Things to Do in Brighton

Palace Pier arcade games and fish-and-chip haze

The pier's boards thrum under your shoes. Dodgems squeal and 1980s machines bleep between rides. Vinegar-soaked chips ride the wind. Rollercoaster wheels clatter above surf that hisses over smooth grey stones.

Royal Pavilion's Indo-Gothic interiors

Dragon-claw chandeliers glitter above scarlet carpets inside. A faint museum hush hangs in the air. Parquet creaks under slow footsteps. Banqueting Room wallpaper shimmers peacock-blue. The audio guide murmurs of George IV's 3 a.m. lobster suppers.

The Lanes antique-shop shuffle

Alleyways open barely two shoulder-widths wide. Courtyards smell of old leather and silver polish. Footsteps echo under skylight glint on Victorian jewellery trays. Shopkeepers greet regulars by first name.

British Airways i360 viewpoint glide

The glass pod climbs a 162-metre mast so slowly you barely feel motion. Sussex downs unroll like green corduroy. The marina shrinks to Lego size. Sunlight refracts through curved panels and warms your forearms. A recorded soundtrack times the ascent to the coastline's sighing surf.

Volks Railway seafront chug

Britain's oldest electric railway rattles along the beachfront. Briny wind whips through open carriages. The conductor's ticket punch clicks like a metronome. Kids shriek when waves slap the breakwater. Spray showers the track's landward side.

North Laine for indie cafés and record shops on your doorstep

Kemptown's rainbow-painted squares within earshot of church bells

Hove's mellow avenues and seafront squares

Regency-era squares near the station for quick London getaways

Beachfront hotels along King's Road for dawn-swim access

Seven Dials' hilltop cafés and micro-pub scene