Holiday location recommendations please

[CarlaH]

A few years ago we had a holiday in Ambleside in the Lake District. Our holiday cottage was pretty central and it meant we could walk to the pubs and restaurants which was just lovely.

We now have the opportunity to go away for a week sometime in September. The Ambleside property is no longer available and actually we would prefer to go somewhere in the southern half of England this time.

Does anybody have any recommendations for towns or large villages which are likely to have a variety of places to eat so that we could once again be able to go out without driving. We would need a parking space for our car so places that have a lot of restrictions wouldn't work.

Thanks in advance for any recommendations.

Not in the South but what about the North Yorkshire coast , maybe basing yourself in Whitby or somewhere near there or maybe somewhere like Richmond in Yorkshire.

Or what about the peak district?

Thank you for your response. We live in London and my partner doesn't drive. These days I find driving tiring and difficult so we would prefer somewhere we could get to in around three hours maximum.

Before I read somewhere South, I thought Castleton in the Peak District fits the bill perfectly. Amazing walking and some lovely pubs and restaurants.

@CarlaH Have a look at Rye. It’s a lovely place for mooching and eating and independent shops and history. It also has Kino Cinema which is fantastic and has a great cafe with nice outdoor seating tucked away in a courtyard. It’s one of my favourite places to visit for a long weekend (I live in London).

How about heading to the coast? Perhaps Whitstable, Hastings, or over to the Isle of Wight? Or inland, Winchester or Bath are both lovely.

Tenby is fantastic. There are 3 beaches in the town, a castle, a gorgeous town centre with loads of restaurants and bars and buses to nearby towns.

Or Hastings. Its a bit marmite but I personally love it. Its got a castle a beach, beautiful parks and quirky shops near the boat area. From here you can easily get to Brighton by train which has something for everyone

Alfriston in Sussex is lovely.

Thanks everybody for the responses.

I have actually been to Rye which was beautiful but it looks like the sort of place where finding a property with a parking space will be a challenge.

Tenby is five hours away which is just too far sadly.

Rye is a good suggestion, as is Whitstable.

Also:
Bradford-on-Avon
Matlock Bath
Bakewell
Aldeburgh
Burford

I’ve never had problems getting a property with parking in Rye. I usually stay near Cadborough Cliff (just to the west of Rye) and have 10 min walk to the centre along the 1066 path. It’s a beautiful but quick walk. If I’m feeling lazy, I drive and park at Gibbets Marsh car park which is super cheap and only a 2 min walk into the centre. Easy peasy.

Whitstable is lovely but an absolute nightmare for parking at the weekends and most AirBNBs there don’t have parking spaces at all. It’s usually gridlocked into Whitstable all the way from the A299 as half of London tries to drive there as soon as the sun comes out and it’s a weekend / bank holiday.

Suffolk is doable within your 3 hour drive radius. Both Aldeburgh and Southwold are lovely although I prefer to stay in Orford (mainly so I can get coffee and Eccles cakes from Pump St bakery there 😂)

Well that is interesting. We have left it a bit late to get a choice of properties but we have only just found out we can go.

Thanks all for the recommendations.

My partner has just been looking online using best places to go on holiday and eat well and now wants to go to Margate. I went there as a child and really didn't like it very much but I am aware that it is on the up.

Does anybody have any actual knowledge of the place.

Ha yes! I took my (visiting from the North, never been to Kent before) cousins to Margate in June. I know Margate quite well as I used to live in Canterbury and Herne Bay many years ago and as a Londoner I often decamp to the northern Kent coast at the weekends. It’s hard to beat a sunset along that coast as the light is just incredible. Which is why so many artists go/live there.

Margate is ‘interesting’. The Old Town is pretty small but that and the Harbour Arm and further east into Cliftonville are quite hip these days. This is the part of Margate that people call Shoreditch-on-sea. 😉The rest of Margate (so mainly south and west of the Old Town) is what I’ll politely call ‘chavtastic’. Some parts haven’t even got as far as aspiring to be chavtastic yet. It’s actually fascinating as it literally changes as you cross the street. Even my cousins noticed and were really surprised. It was scorchingly hot when we were there (34+ degrees) and the main beach was like Benidorm on (cheap) steroids but the beaches to the east (so from the Turner Contemporary eastwards) were still lovely and quiet. It really was like being in two totally different places. Bizarre and a little bonkers.

Margate’s quite a foodie destination now, mainly due to the influx of East London hipsters I think. You might like to stay at The Reading Rooms. You can park on the square outside (they’ll give you a pass) and it’s a short amble down the hill into the Old Town. I’ve stayed in their first floor room/suite and it’s lovely and very relaxing.

Lyme Regis (Dorset)

I was going to suggest Whitstable.
I don’t think it will be gridlocked in September. I tend to go quite often out of season (from London) and the traffic has never been awful.
Is it just the two of you @CarlaH ?

Bradford on Avon, Wiltshire

Margate was OK - we went there to visit a specific restaurant, and it was just a day trip. I wouldn’t have wanted to be there for any longer TBH.

But we really enjoyed Folkestone, and there are some great restaurants and bars there. We went on the train rather than drive, and it was an easy journey - but if you’re driving I think there would be plenty of places to park, from memory.

It was very gridlocked in June and July. I was in Kent quite a lot (I do voluntary work in Kent most weekends) and drove past the stationary traffic queuing to get off the A299 and into Whitstable on a regular basis. I took my cousins there in early July but we went on a Tuesday afternoon so if wasn’t too bad (although we still spent 30 mins sitting in slow traffic trying actually get into central Whitstable). I avoid going to Whitstable by car at the weekend if the weather’s good. It’s asking for trouble. Better to get the train then!

Skip Margate and go to Broadstairs.

1h 20m from St Pancras so you dont even need to take the car at all. Loads of places to eat (lots of indie coffee shops and bars as well). Nice beaches. We prefer Stone Bay to Viking.

Lovely coastal walks.

One of my happy places. We used to rent a cottage with a car parking space but alas they sold up. Wasn't a fan of Margate but I would always go back to Broadstairs!

I love Margate and the coastal walking is just awesome.

You can easily walk the coast to Ramsgate and get the train back or the other way to Herne bay.

Margate itself has the art gallery, shell grotto, caves and the beach is lovely.

We found an awesome little Italian restaurant called Olivo that I’d recommend to anyone going to Margate.

We only stay a night or 2 but it really is one of my favourite places for a short break.

Lyme Regis would be perfect. Lovely small town, lots of bars and restaurants, lots of holiday accommodation with parking, not too far from London.

Really grateful for all the replies, particularly about Margate which sounds very much as I expected. It is only the two of us but we do need two bedrooms as I sleep very badly and my partner needs a room of their own to allow them the chance to have a decent night’s sleep.

I’ll PM you the place I usually stay in Whitstable. Walkable everywhere, and has parking too!

I’ve stayed at Whitstable Fishermen’s Huts a few times. Great location right opposite the sea and, importantly for Whitstable, each hut comes with its own dedicated parking space. Some of them have 2 bedrooms so worth a look @CarlaH