A Local’s Guide to the Best Things to do in Brighton

On a good day in Brighton, I’ll swim in the sea before breakfast, lose hours in a second-hand bookshop and watch the sunset from a hill above the city. It’s this mix of seaside, culture and wildness that keeps me here. 

If like me you enjoy finding out where locals eat, drink, shop and hang out when you’re planning a trip, this list of the best things to do in Brighton is for you.

It’s pretty much all the tips I’d give to a friend if they asked me for recommendations.

I also update this guide every month to keep it fresh. 

Enjoy Brighton Beach like a local

If you’re planning to visit or a move to Brighton, I’ll take a wild guess you’ll want to hang out at the beach. It is the city’s biggest attraction after all and the quintessential Brighton experience.

If you visit in summer, do as locals do and avoid the stretch between the Palace Pier and the charred remains of the West Pier – at all costs. The crowds are insane here, especially during Pride and on the sunniest of days.

I recommend making a beeline for either the quieter shores west towards Hove Lawns, or  Kemptown in the east. Here you’ll find more room to spread out, our version of Soho House and the lovely Volks Electric Railway for fun rides to Blackrock and back.

You can enjoy a morning sea dip or a few laps at SeaLanes open water swimming centre, before a session at one of the incredible beachfront saunas: the original Beach Box Sauna Spa (£30 for a 90-minute session) or sleek Luna Hut (£8 for a 30-minute session). From here, you’re close to Scandi-inspired cafe, Fika Beach, for a post-dip coffee and a cinnamon roll.

For a completely different view of the coastline, it’s fun to take a boat trip out to Rampion Windfarm, eight miles offshore.

ADMIRE THE ARTISTIC INTERIORS OF THE ROYAL PAVILION

I’m embarrassed to say I’d lived in Brighton for over 10 years before I finally stepped inside the Royal Pavilion, and I was pleasantly surprised. Even if historic buildings aren’t usually your thing, it’s worth doing once. From the outside, its onion domes and minarets look like they’ve been beamed in from India. Inside, it’s pure Chinese fantasy, dreamed up for the Prince Regent, later George IV, as his party palace by the sea.

Look up in the Banqueting Room, where a huge chandelier hangs from the claws of a silver dragon, then wander into the Music Room, lit by lotus-flower lamps beneath a ceiling of gilded scales. My favourite room is the Great Kitchen, where the cast-iron columns are disguised as palm trees. Go during the week to miss the crowds. Afterwards, order a coffee at the little Pavilion Gardens Café overlooking the gardens.

Tuck into Brighton’s incredible food scene

Eating out is a big part of life in Brighton, and the food scene has changed so much since I moved here more than 20 years ago – for the better. These days, you’ll find brilliant independent cafes, bakeries and restaurants scattered all over the city.

I recommend kicking off your morning with coffee at Curio, one of my favourite Brighton cafes known for its honey butter bread. If you’re in a brunch mood, head to Moksha (before 11am to beat the queue), an unpretentious spot near the North Laine serving legendary hash browns or Mange Tout further on if you fancy something French, like a croque monsieur.

For an everyday taste of Brighton, it’s fun to wander through the Open Market on London Road, I often describe as a global feast under one roof. Here, you’ll find everything from fresh bread and bagels to Mexican food – the best tacos in Brighton – alongside independent traders.

Before dinner, grab a drink in one of Brighton’s independent pubs like the Hand in Hand in Kemptown, one of my favourites for its eccentric character. If you’re feeling fancy, curl up in a cosy cocktail bar like Alphabet near the Clocktower, great for martinis.

For dinner, my list of favourite places to eat in Brighton just keeps on growing. Japanese spot Bincho Yakitori on Preston Street whisks you to the Tokyo backstreets and never disappoints (order the kara age), but for something more splurgy, I’d head to Amari near London Road for small plates and excellent wines.

Catch a film at the Duke of York’s, Britain’s oldest cinema

Spot the black and white stripy legs can canning from its roof top – and you’ve arrived at the Duke of York’s Picturehouse. Open since 1910, it’s Britain’s oldest working cinema, and I’ve lost count of the number of rainy evenings I’ve spent curled up inside.

It still has just one screen, so every showing feels like an event. I come for the arthouse films, cult classics and late-night screenings, and I always settle into a balcony seat with a glass of red. The programme mixes new indie releases with foreign-language films, Q&As and much-loved classics. In summer, its outdoor screen sets up in the grounds of Preston Manor for atmospheric film nights under the stars. Grab a local beer or a glass of wine from the bar, to enjoy with a picnic spread out on a blanket.

Go hunting for vintage treasures

 Brighton is the vintage shopping capital of the country, with so many boutiques and flea markets to rummage around in. I could lose whole days to vintage shopping here, flicking through rails of seventies dresses and pulling out battered leather jackets imagining their former lives. Snoopers Paradise in the North Laine is the famous one. It’s a glorious jumble of stalls selling everything from taxidermy to retro board games, but it gets seriously busy, especially at weekends.

For a quieter rummage, I like Brighton Flea Market over in Kemptown, where two huge floors are filled with antique glassware, old furniture, crockery, artwork, mirrors and assorted treasures. I never go in looking for anything, which is exactly the point. I’ve come home with mismatched teacups and a gilt mirror I love but definitely didn’t need.

HAVE FISH AND CHIPS BY THE SEA

There are some seaside clichés worth embracing, and fish and chips on the beach is one of them. I just wouldn’t necessarily buy them beside the pier.

