From deepest Cornwall to the wild Scottish Highlands, life’s a beach at our top 20 coastal hotspots
By Tim Palmer
If this year’s stop-start summer weather is good for one thing, it’s to remind us how vital it is to be ready to make the most of a rare day when the sun peeks out from behind the rainclouds. Rather than gambling precious time off on our increasingly unreliable climate, live by the sea — then every day can be like a holiday. You’ll be in pole position to spend time in, on or beside the water.
This selection of the best places to live by the coast includes something for everyone: arty, commutable towns, seaside suburbs, pretty honeypots and spectacular, wild escapes. All these contrasting locations have something to offer in every season, with the kind of communities, connections and practicalities that will make the holiday feeling last all year round. And there’s something for every budget, too — with an average house price for each location provided by Savills, using Land Registry data.
The Witterings, West Sussex
West Wittering’s vast expanse of pristine white sand is a spectacle you might hope to see in the Western Isles or the Caribbean, but in the overcrowded southeast of England it’s a miracle. Every aquatic activity is catered for here: surfing, sailing, kayaking and paddleboarding in Chichester Harbour, or just eating chips from the stylish beach café. The village itself is idyllic, with daisy-covered lawns and lovely flint houses in a warren of winding lanes and private roads. It’s easy to be discreet here, which is one reason why A-list celebs such as Kate Winslet and Keith Richards have chosen to call it home. House prices are correspondingly stratospheric — an average of £954,150. Which is where its next-door neighbour, East Wittering, comes in. Its own beach is pretty good, West Wittering is only a 30-minute walk away and you can get an average home here for about half the price. It’s much less rarefied and bucolic, but a lot more practical with its friendly pub, fresh fish from the fisherman’s hut on the beach and an old-fashioned selection of independent shops.
Average house price (East and West): £537,897
North Berwick, East Lothian
With two great beaches and a harbour, North Berwick has everything you want for a life by the sea, and a whole lot more besides: a brilliant high street packed with independent shops, natural beauty all around, excellent schools and a half-hour train link to Edinburgh. You’ll see swimmers in the water and dog-walkers on the sand all year round, but it’s in summer that the town really comes into its own. There’s a summer solstice beach bonfire, the Fringe by the Sea festival brings in the crowds for cultural high jinks and the lobster shack serves its famous lobster rolls. No wonder house prices are high. A period mansion in a prime spot on Fidra Road could cost over £2 million.
Average price: £460,161
Shaldon, Devon
This self-styled “quaint drinking village with a fishing problem” certainly knows how to have a good time. From the water carnival to the summer regatta and the giant beach bonfire, there’s always something going on — and most of it revolves around the water. Paddleboarding and kayaking are to the fore in the Teign estuary and there’s high-class yachting in the choppier waters of the Channel. There’s also a choice of red-sand beaches, but check the tides before you head through the old smugglers’ tunnel to Ness Cove Beach — it disappears at high water. As well as the trio of pubs, there’s a butcher, a baker and well-stocked village store. If you can, grab one of the Georgian houses on the village green, which go for about £1 million, depending on size and condition.
Average price: £516,087
Folkestone, Kent
Folkestone’s eye-catching regeneration remains a work in progress, but the colourful Old High Street and views of the sea, the White Cliffs and France from the revitalised Harbour Arm make this the most interesting base on the much-hyped Kent coast. Even the areas untouched by the town’s arty makeover are looking brighter, with the blighted bus station due to be transformed into a park. Add high-speed trains (reaching London St Pancras in under an hour), excellent schools and superior sports facilities, and Folkestone is hard to beat. The most striking address is the new seafront Shoreline development, where prices range from £395,000 for a one-bedroom apartment to £2.75 million for a three-bedroom penthouse.
