Margate Harbour Arm
About
The stone pier curving out from the end of Main Sands is the best free thing to do in Margate at the end of an afternoon. It is a working harbour wall with a lighthouse at the end, and the buildings along the inside of it have been given over to small bars, restaurants and studios, Sargasso among them. Walking out to the lighthouse puts you far enough off the land to see the whole town at once: Dreamland's sign, the Turner Contemporary block, the Georgian squares behind, and the cliffs running east to Cliftonville. Because this coast faces north, the sun goes down over open water from here, which is the specific thing Turner kept coming back for and the specific thing most visitors under-plan for. It is exposed. On a windy day, and there are many, walking to the end is a real experience rather than a stroll. Droit House, the small building at the landward end, is the old harbour master's office.
Photos
Highlights
- ✓Lighthouse at the seaward end
- ✓Bars, restaurants and studios along the arm
- ✓The best sunset view in Margate, out over open water
- ✓Droit House, the old harbour master's office, at the landward end
- ✓Free to walk
Tips
- →Time it for sunset. This is the reason to be in Margate in the evening rather than leaving on the late-afternoon train.
- →It is completely exposed. Take a layer more than the temperature suggests.
- →Sargasso is on the arm and books out; walk the pier first and eat after.
- →The old margateharbourarm.co.uk domain has lapsed and now serves gambling adverts. It is not the Harbour Arm's site and there is no official replacement.
Best Season
Accessibility
The arm is broadly level along its length, but it is an old working harbour structure with uneven surfaces and no shelter. Not verified in detail during this build.
More Attraction Activities
Turner Contemporary
Free contemporary art gallery on the seafront, on the site of Turner's Margate lodgings. Open Tuesday to Sunday, closed Mondays.
Dreamland
Free to enter, pay per ride. Vintage rides, a roller disco and a summer outdoor gig season. The Scenic Railway still stands but is retired and cannot be ridden. Opening pattern changes constantly.
The Shell Grotto
4.6 million shells in a tunnel under a Cliftonville side street. Discovered in 1835 and never explained. Grade I listed.