Old Portsmouth and the Hotwalls

About Old Portsmouth and the Hotwalls

By the ULTIMATE Brighton Editorial Team

Editor-in-Chief: Jai Michael

Old Portsmouth is the city’s oldest quarter, at the mouth of the harbour: a few streets of pubs and Georgian houses, the cathedral, the Round Tower and the Hotwalls, where old military arches became artists’ studios.

Stand on top of the Round Tower and the harbour opens beside you: ferries for the Isle of Wight and France sliding out, warships coming in, Gosport across the water. Old Portsmouth is the best place in the city to feel how close the sea is.

At the harbour mouth

The Round Tower and Point Battery guarded the narrow entrance to the harbour. Today you can climb the tower for the view and walk along the sea wall towards Southsea.

Check opening times and trains on the official sites before you travel.

The Hotwalls

Beside the Round Tower, rarely used arches in the old Point Battery and Barracks were turned into modern workspaces for local artists, designers and makers: the Hotwalls Studios. Visitors can wander in to see work and buy it, and The Canteen, a family-run waterfront café since July 2016, has a deck looking straight out over the harbour mouth.

The Sally Port and the cathedral

The sally port, a gate in the fortified sea wall, gave its name to the Sally Port Inn, made in 1947 from a war-damaged house dating back to the 1600s. It faces Portsmouth Cathedral, the Cathedral Church of St Thomas of Canterbury. Jack House Gallery, opened in April 2015, shows contemporary art a few doors up the High Street.

Pubs on the point

The Still & West and the Spice Island Inn stand on Bath Square at the water’s edge, and The Bridge Tavern looks over the Camber, the old fishing harbour. On a summer evening the whole point drinks outside watching the ships.

Practical notes

Old Portsmouth is a short walk from Portsmouth Harbour station through Gunwharf Quays.

Our advice: come late in the afternoon, climb the Round Tower, browse the Hotwalls studios, then take a drink on Bath Square as the ferries go out.

Opening hours, prices and seasonal openings change, so please check with Old Portsmouth and the Hotwalls before you go.