If you are the kind of person who likes to stay in England for your holiday you may find yourself locked on the horns of an interesting dilemma. With so many picturesque and lively coastal resorts to visit, which one do you opt for?
Might it be Blackpool? With its famous landmark tower, its Golden Mile, its illuminations and its wondrous Pleasure Beach – Blackpool, in the North West of England, is the UK's most popular seaside resort. During the summer period it is a major entertainment venue, with many of the country's most well known showbiz names performing variety acts at the Grand Theatre.
On the other hand you may be minded to head south to visit Brighton instead, the larger part of the combined city of Brighton and Hove, in East Sussex. Whilst its dreamy historic Lanes were the only part of town to survive the activities of early sixteenth century French raiders, the Royal Pavilion, the Marina and the Palace Pier (as well as the now defunct West Pier) later came around to create a familiar and hugely popular resort down on the English south coast.
Back up north the civil parish and port of Whitby, in Yorkshire, has a deep tourist and maritime heritage. It is the place where Caedmon, reputedly the first English poet, lived and where Captain Cook first mastered seamanship. A richly historic centre of fishing and whaling activity, Whitby also attracts large numbers of holidaymakers and is indeed one of the UK's most visited coastal resorts. In the summer it hosts the famous Whitby Regatta over a three day period in August.
The writer's own personal favourite seaside town is Margate on the Isle of Thanet in Kent, despite the regrettable decline as a holiday venue of the once lovely neighbouring town of Cliftonville, with its long, peaceful Esplanade and its scenic chalk cliffs, arcades and novelty shops.
Of course if you are contemplating booking a hotel or even a modest guest house you will wish to consider first which of these resorts, or of the very many others that have not been mentioned, is the most to your taste. Then again you could instead hire a motor home or campervan, save on the cost of hotel bills and tour the coastline moving from one resort to another, enjoying the distinct character of each along on your way.
Finding a camper van to hire is probably the cheapest but most efficient and cost effective way to visit the English coastline. It gives you the freedom to stay for as long as you like in any place that takes your fancy, but to move on to somewhere else as soon as the muse takes you.
Martin Wynn
