Buyers will get the most out of the coast in these 20 seaside hotspots — from Cornwall’s most creative town to the cool beach that is Edinburgh’s best-kept secret
By Tim Palmer
Wouldn’t it be nice if every day could feel like a holiday? It can — or at least a lot more so — when you live by the sea. Now could be the ideal time to make that move. Increases in council tax and stamp duty on second homes has had a big effect on house prices in the most popular seaside spots.
“While at the end of March prices for prime coastal properties were 12.8 per cent below where they were in the autumn of 2022, this sits against the context of 25 per cent growth during the preceding mini housing market boom,” says Lucian Cook, head of residential research at the estate agency Savills. “Nonetheless, for those looking to buy, this provides a good opportunity to get more for their money.”
Ben Horne, head of country buying at the search agents Middleton Advisors, adds: “To be able to sell on the coast, a property has to be priced attractively. That means low — lower than it would have achieved in 2022, perhaps lower than in 2019. That creates a market where buyers hold cards. Some owners really want to sell, others wisely recognise that a correction now on their sale price will be reflected in their onward purchase price.”
We’ve picked 20 of the best places to live by the coast. They’re all different. Some are pretty honeypots, others are salty city suburbs and a few are wild, wonderful and remote. And they all avoid the twin blights that affect so many of our coastal towns, which are often either crippled by deprivation or so overrun with second homes that you won’t find a pub, a shop or a light on in winter.
Best seaside towns to live in England
Falmouth, Cornwall
You may have seen this Cornish jewel cited as Britain’s “most depressing town” last year, but Falmouth has everything you need for a happy life by the sea: four great beaches, sparkling views at every turn and a town centre that’s like the coolest bit of a cool city, along with a young, fun and creative population.
“It’s all about the community. Our friendship group includes people of all ages and backgrounds and it’s really easy to get to know people. Falmouth attracts people who are more driven by the lifestyle than by money, and everyone is very supportive of each other,” Kathryn Tyler says.
Tyler is an interior designer who has lived here since arriving as a student in 1997. She and her partner, Angus, are responsible for the two award-winning Kiln community beach saunas, one on the main Gyllyngvase beach (Gylly for short), the other at Flushing just across the river. They have added a dose of Scandi-style wellbeing to the town.
There is a superior coffee scene (Beacon, Dark Pony, Espressini and more), some great pubs and restaurants (the Chintz, Beerwolf, the Seaview Inn, Hevva!), and a busy live music scene — you’ll find something to enjoy day or night. And there’s almost as much happening in its arty neighbour, Penryn.
Falmouth is also a great place to bring up children, Tyler says — she has a two-year-old son, Kaspar. “It’s like a massive playground, with all the beaches and all the open space. There’s a very young community, there are really good networks and support groups and the great thing is that you can walk everywhere.”
There’s a good range of homes, many with sea views, or at least sea or river glimpses. Allow at least £1.5 million for something substantial overlooking Swanpool or Maenporth beach, although the pretty period riverside townhouses on Wodehouse Terrace, Stratton Terrace and Tehidy Terrace (about £1 million) are just as good. Small terraces, bungalows and some seafront apartments are available for about £350,000.
Average house price: £417,689
Tynemouth, Tyne & Wear
An unshakeable fixture in The Sunday Times Best Places to Live, Tynemouth’s mix of brilliant beaches and buzzy streets is hard to resist. Whether you’re catching a wave at Longsands, slurping a Lindisfarne oyster at Riley’s Fish Shack or hunting for treasures in the indoor market at the old railway station, you’ll always feel you’re living your best life here.
The schools are good, the centre of Newcastle is about 30 minutes away on the Metro and the strength of the community is evident in projects such as the campaign to restore Tynemouth Outdoor Pool, the 1920s lido overlooking Longsands beach.