Average price: £300,448
• Why Folkestone, Kent, is the best place to live in the southeast of England 2024
Arnside, Cumbria
The magnificent vista along the wooded shore of the Kent estuary is one of the best estuary views — an ever-changing spectacle of glowing sand, sparkling water and wonderful wildlife. Try to bag a room or two with a view and ideally a garden, perhaps at sea level on the Promenade or High Knott Road and Redhills Road closer to the panoramic summit of Arnside Knott. A handful of larger, grander homes might top the £1 million mark but there are plenty of good houses on the market for £500,000. Visitors descend on the village on a summer’s evening to watch the sunset while tucking into cod and chips from the famous chippie. But the social scene remains lively all year at the friendly sailing club and a variety of other groups and classes.
Average price: £367,629
Arnside, Cumbria
The magnificent vista along the wooded shore of the Kent estuary is one of the best estuary views — an ever-changing spectacle of glowing sand, sparkling water and wonderful wildlife. Try to bag a room or two with a view and ideally a garden, perhaps at sea level on the Promenade or High Knott Road and Redhills Road closer to the panoramic summit of Arnside Knott. A handful of larger, grander homes might top the £1 million mark but there are plenty of good houses on the market for £500,000. Visitors descend on the village on a summer’s evening to watch the sunset while tucking into cod and chips from the famous chippie. But the social scene remains lively all year at the friendly sailing club and a variety of other groups and classes.
Average price: £367,629
Tynemouth, Tyne and Wear
For all the upwardly mobile appeal of revitalised Whitley Bay, elegant Tynemouth is long established as the first choice for the discerning Geordie in search of sand, surf and super-fresh seafood. You’ll find the first two at blue-flagged Longsands, the pick of the beaches. Riley’s Fish Shack provides the latter, turning out top-class grub from a Portakabin on King Edward’s Bay, which has its own blue flag. Away from the shore, the town has an appealing arty-crafty collection of indie shops and restaurants, as well as a lively market in the old railway station. Good schools and a 35-minute Metro connection to the centre of Newcastle ensure it scores highly for practicalities. Finding a house — or a parking space — may not be plain sailing. Demand is high and period homes in prime spots close to the beach such as Percy Gardens can push the seven-figure barrier. There’s better value to be found on Millview Drive or the Broadway, or two miles up the coast in neighbouring Cullercoats.
Average price: £320,276
Portobello, Edinburgh
Go back 20 years and it’s hard to imagine that down-at-heel Porty would become one of Edinburgh’s most fought-over addresses. But with three-bedroom houses flying off the shelves for about £800,000 and the best detached homes topping the £1 million mark, this sandy suburb is where every artist, author and cool young family now wants to live. The beach — with kayaking and volleyball in summer, bonfires in winter and swimming all year round — is the big draw. The useful high street has more than its fair share of artisans and indie establishments. Pizza from Civerinos Slice Bar and seafood from Shrimpwreck ensure that foodies don’t need to take the 20-minute bike ride or 30-minute bus journey into the city centre for seriously good grub.
Average price: £303,208
Saundersfoot, Pembrokeshire
Saundersfoot may not have the Instagrammable looks of Tenby along the coast, but on most counts it’s more than a match for its colourful Georgian neighbour. A recently completed harbour development has brought a bit of buzz to the waterfront, while Saundersfoot Beach was named one of the three most sustainable in the world in a TripAdvisor survey this year and there are two others to hang out on. The sandy beaches are the big draw for holidaymakers, but there’s enough going on year-round to make this the perfect base to explore the riches of the wild coast of west Wales. There’s a good primary school, trains to Swansea (in a leisurely 90 minutes) and a full roster of community clubs and activities.
Average price: £370,537
Amble, Northumberland
Today, there’s little sign of the gloom that followed the decline of the mining industry here — head to the beaches or harbour where you can buy fish fresh from the boats, and admire the view of Coquet Island, home to puffins and rare roseate terns. You can dine on top-notch seafood at Jasper’s Bistro or the Fish Shack — where Harrison Ford tucked into sardines and a pint while filming the latest Indiana Jones movie, Dial of Destiny. The schools are good and access to Newcastle, the East Coast Main Line and the wilder corners of the windswept Northumberland coast could hardly be easier. Unlike holiday-home honeypots such as Bamburgh or Craster, this is a proper, year-round community: to see just how much is going on, check the Ambler, the town’s own hyperlocal paper. House prices are forgiving — less than half the cost of buying in neighbouring Warkworth, according to Rightmove.
