Beachy Head

The walk to Beachy Head cliffs hits you all at once - after a decent trek across the Downs from Eastbourne, the land just drops away. You're standing on 530 metres of chalk face, the highest sea cliff on the south coast, and the view sprawls for miles: the sea that endless blue-grey, the shingle beach far below, and on clear days you can see across to the Isle of Wight. The lighthouse - Beachy Head Lighthouse, a proper Victorian red and white striped thing - sits isolated on the rocks below, and boats move silently past like toys.

It's walkers and photographers mostly, though the cliff edge does draw families keen to see how far the land actually drops. Allow two hours minimum if you're coming from Eastbourne - it's a solid four miles across downland, though the views reward every step. The actual clifftop walk is straightforward, well-trodden, and free. Go when the light's good rather than in drizzle, which turns the whole place into grey nothing.

If you're staying at Pevensey Bay Holiday Park down the road, this makes an excellent day out - the seaside plus proper landscape. The Downs have their own appeal beyond just the cliff edge: rolling grass, wind farms turning in the distance, that particular English emptiness. It's not a 20-minute stop. You need to commit to it, walk properly, and stand there long enough for the scale to actually sink in. Worth it though.