Day Trip to Rye and Camber Sands from London

The plan

The day at a glance

Any part can be swapped for another without spoiling the day.

08:40
Leave London 1 h 15 by train
high-speed to Ashford and a train to Rye
10:00 1
Walking Mermaid Street and Rye's citadel
Mermaid Street, Church Square and Landgate
3 min on foot
11:00 2
St Mary's Church and its tower
the clock pendulum and the climb up the tower
3 min on foot
11:45 3
Rye Castle (Ypres Tower) and its prison
from £5 · 10:30 to 15:30
5 min on foot
12:45 4
The George Grill
charcoal grill · book at weekends

98 High Street, TN31 7JT Rye · +44 1797 222114

Restaurant €€€
Book
10 min by taxi6 km
14:30 5
Camber Sands beach
or bus from Rye · check the tide
17:30
Back home 1 h 15 by train
from Rye via Ashford

Approximate cost About €35–60 per person

Adds up the activities and meals in the plan at their published prices; travel and accommodation not included.

The route

Walking Mermaid Street and Rye's citadel

Rye is the best-preserved medieval town in south-east England, an old port that the sea left stranded above the marshes. You reach it in a little over an hour from St Pancras, with one change at Ashford, and you see it in a morning. The afternoon is for something almost nobody expects on this coast: a sandy beach with dunes.

The day, hour by hour

8:40 · Train. High-speed from St Pancras to Ashford International, about 38 minutes, and there the Marshlink line train to Rye, about 20. Choose a short connection.

10:00 · The citadel. From the station, five minutes to Mermaid Street, the cobbled street of half-timbered houses and the smugglers' inn.

11:00 · St Mary's Church. At the top of the hill: the pendulum of the 1561 clock hangs in the nave and the tower is climbed by narrow stairs.

11:45 · Rye Castle. The thirteenth-century Ypres Tower, which was a women's prison. From £5.

12:45 · Lunch at The George Grill. Charcoal grill at the inn on the High Street.

14:30 · Camber Sands. 5 km away, by taxi or bus: more than three kilometres of sand and dunes. Check the tide table and swim only in the marked area.

17:30 · Back. Train to Ashford and high-speed to St Pancras.

In winter or with binoculars

Out of season, swap the beach for Rye Harbour Nature Reserve: flat paths over shingle and lagoons, five bird hides and a café, about 3 km from the town. If you prefer to eat somewhere with more history, the Mermaid Inn has a bar menu at midday.

Time1 h 30

The Mermaid Inn on Mermaid Street, in Rye

User:Hassocks5489 · CC0

Change the route

With young children, if it rains or if you fancy something else: another stop that fits the same day.

The Discovery Centre at Rye Harbour Nature Reserve

In winter or if you like birds, instead of Camber: Rye Harbour Nature ReserveWalk and birds · 2 hrs · free · five accessible hides · visitor centre with café

Mermaid Street, the cobbled street where the inn stands

For lunch at the smugglers' inn: Mermaid Inn RestaurantTwo-AA-Rosette restaurant in the 15th-century inn on Mermaid Street, with Sunday lunch and a bar menu by the giant fireplace. Lunch every day.

Where to eat

Where to eat?

Lunch is half the plan: book before you set off.

The George Grill

Restaurant · Rye · €€€€

What to order: a chargrilled cut of meat to share, or fish from the coast if there is any.

Mermaid Inn Restaurant

Restaurant · Rye · €€€€

What to order: the bar menu beside the giant fireplace if you want something simple; the restaurant menu or Sunday lunch for an occasion.

Map

The stops, in order

With where to park at each one.

What to do Eat 88 €Stay Services

Getting there

By car or without one?

Without a car

Southeastern high-speed from St Pancras to Ashford and the Marshlink train to Rye, a little over an hour in all. To Camber, taxi or bus.

By car

About 105 km along the M20 and A2070, around two hours. Park at Cattle Market, three minutes from the High Street.

When to go

When to go to Rye

From April to October, with the beach at Camber; in winter, swap the beach for the Rye Harbour bird reserve. The castle opens every day from 10:30 to 15:30.

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Best timeGood timeLow season

Tips

Worth knowing first

1
Shoes for cobbles
The slopes of Mermaid Street are slippery in the rain.
2
Check the tide at Camber
The sandbanks are covered quickly.
3
The Ashford connection
The train to Rye runs roughly every hour: buy the high-speed ticket that fits.