Find the nearest Beaches in Kent
Planning a trip to the Kent coast and looking for where the nearest beach is, our beach lists will help you discover the nearest beach to me. Then for each beach, we will answer questions around location, rural or town, sandy or pebble, rockpools, tide times, weather forecast, dog restrictions, bathing water quality, closest beach cafes and provide general information on the beach and its facilities.
When on a beach page use our tools to search nearby Kent seaside towns and the surrounding coast for things to see and do or places to stay and eat.
If you are looking for an award-winning beach then you can browse our Blue Flag lists or Seaside Award lists.
Finding the right beach in Kent is easy – simply explore the beach links below, to find the closest hit the jump to my location compass or use the search bar to plan where your next Kent beach visit should be.
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- Lower Leas Coastal Park is a pebble beach also referred to as Folkestone beach. Parking at the Coastal park or park in the town and take a Zig Zag path down to the beach. Facilities include children’s adventure playground, toilets, cafe and beach shop.
- Deal beach stretches along the Deal seafront, split by the Pier and on the Western end you have the Tudor Deal Castle. The beach at Deal is a large shingle beach with wooden groynes backed by a flat promenade and road. You will also see a number of small fishing boats pulled up on the beach. The Pier is very popular for fishing (charges apply). Facilities include parking by the beach, toilets, pier, amusement arcades and a wide selection of shops, cafe, pubs, and restaurants.
- Greatstone Beach – The sandy beach at Greatstone is quite flat and stretches from north to south for over two miles backed by sand dunes. At low tide you can have upto half a mile walk to the sea. Greatstone beach provides safe sea bathing in the haven of Romney Bay and miles of fine sand, dunes that are a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSI) with many rare species of plants, good wide beach for beach sports. The beach is popular with wind based water sports including windsurfing and kitesurfing. The land aspects of the beach provides a wide compact area suitable for kite buggies and land yatching. The beach is also popular with horse riders. Facilities include car park, public toilets, pub and shops opposite the car park..
- Minster Leas beach is a long sand and shingle beach on the Isle of Sheppey. Lifeguards during the summer weekends, parking, toilets, refreshments.
- Dumpton Gap is a quiet, sandy bay with some rocks approximately 150 meters long with promenade and backed by white cliffs. The beach at Dumpton Gap provides a quieter option over the busier beaches of Ramsgate and Broadstairs. For the adventurous at low tide, you have an excellent walk to Ramsgate, although please check the tide times. Alternatively, you can take the West Cliff Promenade into Broadstairs. Facilities at the beach include a promenade, toilets, cafe, chalets for hire, disabled access via a steep slope.
- Westgate Bay is a sandy beach, a good family beach for sandcastles and lots of small rock pools to explore. The bay is tidal and so the beach will disappear at high tide. Facilities include seasonal lifeguards, cafes, car parking, toilets, chalets for hire, pub, disabled access to the beach with disabled toilets open all year.
- St Mary’s Bay Sands beach is a large flat sandy beach with some shingle, backed by a concrete promenade. Pay and display car park, toilets (open Easter to October).
- Littlestone beach is one section of a long stretch of sandy beach. Parking, slipway, toilets, pub. We have no dog information for Littlestone beach.
- Viking Bay beach is the main bay of the seven Broadstairs bays, a sandy beach with clifftop promenade, harbour pier, sea water tidal swimming pool and a boardwalk. The beach has a slope on the northern end of the harbour whilst on the southern end, you have steps or a seasonal lift to get you down from the gardens at the top of the cliffs. Facilities at the beach include toilets, cafes, pubs, kiosks, restaurants, boast slipway, lift to the beach (open Easter to October), deck chairs, amusements, chalets for hire, seasonal lifeguards. As this is the main Broadstairs beach you have various parking options, a small harbour car park or street parking at the top of the cliffs.
- Sandwich Bay beach is a long stretch of beach that consists of pebble at the top and then very large sand flats, backed by some sand dunes. As you move from south to north you get more sand and less pebbles, although the northern end is often used by naturists. This stretch of coast is a nature reserve. Access via a toll road, charged at a day rate, making this a little expensive for a short visit. We have no dog information for Sandwich Bay beach.
- Walpole Bay beach is approximately 400 meters long sandy beach with promenade and tidal swimming pool. Walpole Bay includes Palm Bay, Hodges Gap and Foreness Point. Popular for watersports. Facilities include lift, toilets, lifeguards, chalets for hire, golf, putting, tennis and indoor bowls nearby.
- West Beach is a pebble beach sitting to the west of Hampton Pier and the curve in the coastline. Hampton Pier at the west end of Herne Bay, Kent is some 350 feet (110 m) long. Toilets, pub, grass park. We have no dog information for Hampton Pier – West beach.
