Beaches in Margate, Kent

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Margate is a traditional coastal town in Kent on the Isle of Thanet. It is made up of four areas - Pal Bay, Garlinge, Cliftonville and Westbrook. The town boasts over 250 years as one of the leading seaside resort in the country, alongside its neighbour Ramsgate. read more...

The beach guide has 6 beaches listed in and around the town of Margate. We have arranged these beaches in order of closest to the town first (distance in brackets).

  • Fulsam Rock Beach (0.7 miles)

    Fulsam Rock © Nick Smith | BY-SA

    At high tide there isn't much of a beach at Fulsam Rock, just the promenade and slipway. Towards lower tides a fairly modest patch of sand does appear.

  • The Bay (0.5 miles)

    The Bay © David Anstiss | BY-SA

    Margate's central beach offers visitors an award-winning wide, sandy stretch backed by a traditional seaside resort.  A boardwalk gives easy access to the beach and is the perfect spot to while away a sunny afternoon while young visitors enjoy splashing at the water's edge and playing in the sand. Older children may enjoy a trip…

  • Westbrook Bay (1 miles)

    Westbrook Bay © Richard Rogerson | BY-SA

    This pleasant, sandy beach sits on the north-eastern Kent coast, and is one of the quieter beaches to be found close to the town of Margate – there are no arcades here. Westbrook is a good beach to bring young children, who will enjoy playing with buckets and spades in the clean sand or jumping…

  • Walpole Bay (0.9 miles)

    Walpole Bay © Nigel Cox | BY-SA

    Walpole Bay, in Margate, is a long, sandy beach with one of the last tidal pools ever to be built. Along with a number of rockpools to explore this makes for a family friendly beach. It is worth checking the tide times before visiting Walpole Bay as when the tide is in there is very…

  • Palm Bay (1.3 miles)

    Palm Bay © Nigel Chadwick | BY-SA

    Palm Bay is a pleasant sandy beach not too far away from Margate's town centre, between Walpole and Botany Bay. Despite its appeal, Palm Bay never seems to get as busy as the better known neighbouring beaches. This is probably the best dog friendly beach in the area so expect to have a few pooches…

  • St Mildreds Bay (1.9 miles)

    St Mildreds Bay © N Chadwick | BY-SA

    Within easy walking distance of Margate, the small, quiet, sandy beach of St Mildred's Bay is next to the seaside town of Westgate. The beach backs on to a promenade and the sea wall follows the cliff formations around the bay. 

    Beach chalets which can be hired from Easter to September, there is a café/restaurant, and…

Margate beaches map

Map featuring Margate beaches. Click on pins to view beach details

About Margate

Margate is a traditional coastal town in Kent on the Isle of Thanet. It is made up of four areas - Pal Bay, Garlinge, Cliftonville and Westbrook. The town boasts over 250 years as one of the leading seaside resort in the country, alongside its neighbour Ramsgate.

Margate, Kent

With the golden beach of Margate Sands constantly being main draw to visitors from London throughout the years. It was also well known for its Victorian Pier during its heyday but it was sadly destroyed during a storm in 1978.

The town has an artistic energy with a mixture of traditional seaside charm and contemporary culture, especially the cobbled streets of the Old Town which has a unique vibe and boasting various chic vintage shops, cafes and galleries, alongside traditional delights of fish and chip shops, cafes and candyfloss stalls.

Margate is full of nostalgic buildings from its rich Victorian past. Margate's Winter Gardens has drawn big name acts for more than 100 years from the Kaiser Chiefs to the Beatles, The Theatre Royal is the second oldest in the country; it was originally built in 1787 and remodelled in 1879 following a fire in 1829. There is also the Tom Thumb Theatre which is the second smallest in the country.

Other popular sites include Margate Museum in Market Place which tells the story of the town's maritime heritage, the 16th century Tudor House on King Street, and the quirky Shell Grotto, a unique Grade I listed building that was rediscovered in 1835 and is decorated with over four million shells covering 2000 square feet. There is also a popular annual jazz festival that takes place every year in June.

There is currently major investment into Margate including the revival of Dreamland, the town's historical amusement park which closed in 2005 but is on track to reopen in 2015. It is home to the world's oldest wooden rollercoaster and local community groups are keen to restore it back to its original state.