Promenading in Brighton England
Walking from The Pier to View Seafront, Beach Huts and Hove Lagoon
A promenade from Brighton Pier to Hove Lagoon offers sensual rewards of the sounds, smells and sights of the shingle beach, the sea, painted beach huts and watersports.
Promenading remains an afternoon pursuit in Brighton England. Leisurely walking along the wide pathway from Brighton Pier towards Hove offers a feast to a visitor’s senses.
An afternoon in Brighton can be spent in many ways including playing on the water and beach, being entertained at Brighton Pier, visiting the Royal Pavilion, shopping and doing afternoon tea. Walking from the Pier towards Hove reveals varied aspects of the sea and period property of Brighton.
Promenading from Brighton Pier
Brighton Pier - once known as the Palace Pier – is a landmark starting point for a promenade in Brighton. "Here today…", by Brighton artist Philip Dunn, shows the deckchairs on the Pier looking towards the West Pier. Although the West Pier is now a ruin, Philip Dunn’s artwork shows the shape of the promenading route closely parallel to the sea which is a popular way to spend an afternoon in Brighton.
Walking away from Brighton Pier and towards Hove, the sea is on your left and numerous Brighton hotels are on your right hand side. Visitors promenading up on the pavement level will notice that lampposts are plentiful. This is an asset for runners who wish to fit in some interval training while visiting Brighton and also offers illumination for promenading in the late evening.
Ramps and stairs at regular points along the Esplanade offer access to the Brighton beach, the sea and the beachfront cafés, galleries and artisan shops of the Artists’ Quarter. Pebbles – or shingle – characterise the beach at Brighton. DJ FatBoy Slim has held several concerts on the Brighton beach with his next music party there on Friday 26 September and Saturday 27 September 2008.
Beach Huts
Visitors who are promenading on The Esplanade, the pavement level above the beach, are greeted on their right hand side, across the road, by with the Regency style hotel fronts before meeting the terraces of individualistic beach huts directly on the Hove Promenade. Decorated outside and in to the tastes of their Brighton & Hove resident owners, Brighton’s beach huts continue to seduce social historians and photographers. Kathryn Ferry, PhD, author of Beach Huts and Bathing Machines (Shire, forthcoming in February 2009) is currently writing Sheds on the Seashore: a Tour Through Beach Hut History. Visitors with a camera will find it hard to resist shooting photographs of Brighton's beach huts.
Hove Lagoon
Arriving at Hove Lagoon, a boating lake, various seating and the 1930s property, the Lagoon café, offer interest, rest and refreshment. Hove Lagoon is often the turning point of an afternoon spent promenading from Brighton Pier.
Further information on afternoon activities in Brighton include Doing Afternoon Tea in Brighton and Visiting the Royal Pavilion. Social historians can access the oral history of Brighton archive, building on the My Brighton exhibit, online at My Brighton and Hove.