Average price: £209,709
Ballycastle, Co Antrim
With expansive beaches, Game of Thrones scenery all around and views across the wild Atlantic to Rathlin Island and the Mull of Kintyre, Ballycastle is a feast for the eyes. And for the tastebuds — try the brilliant bakery Ursa Minor and the North Coast Smokehouse, and the local produce at the market, before tucking into Morton’s famous fish and chips. See the town at its liveliest during the Ould Lammas Fair in late August, when thousands crowd into the streets to watch the horse-trading while tucking into local delicacies such as yellowman (honeycomb) and dulse (seaweed). The best address is probably Quay Road, where a new, four-bedroom Georgian-style townhouse is on the market for £475,000.
Average price: £249,667
St Leonards-on-Sea, East Sussex
Last year’s opening of the “farm-to-table” restaurant Bayte — which has a family connection to the ever-fashionable Petersham Nurseries in Richmond, southwest London — confirms St Leonards’ top-table place for sophisticated seaside escapes. Lovers of natural wines, sourdough microbakeries, small plates menus and tasteful mid-century knick-knacks will find plenty to keep them occupied on Kings Road (now considerably cooler than its Chelsea namesake), while the 100-minute rail connection to London keeps the capital reassuringly close. The choice of property should satisfy any admirer of seaside architecture, from 19th-century trophy homes for about £1 million, to art deco seafront apartments for under £150,000.
Average price: £313,289
Arisaig, Scottish Highlands
With their glittering turquoise seas and miles of sparkling sands, the beaches on this corner of Scotland’s magical west coast have a good claim to be Britain’s best. Some are well known — Camusdarach, which featured in the film Local Hero, and the Silver Sands of Morar — while others remain well-kept secrets best explored by kayak. It’s the Scottish Highlands, so it is remote, but Fort William is only an hour away by car. The village is scattered but has a pub, shop, Post Office and primary school and there’s even a golf course (annual membership £236). Up the road, Mallaig has a petrol station, secondary school and many more shops. There’s a range of properties, from bijou bungalows to traditional cottages and, if you’re lucky, a sturdy old stone farmhouse. You’ll have to be patient, though: homes only rarely come onto the market.
Average price: £240,313
Waterloo, Merseyside
The greatest attractions here are the 100 life-sized cast-iron figures that make up Another Place, Antony Gormley’s mesmerising installation which has transformed the huge sandy Crosby Beach into one of the country’s most uplifting spectacles — even more so if you spot one of the dolphins that are increasingly regular visitors to the Mersey. But there are more down-to-earth attractions in this unpretentious beachside enclave that’s less than 20 minutes by reliable Merseyrail train from the centre of Liverpool. There are good schools, a lively selection of bars and restaurants clustered around the station on South Road and the lovely Plaza Community Cinema. Best of all is a useful stock of Victorian and Edwardian houses, which are both closer to the water and cheaper than in Waterloo’s better-known neighbour, Crosby. A four-bedroom place with a view of the beach will cost £350,000-£400,000. An extra £100,000 will secure a spot right on the beach.
Average price: £213,198
Mumbles, Glamorgan
For somewhere that’s essentially a suburb of Swansea, Mumbles has a frankly indecent amount to offer the most demanding thalassophile. Within a few miles of the centre of Wales’s second city, you can watch wading birds forage on the shoreline of Swansea Bay, explore the rockpools of Bracelet Bay, join the hardy year-round swimmers at Langland Bay or hop on your surfboard at Caswell Bay. An ice cream from Joe’s, Forte’s or Verdi’s is the perfect reward for a day on the beach. For those seeking even wilder landscapes Rhossili Bay, on the tip of the Gower peninsula, is 40 minutes in the opposite direction. The best addresses round here — some would say in all of Wales — are Caswell Bay and Langland, sometimes optimistically described as the country’s answer to the Hamptons.
