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Cliftonville Tourist Information


Cliftonville is a suburb of East Margate in Kent. Its long sandy beach at the foot of the cliffs has been a popular holiday destination since Victorians first took to sea bathing.

This was where the first covered bathing machines were invented in 1753 by Benjamin Beale, a local Quaker, and they drew quite a following by the 19th century.

In its heyday, West Cliftonville was considered the fashionable quarter of Margate and its seafront was lined with small hotels and boarding houses along with a large Butlins complex.

Writer T.S.Eliot spent time convalescing at the Albemarle Hotel in Cliftonville in 1921 and he wrote parts of his well-known novel The Waste Land in the promenade shelter at Nayland Rock, now a Grade II listed building. John Betjeman also found inspiration here when he wrote his poem Margate 1940.


Present Day Cliftonville

Part of Cliftonville is known as Palm Bay and has wide suburban avenues lined with 1930s detached and semi-detached homes. The original classy avenues were Gloucester Avenue and Leicester Avenue with newer housing being built more recently around the original desirable addresses.

Cliftonville shopping area is in Northdown Road and has several banks along with Boots the Chemist, a Tesco supermarket, post office and various family businesses. Visitors will also find an attractive award-winning art gallery along with coffee shops, cafés, pubs, churches and other services in the town centre.

The town has several churches such as the lovely St Anne's Catholic Church and Presbytery and the unusual St Michael and St Bishoy Coptic Orthodox Church.

For family amusements, Cliftonville is well endowed with a ten pin bowling alley, tennis, crazy golf, a bowling green and bandstand which hosts concerts and local events including a farmers' market. The Winter Gardens Theatre is well known for its high class entertainment.


Things to do in Cliftonville

The Thanet coast around Cliftonville is ideal for breezy cliff top walks, seashore safaris and seal trips on offer.

The sands at Cliftonville provide many happy hours for splashing in the sea, digging sandcastles and riding donkeys. Those wanting a little more excitement can go kite-boarding, surfing or jetskiing. Whelks, candyfloss and traditional fish and chips can all be found here!

Margate has a host of tourist attractions, amusement arcades and funfairs along its seafront. It offers traditional seaside fun for families and retirees.

Margate Old Town is the local history museum for the area, housed in a lovely 17th century building. It has some excellent exhibits as well as small shops which add to the area's desirability.

With the opening of the new Turner Contemporary Art Gallery, Margate will be well and truly on the map of keen culture vultures. Events and festivals in the Cliftonville area include the Big Sky Festival of Motorsports, Margate's Big Event in June and the Big Sky Jazz Festival in July.

Just out of Cliftonville is Quex Park which includes a Regency country house and gardens with a fantastic private museum collection of porcelain, artworks and stuffed animals from Africa and Asia. It was the 2010 winner of an award by the Pride of Thanet Tourist Board.

The historic city of Canterbury with Canterbury Cathedral and attractions such as Canterbury Royal Museum and Art Gallery , Canterbury West Gate Towers and Canterbury Roman Museum are just 17 miles away.

 

Images of Cliftonville
Sunset at Cliftonville © Don
Jet Ski cafe © Don
Directions
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Attractions near Cliftonville
Ramsgate Maritime Museum (3 Miles)*
Ramsgate Maritime Museum focuses strongly on Ramsgate and its immediate environs, with a brief introduction to the rest of the region's maritime past.
Powell-Cotton Museum (4 Miles)*
The Park, gardens and woodlands provide an attractive and tranquil backdrop to Quex House, one of Kent's finest Regency houses, and the Powell-Cotton Museum a vast collection of treasures gathered on twenty-eight expeditions to Africa and Asia.
White Mill Rural Heritage Centre (8 Miles)*
The Windmill was built around 1760. It was used to grind wheat, barley and oats. In 1889 a steam engine was installed to drive the mill when there was no wind.
more attractions in Cliftonville and things to do in Cliftonville ...
* Distances shown are in a direct line. Distances by road will be longer.

What's near Cliftonville

Attractions:
  Ramsgate Maritime Museum  3 Miles
  Powell-Cotton Museum  4 Miles
  White Mill Rural Heritage Centre  8 Miles
more attractions in Cliftonville...
 
Towns:
  Kingsgate  1 Mile
  Margate  1 Mile
  Broadstairs  2 Miles
more towns near Cliftonville...
 
Estate Agents:
  Spicer McColl Cliftonville  1 Mile
  Cooke and Co Estate Agents  1 Mile
  Miles and Barr  2 Miles
Hotels:
  The Fayreness Hotel  1 Mile
  Palm Court Hotel  1 Mile
  Smiths Court Hotel  1 Mile
more hotels in Cliftonville area...
 
Bed and Breakfast:
  Copperfields Guest House  2 Miles
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Self Catering:
  Donkey May  2 Miles
  Broadstairs Bay View  2 Miles
  Coastguards Cottages  3 Miles
more self catering near Cliftonville...
 
Campsites:
  Two Chimneys Caravan Park  4 Miles
  Seaview Holiday Park  14 Miles
  St Margaret's Bay Holiday Park  16 Miles
TIC: Margate Tourist Information Centre     Tel: 0870 264 6111  1 Mile



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Towns near Cliftonville
Kingsgate Tourist Information (1 Mile)*
Kingsgate Bay is arguably one of Kent's most beautiful beaches - secluded, sandy and nestled between chalk cliffs, North Foreland golf course and the historic Kingsgate Castle.
Margate Tourist Information (1 Mile)*
Margate has a lovely sea front and a fun fair. Donkey rides were first introduced on the sands of Margate in the early 19th century. Margate is also the birthplace of the Bathing Machine; Thomas Barber, a local man, made the first one in 1736.
Broadstairs Tourist Information (2 Miles)*
Broadstairs has an old world charm all of its own. There are winding streets, and fishermen's cottages cluster round the harbour. Viking bay is the town's main beach, but there are six other bays for you to enjoy.
more towns near Cliftonville...
* Distances shown are in a direct line. Distances by road will be longer.

Hotels near Cliftonville
Palm Court Hotel (1 Mile)*
Situated on the Eastern Esplanade, the main seafront road from Margate to Broadstairs, Palm Court overlooks the beautiful Oval Garden of the Queens Promenade and the sea below.
Smiths Court Hotel (1 Mile)*
Imagine a hotel with a relaxed informality and the highest standards of service. Our elegant Victorian offers en suite standard, executive rooms and junior suites, most enjoying spectacular sea views and superb Turner sunsets.
Glenwood Hotel (1 Mile)*
The Glenwood is ideally located for the business executive. We are within close proximity to the Continent, Canterbury and Kent International Airport at Manston.
more Cliftonville hotels (and nearby)...
* Distances shown are in a direct line. Distances by road will be longer.

Self Catering near Cliftonville
Harbour Cottage (3 Miles)*
Harbour Cottage is one of a row of whitewashed mews cottages within a picturesque conservation area in the only Royal Harbour town in Britain. It originally belonged to a local fisherman and his family around 1840.
Quintessential Cottages (10 Miles)*
Luxury grade II listed smugglers' cottages nestling in Deals picturesque conservation area, 50 metres from the beach. Beautifully decorated and stylishly furnished throughout.
Your property could be here
Advertising your self catering property or holiday cottage on AboutBritain.com will get you noticed by thousands of potential guests every day.
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* Distances shown are in a direct line. Distances by road will be longer.

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