Such riches don’t come cheap of course, even in the budget-friendly northeast of England. You can expect to pay about £500,000 for a period terrace close to the beach, relatively big bucks in the region, or upwards of £1.5 million for a house in Percy Gardens, a Victorian crescent with sea views.
Average house price: £238,943
Beer, Devon
There’s something nicely old-fashioned about Beer, a tranquil village at the western end of the Jurassic Coast. It’s all colourful beach huts, flint cottages and fishing boats on its pebbly beach. There are some good pubs (though the name derives from the woodland that used to surround the area, rather than for a boozy reason), cafés and a lively year-round social scene, much of it based around the sailing club and the annual regatta. The sense of community is strong too — a local community land trust has succeeded in building affordable homes for locals in the village.
Exeter is only half an hour away by car, and Colyton Grammar (the second best school in the southwest of England, according to The Sunday Times Parent Power Guide) is even closer. There are great coastal walks nearby and a wide choice of houses, including modest bungalows for £300,000, bay-windowed townhouses from £600,000 and spacious clifftop villas from £1.5 million.
Despite this, Beer remains about as under-the-radar as the Jurassic Coast gets. “It’s pretty and unspoilt and there’s a great lifestyle, but unlike Lyme Regis or Sidmouth, which get really busy, nobody really knows it’s here,” says Rupert Stephenson, regional director of Black Brick buying agents.
Average house price: £486,220 (five-year average)
New Brighton, Merseyside
This Victorian spot just across the Mersey from Liverpool is the opposite of a fading resort. A refreshed streetscape, community clean-ups and lots of cool new independent businesses are the most visible signs of the long-term planning and investment that are turning New Brighton into a lively rival to fancier Wirral neighbours such as Heswall, Hoylake and West Kirby.
Highlights include the vintage and vinyl shops, bars and restaurants in the Victoria Quarter, and SUP, a bar/café/crafted goods shop opposite the railway station (from where Merseyrail trains will take you to Liverpool Central in 25 minutes).
A golden beach — safe for swimming when the lifeguards are about — and sweeping views across the river to Liverpool docks and Everton FC’s new stadium maintain the maritime feel. Prices are relatively forgiving too, with four-bedroom Victorian semis and terraces from about £250,000.
Average house price: £183,869
Deal, Kent
Look back from the end of the brutalist pier at the colourful pebbly beach and the jumble of historic houses and it’s easy to see why Deal remains the most appealing spot on the Kent coast — although the lack of golden sand keeps the number of day-trippers down.
The browsable high street — posh and quirky at one end, down to earth at the other — has everything a high street should, and the town’s sense of community is winning out against the weekenders from London. The beautiful community gardens at Sandown Castle and the number of people taking part in regular beach cleans are proof of that.
Train connections to the capital are fast (direct to London St Pancras in just under an hour and a half), if not quite as regular as they used to be.
Deal’s great draw is its range of beautiful period properties, mostly in the Middle Street conservation area. Once they were a magnet for theatrical types, but latterly they have been a canvas for those architects and interior designers who see 18th-century proportions and winding staircases as a challenge rather than a drawback. High demand means these houses have been hard to come by in recent years and prices are still high — at least £400,000 for two bedrooms, £700,000 for four — but there’s movement in the market again. “The number of listings has significantly increased since Easter and the quality is better than last year, with more higher-value properties,” says Rebecca Lead, a director at the Bright & Bright estate agency.
Average house price: £341,912
Southsea, Hampshire
Southsea is more than just the acceptable face of Portsmouth. Once a celebrity-friendly resort that was home to the likes of Arthur Conan Doyle, Rudyard Kipling and Peter Sellers, it’s now a fun and funky hotspot.
