Hastings

 We were looking for  a place to stay near the seaside, not busy  and little so easy to get around. Hastings popped up and off we went on the train journey there.

Didn't take long from London and we thought we will also fit in another town before we got there. Looking at the route, Rye stood out. I heard that Rye was beautiful and had a nice beach so we did a quick stop. Rye was such a cute town with cobblestones. We didn't stay long in the town. We went to the Camber Sands where we spent our afternoon. This was during the heatwave so we coudn't wait to get into the water and it was so refreshing. We don't know how long we stayed in the water but we stayed for a very long until early evening. It was a pebble beach which was the downside off it and there wasn't may cafes to get any ice cream or snacks! 

We then got back into the train to go to Hastings. When we came, it was the beginning of dusk. I always wanted to go to the beach at dusk and so we literally dropped our bags and went to Hastings beach. It was another pebbled beach much to our chagrin. We didn't  swim but we did do some rock hopping and the scenery was stunning. 

The next day, we went for a walk around Hastings Town. We went to Hastings castle. The road to the castle was very steep so if you are on feet, take care of kids. The backdrop of Hastings against the sea was stunning. They also had musicians playing and made the atmosphere very merry. The history was great as the kids learnt about the Hastings battle at primary school so for them it was great to see the place where they've read about it in books only. It's part of the English Heritage so free if you are members.

The crime museum is a very interesting museum looking at some of the famous crimes and the psychology behind it. It had interesting exhibits. Children are also allowed and it wasn't too expensiive. It took about an hour to look through the whole museum.

Next stop, behind the castle was the Smugglers adventure. The walk to it again was very scenic. This was very exciting as it was underground and we learnt a lot about the smuggling history. It was very intereactive and even had games inside it. Some areas were dark so beware. Entry prices were reasonable and it had a great gift shop.

For lunch, we headed to the pier. We took the cliff lift to take us down. It didn't have big rides  but suitable for younger kids. There's also a mini railway around the pier. On the South side of the beach, there's a maritime museum which detailed some shipwreck which occurred around the area but also other famous ones. It was so informative  and free to visit. Just in font of the museum is the aquarium. We didn't visit it this time but worth a visit with younger kids. Another museum round the corner was the Fishermen's Museum. Another small but free museum to visit which documents the history of fishermen in Hastings. Very interesting for someone who likes to learn new things!

Hastings could easily be done in a weekend and has something for everyone!