Today I want to share my itinerary for a weekend in Margate and Whitstable with you. These seaside towns in Kent are some of the best places to visit near London, and spending two days discovering them will allow you to see the highlights. They’re an easy train trip from London, too. Read on for my guide. I’ve included a map as well.
Weekend in Margate & Whitstable
Right on the coast in southeast England, Margate and Whitstable are perfect places to escape the city and enjoy the seaside.
Margate is known for its great vintage shopping, retro amusement park, stunning contemporary art museum, and beachfront restaurants.
Whitstable is famous for its annual oyster festival, but it’s great to visit at other times of year as well. Its high street is packed with cute shops, and there are seafood restaurants galore. The beach is great, too.
How to Get to Here
If you want to follow in my footsteps, you can start your trip by driving or taking a train to Margate. If you choose the latter, there are direct rail services from London. The fastest ones whisk passengers off to the famous seaside town in just 90 minutes.
Services depart from both Victoria station and St Pancras International. If you want to take a fast train, make sure to travel from the latter.
Once in Margate, it’s a short walk from the station into the heart of town. If that sounds good, you can book train tickets here.
Where to Stay
My top pick for a place to call home-away-from-home in Margate is the Fort Road Hotel. It’s in a great location near the waterfront and the Turner Contemporary art gallery, and the guest rooms are beautiful. If that appeals, you can book a stay here.
If you want additional ideas, you can see more options and book one here. With so much great accommodation in town, you’re bound to find somewhere that fits your travel style and preferences.
Saturday
My weekend trip to Margate and Whitstable starts on a Saturday morning. A friend and I arrive from London and meet another friend who has a house here for a girls’ getaway on the seaside. We’re excited to explore the town and see it with a local.
Lunch
After getting settled in, we head out for lunch. Our friend takes us to Po’ Boy “The Creole Fish Hut,” a colorful shack on the waterfront. It’s one of her favorite places in town. It’s surrounded by a coffee shop, a bar, and a unique cafe housed in a double-decker bus.
We settle in for lunch at one of the area’s picnic tables, enjoying classic fish and chips as we soak up the scene on the beach. From colorful huts to cute dogs, there’s a lot to love about this place.
Town & Market
After lunch we walk the short distance along the beach into town. We pass the tidal swimming pool, the famous Dreamland Margate amusement park, the historic clock tower, and Marine Gardens as we make our way to the Old Town.
Located behind The Parade, the square in the Old Town hosts a weekend artisan and vintage market every Saturday and Sunday. Packed with stalls selling everything from clothes to gifts and crafts, the Margate Old Town Market spills out into the surrounding streets and corners.
We browse the wares, checking out everything from vintage glasses to handmade goods. Around us, the cafe tables are packed with people enjoying the afternoon. We love the atmosphere as much as the market.
Shopping
After exploring, we do some shopping. Margate is famous for it, after all, and no trip would be complete without a little retail therapy.
There are plenty of boutiques around the market, and we pop into everything from vintage clothing stores to antique furniture shops and modern numbers.
Beach & Margate Harbour Arm
After shopping we walk along the beach and out to the end of the curving Margate Harbour Arm. There’s a lot to take in here, from the pastel facades along the waterfront to the views of the Ferris wheel at Dreamland Margate in the distance.
Closer in, we soak up the atmosphere of the buzzing outdoor bars, admire the lighthouse, and check out a bronze sculpture of a woman made of shells. The artwork is dedicated to Mrs. Booth, the landlady of renowned English Romantic painter J. M. W. Turner.
Dinner
In the evening we head back to the Margate Harbour Arm for dinner at a wine bar and restaurant called SARGASSO. It’s our local friend’s favorite, and as soon as we walk in we can see why.
The small space is packed with diners, and the menu offers a range of local seafood and other seasonal, ingredient-led cuisine. We tuck into everything from delicious sourdough to fresh fish and Scottish langoustines. It’s a great way to end our first day in Kent.
Sunday
The next morning we wake up early, excited to see more of Margate. We can’t help heading into the Old Town for a delicious breakfast from Rise & Bun. Their sweet and savory buns are the stuff dreams are made of, and we relish every bite.
Old Town
From there we pop over to The Old Kent Market. The bright red facade lures us inside, and soon we find ourselves face-to-face with a range of food market vendors arranged around a central seating area. Some have gone all-out in decorating their shopfronts to look like pirate ships.
After exploring the market, we head outside to see more of Margate. We pass the cute street signs for Love Lane, admire the half-timbered facade of the Tudor House, and take in the colorful facades of the shops.
We can’t help going into a few more boutiques before we leave. From the clothing shops on Hawley Street to the vintage ones near the market, we get our fill.
Turner Contemporary
Before we leave Margate, we stop at the Turner Contemporary to get our culture fix. Named after J. M. W. Turner, who went to school here, it features a range of artworks and temporary exhibitions.
Whitstable
After the museum, we head to Whitstable. It’s an easy drive or 20-minute train ride from Margate, and soon we find ourselves in another of Kent’s famous seaside gems.
Lunch
It’s lunch o’clock when we arrive, and we know exactly where we’re going. Founded in 1856, Wheelers Oyster Bar is not only Whitstable’s oldest restaurant, but also its cutest. With a pretty pink facade and a pint-size interior, it’s hard not to adore this place.
Without a reservation, we’re lucky to get the last two seats at the seafood counter. We tuck into a meal of fresh bread, crab cakes, and fish before ordering more to take home for dinner.
Shopping
After lunch we walk along the high street to do some shopping. There are all kinds of boutiques here, from ones that sell succulents to ones that specialize in cheese.
We browse the wares at clothing stores, vintage places, and bookshops as we make our way up and down the long road.
Beach
When we’re done shopping, we head to the beach. Whitstable has a great coastline, and we walk along the shore to take in the scene. There are sailboats galore on the water, and they make a beautiful backdrop for our walk.
After the beach we start to head back to London. It’s been a great weekend in Kent, and a fun girls’ getaway.
Weekend Trip to Margate & Whitstable
I hope you’ve enjoyed my itinerary and that it’s inspired you to visit this part of the Garden of England yourself someday. Margate and Whitstable are two of the best places to go to the seaside near London, and they’re worth a special trip.
You can read about more great places to travel on my blog posts about the best places to visit in Kent and the best weekend trips from London. If you found this post helpful, buy me a coffee!
Weekend Trip Map
As promised, I created an interactive Google map of my weekend trip to Margate and Whitstable. You can find it here. It can help you plan your getaway and make the most of your time in Kent.
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