Broadstairs

Broadstairs is the smallest and quietest of the three main Thanet resorts, occupying a headland between Margate and Ramsgate with a horseshoe-shaped sandy bay at its centre and chalk cliffs north and south. Viking Bay is the main beach -- compact, sheltered and backed by the old harbour wall and a promenade of largely independent cafes and restaurants -- and the town above it retains more of its original Victorian character than either of its neighbours. The high street is genuinely independent and functions throughout the year, not only in summer.

The Dickens connection at Broadstairs is one of the most substantiated in Kent -- he spent summers here from 1837 to 1851 and began writing David Copperfield and Bleak House in the town. The annual Dickens Festival, running since 1937, occupies a full week in June with costumed characters, theatrical performances and events across the town. The opening Saturday procession is free to attend and fills the streets. Bleak House, the clifftop building above Viking Bay where Dickens stayed repeatedly, operates as a museum -- check current opening hours before visiting.

Botany Bay, 2 miles north of Viking Bay along the coastal path, has chalk stacks rising directly from the sand and is consistently less busy than any beach in the town. The walk takes around 45 minutes each way and is accessible from the clifftop path. High-speed trains from London St Pancras reach Broadstairs in approximately 90 minutes; the station is a short walk from the town centre.