The revamped prom is the perfect spot for a golden-hour jog or stroll, the beach is family-friendly and the streets are filled with interesting independent shops, bars and restaurants. The highlights include the artisan bakery Bread Addiction, the Canteen café/restaurant, which is as much an arts hub as a place to eat, and Broadway Coffee Roasters, supplier of top-class beans to the Royal Navy among others. Duane Bradshaw, Broadway’s boss, who was born in Portsmouth, says Southsea’s spirit is hard to beat. “We have the sea air, the sound of waves brushing the pebbles and history in every building, but what makes this little coastal pocket remarkable is its community. People here choose independent over chain, quality over quantity, and community over convenience.”
Everywhere’s walkable and there’s a good selection of properties, such as the historic homes of Old Portsmouth (where £1 million buys a grandstand view of passing aircraft carriers), smart Victorian semis and terraces for about £500,000, and eco-friendly homes from £224,950 at St James Park, a new development in the former St James Hospital.
Average house price: £274,070
Hunstanton, Norfolk
Something is stirring on this part of the north Norfolk coast. The arrival of new wine bars and artisan bakeries in villages such as Snettisham, Thornham and Holme-next-the-Sea should lure the canny homebuyer away from the usual hunting grounds on the well-known stretch between Burnham Market and Cromer. Hunstanton (pronounced “Hunston” if you want to fit in), meanwhile, hasn’t quite shed its slot-machines-and-walking-frames image, but the surrounding villages are lush and lovely.
According to Jamie Jamieson, a Norfolk-based property search agent, this area doesn’t just have great sunsets, a winning golf course and easy access to the best of the coast — Holkham’s endless sands and the magical marshland around Blakeney and Cley — but also easy connections to London via King’s Lynn, and all with a more modest price tag.
Interesting new foodie businesses such as the Old Store at Snettisham (soon to open a branch in Thornham) and White Horse Bakery in Holme provide reason to linger. Allow £750,000 for a four-bedroom detached house or £1.5 million for a barn conversion or a house with a bit more land.
Average house price: £299,396
Clevedon, Somerset
Nobody could mistake the latte-coloured tidal rush of the Bristol Channel for the azure waters of the Caribbean, but for anyone who wants to breathe fresh briny air while keeping Bristol close at hand, Clevedon is, hands down, the best option.
The best thing here is Clevedon Marine Lake. Run by volunteers and topped up fortnightly by the tide, it’s the world’s largest saltwater infinity pool and provides a clean alternative to the murky waters of the channel for swimmers, kayakers and paddleboarders. Clevedon is an attractive town too, with an elegant pier, views across the water to Wales and a parade of independent shops with a village vibe in Hill Road.
Bristol is 40 minutes away by car, but the tree-lined avenues of smart Victorian villas winding down from the town’s seven hills could easily pass for one of the city’s well-scrubbed suburbs. And the best homes are a bit cheaper than in overheated Bristol — expect to pay about £1.2 million for a substantial period detached on Cambridge Road or neighbouring streets.
Average house price: £402,666
The Witterings, West Sussex
West Wittering’s expanse of pristine white sand is a beach for the ages, a stunning coastal playground that would look more at home in the tropics than in the overcrowded south of England. Surfers, windsurfers, swimmers, birdwatchers, kayakers and paddleboarders can all occupy themselves happily, with only the £15.45 peak car park charge and the serious summer traffic jams to spoil the idyllic image. Which is why it makes sense to live close by if you can.
You’ll need an A-list budget to join the likes of Keith Richards and Kate Winslet in the beautiful flint houses on West Wittering’s lovely lawns, though. These sell for at least £2 million and are likely to be snapped up long before they reach an estate agent’s window. East Wittering, however, is much more affordable (and laid-back) than its western neighbour. It has good three-bedroom homes for about £500,000.
Average house price: £645,861
Saltburn-by-the-Sea, North Yorkshire
Perhaps inspired by the film with which it shares a name (if little else — best not recreate the ending on the beach), Saltburn is having a bit of a moment. In the past 12 months it has been variously named Britain’s best beach, Britain’s most beautiful seaside town and Britain’s “best town for a seaside staycation”.