Average price: £412,524
Penzance/Newlyn, Cornwall
Penzance may be at the end of the train line, but this is no salty backwater, and some new investments have spruced things up. Cornish culture is to the fore, and since the pandemic a clutch of bars and restaurants have opened, including 45 Queen Street, Lovetts café and the harbourside fish joint Argoe, which is listed in the Michelin guide. From historic Chapel Street to the art deco Jubilee Pool (where full-time residents get a discount), architecture is a strong point. And best of all, those beautiful old houses offer excellent value for money, at least compared with the hooray hotspots on the north coast. “We remain in a buyer’s market and there’s plenty of choice, from detached Victorian villas for around £1 million, to cute cottages overlooking Mount’s Bay for under £500,000,” says Anna Sharp, of the buying agency Black Brick.
Average price: £302,328
Southbourne, Dorset
This laid-back suburb is a lively refuge on the eastern fringe of Bournemouth’s extravagant sprawl. You can stroll along the shore to the pier and into town while in the other direction the viewpoint of Hengistbury Head offers the chance to rise above the holiday crowds. At the heart of the fun is Sobo Beach, a double-decker bus and shipping-container complex which serves everything from coffee to crabcakes. The high street has a post office and useful shops, and places to eat, from excellent fish and chips to the £125 tasting menu at Roots. A seafront detached house in a prime clifftop spot will cost about £1.7 million. Further inland, large family-sized homes go for about £800,000.
Average price: £474,486
Sutton on Sea, Lincolnshire
With its miles of golden sand and rows of beach huts (which sell for upwards of £20,000), Mablethorpe’s modest neighbour trades on its old-fashioned charm. No funfairs or amusement arcades here, just a blue-flag beach (a rare treat on this stretch of the east coast), useful independent shops and bags of community spirit running through its clubs and classes, floral displays and colourfully yarn-bombed street furniture. Sutton’s unshowy, down-to-earth charm is hard to find these days when most coastal towns are either blingy havens for the second-home super-rich or depressed and deprived, with not much in between. But progress is afoot, in the shape of a new £6.2 million arts and culture venue being built in the historic colonnade on the seafront.
Average price: £248,495
• Why Sutton on Sea, Lincolnshire, is one of the best places to live 2024
Cromer, Norfolk
With its famous crabs, blue-flag beaches and a pier that hosts the UK’s only full-season end-of-the pier variety show, Cromer has everything you need for a traditional bucket-and-spade getaway. It remains a bit shabby round the edges, but there’s an increasingly upmarket, arty tinge that’s threatening to elevate this faded Victorian hotspot from longstanding up-and-comer to somewhere that’s finally arrived. There’s some of the country’s best fish and chips at No 1 Cromer as well as a growing number of art galleries, delis and locally roasted coffee. It’s cheaper than Blakeney, Wells-next-the-Sea and the fancier retirement resorts along the Norfolk coast, and livelier in winter, too, though don’t expect to commute anywhere other than Norwich (45 minutes by car).
Average price: £292,494
Nairn, Highlands
You wouldn’t mistake the weather for Tenerife, but Nairn is one of the sunniest, driest corners of Scotland. Faint praise, perhaps, but that means there’s more time to enjoy the panoply of pursuits on offer in this handsome town on the Moray Firth. It has two beaches, two championship golf courses and limitless walking and mountain biking opportunities nearby, and a resident pod of dolphins to watch out for. A books and arts festival highlights Nairn’s cultural depth. The bright lights and superstores of Inverness are close at hand (30 minutes by car, 20 by train), but you can get most of what you need in the town centre. There’s a good range of Victorian homes, from cottages for about £200,000 to large detached villas (£500,000 or so).
Average price: £250,435