One of my favourite versions is in Hove: I love to pick up fish and chips from underrated Chippy Chips near The Neptune pub and eat them on the beach, then walk along the seafront afterwards for an ice cream from Marrocco’s. It’s no-frills, very Brighton and Hove, and a lovely way to spend an afternoon or early summer’s evening by the sea.

Snoop around Artists Open Houses

Who doesn’t love a nose around other people’s homes? Twice a year, during the Artists Open Houses, artists across Brighton turn their front rooms, kitchens and garden studios into mini galleries and throw open their doors.

I love wandering from one house to the next with a glass of mulled wine, chatting to the artists and peeking at their bookshelves as much as their paintings. It’s one of the best ways to discover new artists and find affordable art, and I rarely come home empty-handed. Think prints, ceramics, jewellery and cards that make perfect Christmas presents.

The event runs every May and across four weekends in the run-up to Christmas. I plan my trail by neighbourhood, by artist or with the handy map on the website, but half the fun is spotting an Open House sign outside a door and wandering in.

Catch a live show at Brighton Fringe

Every May, Brighton fills up with comedians, cabaret acts and street performers for the Brighton Fringe, the biggest arts festival in England. It runs for around a month, alongside the more curated Brighton Festival, and it’s open to anyone who wants to put on a show. I’ve seen everything from stand-up in a pub back room to immersive theatre in places I never knew existed.

I love that you can squeeze in a show on a whim. Many are cheap, some are free, and most last about an hour, so I’ll often catch a couple in one evening with a drink in between. The pop-up venues are half the fun, from fairy-lit big tops to tiny studios. My tip is to take a punt on something you’d never normally book. The wildcards are often the shows I’m still talking about weeks later.

See a live music gig

Brighton has launched more than its fair share of bands, and on any night of the week you can catch one you’ll be bragging about seeing before they were famous. Start at the Prince Albert, the pub opposite the station. You can’t miss the giant mural of music legends painted on its side.

Upstairs, its tiny venue gets you so close to the stage you could read the set list. Round the corner, the Green Door Store is squeezed into the Victorian railway arches under the station. It’s dark, loud, sweaty and gloriously ramshackle, and plenty of its gigs are free.

For bigger touring acts, I head down to Chalk in Pool Valley, a short stroll from the seafront, where the sound is brilliant and there’s always a buzz. Find the Prince Albert at 48 Trafalgar Street, the Green Door Store on Trafalgar Arches and Chalk at Pool Valley.

Go Gallery hopping!

You can’t come to Brighton, a city packed with artists and galleries, without taking in the art scene. I always start at Brighton Museum & Art Gallery in the Royal Pavilion Garden, which hosts big-name exhibitions. Right now, I’d make a beeline for Biba, a glorious throwback to the iconic sixties and seventies fashion label. Then I’d seek out the fashion and decorative art galleries, from Art Nouveau glass to Salvador Dalí’s lip-shaped Mae West sofa.

For contemporary art, my favourite is Fabrica, set in a former Regency church in the Lanes. I also love the Phoenix, by the Level, which hosts free shows across two huge gallery spaces, and its café is a great spot to linger afterwards. If you’re here in May or the run-up to Christmas, don’t miss the Artists Open Houses (see above), when local artists open up their homes and studios.

Discover brighton’s best pubs and cocktail bars

Brighton has some of the best independent pubs in the country, and I think a pub crawl is one of the best ways to get under the city’s skin. My favourite is the Hand in Hand in Kemptown, a tiny corner pub bursting with eccentric character. In the North Laine, the Basketmakers Arms is a Brighton institution, with its walls covered in vintage tins. Skip the chains around West Street and head down the side streets, where the locals drink.

When I’m feeling fancy, I’ll curl up in one of Brighton’s cosy cocktail bars instead. My go-to is Alphabet near the Clock Tower, which makes some of the best martinis in the city. For something more intimate, I love Plotting Parlour, a candlelit hideaway with inventive cocktails that’s perfect for a date night.

Venture up to Brighton’s best sunset

Brighton faces south, so you get a front-row seat when the sun sinks into the sea. The seafront is the obvious spot. From the Kemptown end of the beach, you can watch the Palace Pier, the skeleton of the West Pier and the i360 turn into black silhouettes against a sky streaked with pink and orange.

But my absolute favourite spot is one only locals know about: Hollingbury Hillfort. It’s a 30-minute walk from the beach or a 10-minute bus ride, but it’s worth it for the best views in the city. From the grassy ramparts of this Iron Age fort, the whole of Brighton is spread out below you, all the way down to the sea, with the rolling South Downs behind. I like to bring a blanket and a flask and stay put as the sun goes down and the city lights flicker on one by one. It’s usually so quiet up there that you’ll feel like you have the whole city to yourself.

Escape to the South Downs

One of the things I love most about living in Brighton is how quickly you can swap the city for open countryside. The South Downs National Park wraps around the city, and on a clear day I’ll hop on a Breeze up to the Downs bus and be out on the chalk hills in under half an hour. My go-to is Devil’s Dyke, a dramatic dry valley with sweeping views across the Weald. Legend says the devil dug it to flood the churches of Sussex.

For a longer hike, I follow the South Downs Way to Ditchling Beacon, one of the highest points in the county. If you’d rather stay closer to town, walk west from Hove Lawns towards Shoreham. You’ll pass rows of pastel beach huts and Hove Lagoon before the city gives way to big skies, fishing boats and a wilder stretch of shingle.

Thanks for reading! If you enjoyed this story, would you consider buying me a coffee?

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