Take these “awards” with a pinch of sea salt if you like, but this gently faded Victorian resort does have looks and charm. The delicate pier (amusement-free) and the Cliff Tramway are an atmospheric reminder of the glory days of the British seaside, while the magnificent beach — eight miles long, no less — is now a mecca for the surfing crowd.
On days when the north wind turns a stroll on the prom into an icy endurance test, there’s always the beautiful Valley Gardens or a browse in the many backstreet galleries. The best properties are the big detached homes on Victoria Road and Victoria Terrace, which can sell for more than £1 million. The coveted terraces on the “jewel streets” — Pearl, Diamond, Emerald etc — are handy for the beach and will set you back about £500,000.
Average house price: £277,159
Hove, East Sussex
With plenty of beach to go around, and vibrant culture and nightlife, Hove (actually) is the UK’s best place to enjoy a city-by-the-sea lifestyle — it’s far less crowded and chaotic than Brighton with its relentless stream of boozy day-trippers. Here you’ll find a more relaxed lifestyle that is heavy on yoga, wellbeing and barista-made flat whites (44 Poets is especially good). There are plenty of good nurseries and schools, plus direct trains to London Victoria.
• Hove, East Sussex, named one of the best places to live 2025
The food scene is catching up with Brighton’s too, from the superior sarnies at Tom’s Sandwich Shop to fine dining at Etch. Hove also has a better selection of homes than its noisy neighbour, including seafront Regency apartments (up to £1 million), family-friendly Victorian terraces in Poets’ Corner (from £500,000) and luxury villas around Tongdean Road (£2.5 million).
Average house price: £547,063
Isle of Wight
This island is the ultimate natural playground for seekers of water-based fun. From serious sailors to kayakers, paddleboarders and wild-swimmers, everyone can find something to enjoy on the Isle of Wight’s 57-mile coastline. Even the short ferry crossing to get here can send stress levels tumbling.
Delightfully vintage in character — all seaside proms, Victorian piers, tea rooms and country lanes linking the quaint towns and villages — the island’s apparent disdain for the modern world seems increasingly like a selling point.
“You are sacrificing a bit of convenience by living on an island, but it does only take two and a half hours to get to London, there are lots of ferries, and the lifestyle and the value for money more than make up for it,” says Eilidh McIntyre, a former Olympic sailor (she won gold at the Tokyo Games in 2020) who is now a property buying agent with Middleton Advisors.
There’s a choice of lifestyles on offer too, from arty Ventnor and community-minded Bembridge, where you’ll find some of the best beaches, to laid-back Yarmouth and Freshwater in the wilder west, which attracts the coastal equivalent of the Soho House crowd. If you want a prime property on the beach, you’ll need anything from £1.5 million to £6 million, which might even bag a private stretch of sand. Nowhere here is more than 30 minutes from the coast, though, and there are much cheaper properties inland.
Average house price: £301,722
Best seaside towns to live in Scotland
The East Neuk, Fife
There’s nothing secret about the golden beaches, magical light and famous fish suppers on offer in the string of fishing villages that line the coast where the Firth of Forth meets the North Sea. What has changed is that, thanks to the remote-working revolution, Elie, Anstruther, Pittenweem, Crail et al are now places to live and work, rather than just to escape for a day’s paddling and the taste of freshly battered haddock.
With Edinburgh about 70 minutes away by car or train (from Leven railway station) for irregular commuters, and Dundee and St Andrews much closer, it’s no surprise that many second homes have been turning into first ones. A fisherman’s cottage overlooking Crail Harbour will set you back about £400,000, while anyone with £500,000 to spend can WFH with a view of the waves from a larger terraced home in Cellardyke, pausing for a dip in the newly restored tidal pool known locally as “the Bathie” — and perhaps even a session in one of the Neuk’s horsebox saunas.
