Whitstable

Walks: Faversham to Whitstable

At low tide, Whistable and the coast to the west of it look like the last place on earth you might swim. The tide goes out a long way here, over a mix of sand and mud that is home to the famous Whitstable oysters. When the tide comes in, this flat bottom is quickly covered with two to three metres of sea, however, and makes a pleasant sheltered spot for a dip. It is particularly nice is when the tide is about two thirds of the way out and it is deep enough to swim but you can also touch the bottom. At such times you can swim quite a way out from the shore and never be out of your depth (though you might end up wading a long way back to the beach). Make sure the tide is going out rather than rising before you try this, however.

• On sunny summer days, trains can be hugely crowded to and from Whitstable due to day trippers going to Margate


• Food and drink: there are lots of options in the old heart of Whistable, including places where you can sample oysters. The Old Neptune pub just to the south of the centre offers the charming option of sitting on the beach apres-swim (or even between swims!) with a beer or glass of wine. In summer there are also fine sunsets across the bay from this point.

Birchington to Herne Bay

Walks: Birchington to Herne Bay

This flat stretch of coast could be pretty bleak in bad weather, but on a sunny day offers calm swimming and vast areas of shallow water at middle states of the tide. Beaches at Birchington, Reculver and Herne Bay are all topped by gently sloping shingle, but at lower tide large expanses of sand (Birchington) and sandy mud (Herne Bay) are revealed. This means that when the tide is about a third to a half up, both places allow you to stay in your depth while swimming well out to sea.

• Herne Bay's eastern beach is backed by sandy cliffs and is rather romantic in the late afternoon light. From the seafront in the town centre you get a wonderful sunset over the sea in summer


• When the tide is running is quite a strong current at Herne Bay, running parallel to the coast (westwards when the tide is coming in, eastwards when it is on the ebb). Mostly it will just land you further up the beach than intended, but just to the east of the town centre there is a jet ski channel, which you can be carried into by the current if you are not careful. Yellow buoys mark the swimming area and jet skiers are not supposed to enter into it, but sometimes they cut across it in their exuberance. Swimming further east along the beach should hopefully avoid such risks.


• Herne Bay's railway station is some way from the sea front. Birchington's is much nearer, but the nearest section of coast is rocky and unswimmable. Head west along the promenade to find the town's beach


• On sunny summer days, trains can be hugely crowded to both Herne Bay and Birchington due to day trippers going to Margate.


• Reculver, half way between Herne Bay and Birchington was the site of a Roman fort. Beyond the romantic ruin of a medieval abbey, there is not much to see at the site, but it is still an atmospheric spot, somehow.


• Food and drink: Herne Bay's seafront has the usual seaside cafes and chip shops. Makcari's in the bandstand to the east of the clock tower is the recommended place for tea (its other branch, on the seafront to the west of the clock tower, is less romantic but does serve a wide range of meals). Birchington's beach has a cafe-pub. There is also a cafe and a pub serving food at Reculver.

Ramsgate, Broadstairs, Margate

Walks: Margate to Broadstairs and Ramsgate

These Thanet towns all have flat sandy beaches, which have been made much more accessible from London with the opening of high speed rail services from St Pancras. In fact, this whole coast is a series of delightful beaches, backed with attractive white cliffs (albeit with rather brown sea water).

However, at low tide there a fringe of sharp rocks (the eroded bases of former cliffs) along most of this coast, exceptions being the main beaches at Margate, Westbrook, Westgate-on-Sea and Broadstairs, the stretch of beach just north of Ramsgate harbour, and Joss Bay and Kingsgate Bay north of Broadstairs

• Broadstairs is the best of the towns on this coast, and has a very attractive main beach nestling between two high headlands. This offers good sheltered swimming at high tide, though the low tide goes out quite a long way, and you need to be careful of currents sweeping out around the harbour wall when the tide is ebbing. It is often very busy, however, and when the tide is higher Stone Bay, the beach stretching away to the north of the harbour, is a better alternative, less busy and more locals-orientated than the main beach. (At low tide, a fringe of rocks makes swimming tricky on this beach - except opposite the flight of steps in front of the huts at the northern end of the beach). Dumpton Gap, just to the south of the main Broadstairs beach, is also a fair spot for a swim. Being east-facing all these beaches lose the sun in the late afternoon.


• Botany Bay half way between Margate and Broadstairs is also highly recommended, with a fine stretch of sand backed by cliffs and chalk stacks. However, it does have a fringe of rocks at low tide, apart from a small section opposite the path down from the car park. The northern part of the beach is always much quieter than the southern part, which is popular with families. Kingsgate Bay and Joss Bay are quieter (particularly Kingsgate Bay, as it has no convenient car park) and can be swum at any state of the tide.


• Margate's flat sandy beach is wildly popular on sunny summer days - it rivals Brighton as a magnet for daytrippers. But the town is decidedly rundown despite a few pleasant corners in its historic centre and the presence of the Turner Contemporary, an iconic modern art gallery. If you are looking for a gently shelving sandy beach (at low tide expect to wade out some distance to get a decent depth for swimming) Westbrook Bay, St Mildred's Bay and Westgate Bay to the west of Margate are all quieter and pleasanter, though Westgate's beach is completely covered for a couple of hours either side of high tide. The promenade or cliff walk to all these places is not unpleasant on a sunny day and all three have cafes in summer.


• You can also walk along either cliff or promenade to the east of Margate to find an enormous seawater pool in 1.5 kilometres. Sadly neglected, but still popular with locals, it is a reliable place to swim at any state of the tide, apart from very high tide when the sea overtops it (this is how the water gets replenished). This can happen very rapidly, washing your possessions out to sea if you have placed them poolside.


• Ramsgate's beach, just to the north of the harbour, has been smartened up in recent years, and is a pleasant enough place for a dip. Like other beaches in the area it is gently shelving sand. The southern end has an advantage over over the beaches at Broadstairs in that it keeps the sun till relatively late in the day.


• The walk from Ramsgate to Broadstairs and Margate is semi-suburban, but not unpleasant. Going north from Ramgate there is a clifftop promenade, but eventually you either have to walk along the beach (at low tide) or go inland for a short distance. Cliff top and bottom promenades then resume for the way into Broadstairs. Beyond Broadstairs you are forced inland briefly, but then resume the clifftop path at the North Foreland for the walk into Margate. The seawater pool near Margate (see above) provides a reliable late afternoon swim and is idyllic towards sunset.