Beyond Brighton · east, by the Romney Marsh
Rye, east by the Romney Marsh: a Cinque Port on its hill, the Landgate and the Ypres Tower, Lamb House, the Mermaid Inn and The George, Rye Pottery, Camber Sands and Rye Harbour Nature Reserve.
Town guide
A fishing town once almost surrounded by water, a Cinque Port raided by the French, a smugglers’ haunt and a home of writers from Henry James to E F Benson.
Christmas
Candlelit cobbles, ancient inns and independent shops: Christmas in one of England’s most beautiful small towns, with its festival hoped to return in 2026.
Rebuilt 1420
The old inn on cobbled Mermaid Street, rebuilt in 1420, with beamed rooms, a restaurant and a bar.
Dating back to 1575
A boutique hotel in a coaching inn dating back to 1575, in the middle of Rye.
98 High Street, Rye TN31 7JTExplore View on map
Local ingredients
British cooking with a classic or modern slant, from local fields, woods and waters.
5–6 Landgate, Rye TN31 7LHExplore View on map
Near the Landgate
A micropub on Tower Street, now with its own brewery and taproom.
Tower Street, Rye TN31 7ATExplore View on map
National Trust
The Georgian house in Rye where Henry James, and later E. F. Benson, lived and wrote.
Sand and dunes
The great sandy beach and dunes at Camber, a rarity on this shingle coast.
Rye Castle
The town museum in the medieval Ypres Tower, Rye Castle, and on East Street.
Sussex Wildlife Trust
Shingle, saltmarsh and lagoons by the sea, with five bird hides and the Discovery Centre.
Rye ware
The town’s pottery, making and selling Rye’s hand-decorated ceramics.
Rye TN31 7DHExplore View on map
Vintage and makers
A Rye shop of rustic vintage homeware from Britain and Europe, with work by independent makers.
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