There is also a burgeoning food and drink scene. Sample the gourmet fare at the Kinneuchar Inn in Kilconquhar or visit the Bowhouse food market in St Monans, which attracts top producers from across Scotland once a month.
Average house price: £360,541
Portobello, Edinburgh
Portobello is a breath of fresh sea air in overheated Edinburgh. Its beach and car-free prom are just 20 minutes’ cycle from Princes Street — bikes are a big part of life in progressive “Porty” — but the relaxed atmosphere could hardly be more different. No wonder that it has become the location of choice for young families and creative types, attracted by the chance to play on the sand, dip in the (generally) clean water and admire the continuing transformation from fading Victorian bathing outpost to revitalised hipster hub.
Browse in the independent shops — the Portobello Bookshop, in particular, is a high street treat — and feast from the bagel bakery, seafood shack or popular New York-style pizza joint. There’s a nice selection of tenements and townhouses, though Porty is no longer the bargain it was a decade ago. Expect to pay £400,000 for a flat in a prime location, while the best houses sell for £1 million or so.
Average house price: £379,545
Cullen, Moray
A splash of local spirit — and not just the whisky from the nearby Glenglassaugh distillery — keeps this pretty fishing village lively all year round, and earned it a debut in the annual Sunday Times Best Places to Live guide.
Tiny Cullen is full of small businesses — a deli, a coffee truck with a view, a sauna on the beach, antiques and interiors shops, cafés and restaurants — and volunteering here is a strength. Paths have been restored, the community centre hosts a wide range of classes, and a campaign has saved the public loos. It’s the water that’s the main focus, though, with paddleboarding, sailing, surfing and fishing a big part of life, along with “dooking” for crabs. You’re a long way from urban pleasures —Aberdeen and Inverness are both 60 miles away — but if you can put up with that, you can bag a grand villa in the centre for between £400,000 and £500,000, or a waterside cottage on Seatown for between £200,000 and £300,000.
Average house price: £216,320
Best seaside towns to live in Wales
Gower peninsula, Swansea
There’s seaside for everyone on this modest peninsula, from the surfer-friendly waves of wild Rhossili and Llangennith to brooding cliffs, sandy bays, salt marshes and the ice-cream stops in Mumbles. Easy access to the improving city of Swansea is a bonus, and one of the reasons why The Sunday Times named the Gower as the best place to live in Wales this year.
The Gower is a place with a lot of local pride and all kinds of cool, creative and sustainable independent businesses, from potteries and surfboard shapers to bakeries and community veg projects.
Another reason to live there is the wide choice of homes, from the aspirational enclaves of Langland Bay and Caswell Bay, supposedly Wales’s answer to the Hamptons and with price tags to match: from £1 million or so for a good-sized detached home to well over £2 million. There’s better value to be found inland, though. Canny buyers should look at Crofty or Penclawdd, which are further from the famous beaches but handy for Swansea — there’s a good range of homes there, from about £250,000 for a three-bedroom property.
Average house price: £459,466 (five-year average)
Aberdovey, Gwynedd
Perfectly placed where the mountains of Snowdonia tumble down to the sea, Aberdovey (Aberdyfi in Welsh) provides glorious views of sunsets, night skies, seals and otters basking in the estuary and dolphins playing in Cardigan Bay.
“The views are ever-changing,” Phil Thomas, a local businessman, says. “The sea can be beautifully flat and calm, or the waves might crash over the sea wall and on to the street — sometimes on the same day.” Thomas runs Coast, a deli and restaurant that brings a buzz to the village. Look out too for Dai’s Shed, a fish stall on the wharf, the Braided Rug Company and the Tides Inn, which opened in 2022.
There are a fair few second homes here but this is no off-season ghost town, Thomas says. “It’s quieter but it’s still a busy seaside village. The holiday homes are well used and the owners are a big part of the community. Even though not everyone lives here all the time, Aberdyfi has a strong community feel.”
