured 15 mins on the train is worth it. My husband is wary of being somewhere dull, but I’ve lived in the back of beyond for 25 years (oil heating and no street lights kind of caper) and would prefer a middle ground. I’m looking for utopia! Sea, culture, peace…

Lewes is lovely! Would love to live in a house there. There are some gorgeous places locally. Have you considered Seaford or Alfriston if you want a small village feel?

Chichester.

It's a bit twee, but essentially a nice town. Seems to be a good sense of community.
Good schools. If you have DC it's quite a good comprise between safe little town and lively enough / near to Brighton for teens.

I dislike Brighton. Used to be a wonderful, vibrant place, now it's just dirty, too busy, too much crime (and druggies).

Brighton is the pits quite honestly, used to live there. Lewes is ok in some parts, not in others, hilly, pricey property. Alfriston is nice, but some rough parts also. Seaford has more than Alfriston, unspoiled beach, but pebbles again. Eastbourne, more going on. Traffic is busy in all these locations though. Depends on what you like OP, visit all the areas and see what you think.

@BrilliantBetty I’ll be honest the druggie caper turns me right off. So many broken people there, it’s heartbreaking

I’ll check out Seaford @tylila :)

I work in Lewes, wouldn't live there. The traffic's a NIGHTMARE. Hate Brighton. What do you want from where you live ?

Newhaven is just down the road too, but most people gloss over that!

@DaphneDeloresMoorhead Thanks for this. A decent cinema, Waitrose!, easy access to sea, a bit of life around me, but not so much that I’m scared to get back from the station on my own at night.

@Tylila I hadn’t even thought of Newhaven!

Lewes is nice what's your budget as that could make or break your Lewes experience. £500k will get you a little house with no garden, £1.6m will get you a large, many bedroomed family home on the outskirts.

Seaford is OK but you won't find a Waitrose or coffee shops or a cinema there and certainly not in Newhaven!

Hove end of Brighton is nice but doesn't have a centre or community, I'd say.

I live in Lewes. We blow things up, we drink, go to the cinema, shop in Waitrose, eat in Bills, drive a car.

Lewes is bumpy, do you like walking up hills and sliding down them on your arse in winter?

Actually I don't eat in Bills, its a bit, err.......up itself these days. There are lots of alternatives.

Is there anything you particularly want to know about? If want to PM me about specific areas of lewes feel free.

Ohh, ya lucky beast! I would live in either place in a heartbeat.

I have lived in Sussex before, albeit not Brighton or Lewes, and have spent a lot of time in both places over the last 30 years. On balance, I would go for Lewes. It's a lovely town, good shops and pubs, tons of local character, Bonfire is really something else. They also now have an arthouse cinema with a really good cafe and the first football team in the world to deliver equal pay for women's and men's teams.

I'll always be fond of Brighton, but I think it currently has many of the same problems with drugs and crime that it had in the early 1990s, coupled with being a lot more expensive to live in than it was back then - it's not a good combination. As you have correctly identified, you can travel between Brighton and Lewes quickly and easily by train, and the view from the London Road viaduct is still one of my favourite things ever

I wouldn't say traffic is a nightmare. Its not the amount of traffic, its the fact that Lewes is an old historic town and most of the roads and the layout was not designed with cars in mind. parking is an issue though.
There are also lots of groups agitating to make Lewes town car free.

Lewes always strikes me as a local town for local people. I've never lived there but I work there and the locals are a bit of a different bred. The true locals spend the year working up to the 5th November event. It has lovely independent shops, good schools, excellent swimming pools. But despite living in Sussex for 40 years I don't think I'd be made any more welcome than someone fresh down from London.
Brighton which has lovely parts and good schools (but do check out the admissions policy), the centre is a dump full of trippers in both senses. A noice house in a noice area is nearly £1m now.

Sussex is an under-rated county; endless sea, not overly crowded beaches, beautiful countryside, a vibrant cosmopolitan (scruffy) city.

If I was looking to move I'd look at Shoreham or Seaford. Both have great beaches, countryside behind and are on the train line to Brighton for culture.

I wouldn’t discount shoreham then, there is lots going on and trains to Brighton (& night buses), more for your money than Lewes. There’s lots of lovely towns and villages but if you want public transport I’d look along the train lines and see what takes your fancy.

Ah, I’m so grateful to you all, thank you. This is invaluable to me! @MiniTheMinx I slide down the hills on my arse now in winter, so there’ll be nowt new there. @MrsLCSofLichfield I completely agree with you about Brighton, it’s kind of sad to see all worsening there.

I love Lewes. It has independent shops, nice cafes and restaurants, it's very pretty and full of history. But I wouldn't live there. My friend said that it's full of rich hippies pretending they aren't rich. And she's right. There are more genuine places around.
I loved living in Seaford but I don't think it's what you are after, definitely not Newhaven. I think there are parts of Eastbourne that could work. Or look a bit more west of Brighton.

Arundel? Worthing? (Or the bits surrounding it).

Lovely part of the world. Not so close to the sea but what about Hawkhurst? It has a Kino cinema and is a good base to get to all kinds of places from.

I’ve never heard of Hawkhurst @UrgentExit off to look it up..
@Junobug this made me laugh. I reckon there’s a grain of truth in this.
@Squirrel26 I am down with Worthing, but my husband very anti. Thinks it’s for old people. I’ll ignore how old he is… ;)

Shoreham is good as is Chichester.

Lewes is exactly as someone else said - rich hippies and I don't find it very friendly.

Further inland any good? Arundel, Horsham?