The Best Beaches in Kent
Kent has a long coastline and a genuinely underrated set of beaches: chalk stacks at Botany Bay, Blue Flag sand across Thanet, and shingle at Dungeness that looks like nowhere else in Britain. We list 135 places to stay in the county.
Published 19 August 2026
Kent’s coast changes character three times. The north coast along the Thames estuary, Whitstable, Herne Bay, is tidal flats, oyster beds and huge skies. The Thanet corner at the north-east tip is the sandy bit, with chalk cliffs and a run of Blue Flag bays. And the south coast, from Folkestone round to Dungeness and Camber, is shingle, marsh and something close to desert.
Thanet: the sandy coast
| Beach | Where | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| Botany Bay | Broadstairs | Chalk stacks, rock pools, the county’s most photographed beach |
| Viking Bay | Broadstairs | The town beach, sand, harbour, and a lift down the cliff |
| Joss Bay | Broadstairs | Kent’s best surf beach, with a surf school |
| Margate Main Sands | Margate | Big, sandy, and next to the Turner Contemporary |
| Minnis Bay | Birchington | Quieter, good for families, with a paddling pool |
Botany Bay is the one people travel for: isolated chalk stacks standing off a sandy beach beneath white cliffs, best at low tide when the rock pools open up. It is genuinely striking, and consequently busy on a hot weekend. Go early or go out of season.
The north coast
Whitstable is the destination rather than the beach: shingle, working oyster industry, beach huts and a food scene that has pulled Londoners down for two decades. The swimming is fine but the appeal is the town. Herne Bay next door is quieter and has the remains of a pier standing offshore, marooned.
Seasalter, west of Whitstable, is where you go to escape both. Flat, empty, and enormous at low tide.
The south coast and Dungeness
Dungeness is one of the strangest places in England: a vast shingle headland, one of the largest in Europe, with a nuclear power station, two lighthouses, a miniature railway and a scattering of black-tarred fishermen’s huts. It is classified as Britain’s only desert by some definitions and it is a National Nature Reserve of considerable importance for birds and shingle plants.
- Dungeness: for the landscape, the light and the strangeness. Not a swimming beach.
- Greatstone: the sandy beach next door, with dunes, and the acoustic mirrors behind it.
- Camber Sands: just over the border in East Sussex, and the biggest expanse of dune-backed sand on this coast.
- Folkestone: the harbour arm, the Lower Leas Coastal Park, and a good arts scene.
Dogs
Kent’s busier beaches, Margate Main Sands, Viking Bay, parts of Whitstable, operate seasonal dog restrictions, typically from May to September. The wilder beaches, Dungeness and the quieter Thanet bays among them, are generally unrestricted. Restrictions are set by the district councils, so the sign at the access point is the authority.
Where to stay
Kent is the second-largest county on this site at 135 places to stay, and 26 of them sit within three miles of the coast. It is also the strongest county in the country for one particular thing: 111 Kent sites have a pub within a mile, more than anywhere else we cover, as set out in campsites with a pub within walking distance.
Kent sites near the coast
Within three miles of the sea, best-rated first.
See all 26 sites (20 more not shown here).
For the wider county see glamping in Kent, with shepherd’s huts and dog-friendly sites as the two most popular filters here.
Common questions
- What is the best beach in Kent?
- Botany Bay near Broadstairs for the chalk stacks and rock pools, Joss Bay for surf, Margate Main Sands for a full day out, and Dungeness for the landscape rather than the swimming.
- Does Kent have sandy beaches?
- Yes, the Thanet coast around Broadstairs, Margate and Birchington is sandy, with several Blue Flag bays. The north and south coasts are largely shingle.
- Can you walk between the Thanet bays?
- At low tide, yes, the bays connect along the sand beneath the chalk headlands. Check the tide table first, as it is possible to be cut off.
- Are dogs allowed on Kent beaches?
- The busier beaches usually restrict dogs between May and September; quieter and wilder beaches generally do not. District councils set the rules, so check the sign at the access point.
Keep reading
- Planning a tripThe Best Walks in the South DownsThe best walks in the South Downs, the Seven Sisters, Devil’s Dyke, Ditchling Beacon and the South Downs Way, with what each involves and where to stay.
- From our dataCampsites With a Pub Within Walking DistanceWe measured the distance from every site we list to its nearest pub. These are the campsites and glamping sites with one within a mile, and the counties that do it best.
- Isle of WightThe Best Beaches on the Isle of WightThe Isle of Wight’s best beaches, Compton for surf, Steephill Cove for charm, Ryde for sand, Priory Bay for shelter, with what each is actually good for and stays nearby.
- Planning a tripEaster 2027: Dates and Where to GoEaster 2027 falls on 28 March, one of the earliest in years. The dates, what an early Easter means for a UK break, and where to go when it is still cold.