The downside is that house prices are high by Welsh standards. A seafront townhouse will fetch at least £500,000, a large detached home on one of the ever-popular hillside roads could cost anything from £1 million. If that’s too expensive, consider Tywyn, four miles up the coast. It’s a bit more old-school but has decent-sized bungalows for £250,000-£350,000 and the feel of a village that’s going places. Tywyn also has a brilliant cinema, some good shops and restaurants — Millie & Sid’s coffee shop, Salt Marsh Kitchen — not to mention the Talyllyn steam railway, one of the lines that inspired The Railway Series books by the Rev Wilbert Awdry (which starred Thomas the Tank Engine).
Average house price: £358,997
Penarth, Vale of Glamorgan
Cardiff’s smartest suburb is one of those rare places where class and convenience mix with all the fun of the coast. Penarth has an impressive array of schools, independent shops, restaurants and cafés, not to mention fast connections to the centre of Cardiff. It is a place where folk can go about their daily business, then make the most of the water when the working day is done. Or before it starts, in the case of the Dawnstalkers, a band of sea swimmers who gather daily at first light close to the pretty pier. For the less hardy there’s always paddleboarding, sailing and kayaking.
Penarth has a great choice of Victorian homes. Marine Parade hogs the headlines, with imposing mansions built to give Victorian shipping tycoons a view of their cargoes sailing into port. These sell for as much as £3.5 million. There are quieter and far cheaper options, however, such as the large detached Victorian and Edwardian homes on Victoria Road, Westbourne Road and Plymouth Road.
Average house price: £354,260
Solva, Pembrokeshire
With its sheltered harbour hidden between fragrant, gorse-covered hillsides, Solva could hardly be more beautiful. In the lower half of the village, colourful shops line the main road and old cottages sit beside the rushing river. Climb into Upper Solva and it’s all big skies and distant views of St Brides Bay. For surfing, swimming and sandcastles, the epic beaches at Newgale and Whitesands Bay are close.
The number of second homes here does make the property market unforgiving for many locals, but there is also a determination among the full-time population to take care of each other and keep Solva lively all year round.
Bay View Stores is a brilliant village shop and starting point for the new year treasure hunt, which kicks off a packed programme of events. There are duck races in the river, a fireworks display and, biggest and best of all, the annual Edge Festival, a weekend of music and culture that brings the entire community together as volunteers, spectators and sometimes performers, with profits going to local good causes.
The prettiest (and priciest) houses are on Prendergast, beside the river in Lower Solva. You can get a three-bedroom semi for about £400,000; budget up to £750,000 for something bigger and detached.
Average house price: £314,167 (five-year average)
Best seaside town to live in Northern Ireland
Dundrum, Co Down
You get all the sea you could ever want in Dundrum, chosen by The Sunday Times as the best place to live in Northern Ireland this year. Whether you’re swimming or paddleboarding among the seals and seabirds in the tidal waters of Dundrum Bay or watching the waves from the beach in the magnificent Murlough National Nature Reserve, you’re never far from some saltwater-based excitement.
Plenty of houses here have a view of the water, and the rest will probably have a view of the mighty Mourne Mountains — many have both. Allow £200,000 for a waterfront new-build, £300,000 for a Georgian townhouse.
Dundrum is a small place that feels out of the way, but Belfast is only 50 minutes away by car to the north, while Newcastle, a bustling bucket-and-spade resort, is 10 minutes away to the south.
There’s plenty going on in Dundrum itself, though, with some excellent places to eat — the Bucks Head, Mourne Seafood Bar and Scopers takeaway, for example — and a busy community occupied with all kinds of sports, art drop-ins, pub quizzes and open-mic nights at the much loved Dundrum Inn.
Average house price: £228,206 (source: PropertyPal)
House prices supplied by Savills using Land Registry data, except where stated. In locations where there were not enough transactions to supply an annual average, a five-year one has been provided instead.
