Worthing

For much of the 20th century the town seems to have taken its eye off the ball with regards tourism, preferring to see itself as a town by the sea rather than a seaside town. In the 21st century, the town has been getting its act together; palm trees have been planted along the beach promenade, the Dome Cinema has been restored and the area around Splash Point revitalised. The town has a growing reputation for the arts and now hosts the Worthing Birdman event which attracts tens of thousands of people. Further regeneration work is planned, including a £150-million redevelopment of the Teville Gate area near the station.

The hills around Worthing were home to some of Britain's earliest and most extensive flint-mining operations, which saw some of the hardest flint available mined for thousands of years and exported across much of Britain and Europe. These flints helped people to fell trees, bringing about the neolithic revolution turning the nomadic Stone Age into a settled agricultural Bronze Age. Church Hill dates from 4500 BC. You can still see the filled-in mineshafts on the edge of Cissbury Ring, just north of town.

Settled since the Bronze Age, Worthing remained a small fishing hamlet until the 1750s, when various wealthy citizens visited for the hunting and fishing opportunities afforded by the area. Princess Amelia, daughter of King George III, stayed in Montague Place in 1798, which put the town firmly on the map of England's fashionable society. In the 19th century, Worthing was an elegant and fashionable resort attracting the rich and famous of the day.

It is famous for being used as the location for the movie Wish You Were Here nd for its literary connections. Oscar Wilde named the central character of The Importance of Being Earnest after the town, and wrote the play while stayed here at the height of the town`s fashionability in the 1890s. Jane Austen's unfinished novel Sanditon is thought to have been significantly based on experiences from her stay in Worthing in 1805. A blue plaque marks the former home of Nobel prize-winning playwright Harold Pinter in Ambrose Place.

Today Worthing has a windsurfing and kitesurfing centre at the western end of the promenade and is a good place to stay for visitors wishing to explore the South Downs which are just north of the town.

Worthing (population 100,000) is a large town and the centre of an urban area of 185,000. With nearby Brighton, it forms part of England's tenth largest conurbation, with nearly half a million residents.

Worthing is around 100 km (60 miles) south of London and 18 km (11 miles) or so along the coast from Brighton.

• East Beach Studios (on the town's seafront). 
• 🌍 Worthing Pier is free to stroll 6AM-10PM.
• 🌍 Worthing Museum and Art Gallery, Chapel Rd. Tu-Sa 10AM-5PM. Pay a visit to the town's free museum. It contains one of the country's finest Victorian costume collections and holds various fine and decorative art exhibitions, including lively temporary exhibitions often involving local artists, as well as a sculpture garden. Also has archaeology exhibits, including artefacts from the South Downs nearby. Some of the space is a little dated, but interesting nevertheless. Free. (updated May 2018)
• Visit local artists at the Worthing Open Houses event. More than 45 local homes open their doors to the public to display a wide range of arts and crafts from local artists. In 2011 the event takes place in the last two weekends of June and first weekend of July.
• Visit the reproduction of the Sistine Chapel ceiling located in English Martyrs Catholic Church 4 miles (7 km) to the west of the town centre, near Goring Station. Open Tu-Fr 10AM-4.
• Highdown hill, north of Goring, provides scenic views of the town and also has the historic Highdown Gardens open to the public. Both are free of charge. Highdown Gardens is open Apr-Sep: daily 10AM-6PM, Oct-Nov: M-F 10AM-4:30PM, Dec-Jan: M-F 10AM-4PM, Feb-Mar: M-F 10AM-4:30PM. There's also a cafe and a hotel/restaurant by the entrance.
• 🌍 High Salvington Mill, Salvington Hill BN13 3AT. Restored post mill from around 1776. It's usually running two Sundays a month in summer. (updated Jun 2021)

• 🌍 Dome Cinema, 21-22 Marine Parade, BN11 3PT, ☏ +44 1903 823112. See a film at one of England's most atmospheric early cinemas. (updated May 2018)
• Stroll along the prom or hire a bike from the cycle hire shop on the seafront.
• K66 Surf Division hire stand-up paddle boards and kayaks. They're on Beach Parade east of the pier.
• M's Cycle Hire, Marine Parade (On seafront opposite Steyne Gardens), ☏ +44 7852 986165, +44 7852 986163. Hire a bike along the seafront. They will also deliver to where you are in the Worthing area. Cycle along the seafront or up onto the South Downs. 
• Don't miss the fishermen selling fish from their boats on East Worthing Beach. Oscar Wilde's residence here in 1894 is commemorated by a blue plaque on the modern building at the eastern end of the Esplanade.
• Admire the views of the town's art deco pier from Splash Point, with its rainbow mist water feature and pleasant seating area. Located 100 metres east of the pier.
• Visit one of the town's theatres :
  • Connaught Theatre offers productions visiting from London's West End as well as repertory theatre in an art-deco setting.
  • Pavilion Theatre offers a range of shows from children's shows to general entertainers in the beach-side pavilion on Worthing Pier.
  • Assembly Hall is the town's main venue for music, with its excellent acoustics. It is home to the Worthing Symphony Orchestra, the only professional orchestra in West Sussex, which puts on Spring and Autumn seasons.
• Cissbury Ring is one of Britain's most impressive Iron Age hillforts, managed by the National Trust and lying in the newly created South Downs National Park just north of the town. Consider walking from the Worthing suburb of Broadwater or the nearby village of Sompting with its picturesque 11th-century church.
• Worthing Thunder play Sept-April in the BBL, the UK's top basketball league. Catch them at Worthing Leisure Centre, close to Durrington Station, two miles west of the town centre.
• Cricket: Worthing CC play in the Sussex Cricket League. It's an easy walk from town centre just north of the main railway station.

Broadwater CC have played on Broadwater Green a few miles north of town since the 18th century. There is a traditional pub named the Cricketers opposite the green.

You will find the main high street shops around South Street and Montague Street. Most of the town's banks are listed where these streets meet, and the much loved general store Wilko's is here as well.

Montague Street is pedestrianised and is home to a market every Wednesday. South Street Square hosts a Farmers' Market on the fourth Saturday of every month.

There are two arcades, one Victorian, and one modern, off the western end of Montague Street, where small independent retailers can be found. Warwick Street, and the West End of Montague Street also feature independent shops.

Information on the shops and facilities in the pedestrian town centre can be found here

While in Worthing, look out for a type of sweet named Worthings after the town, available from various places including the shop at the town's Museum and Art Gallery.

Many different international cuisines are offered in Worthing, and most offer excellent food at a reasonable price. There main area for eating out in Worthing is in and around the pedestrianised Warwick Street. There are also an increasing number of restaurants around the West End of the town centre, about 1km west of South Street, around the west end of Montague Street and Rowlands Road.

For Italian food, go to 'Pomodoro e Mozzarella' on Warwick Street. This restaurant is far superior to the nearby franchises of Ask and Pizza Express, and offers authentic Italian cuisine in a friendly but very intimate atmosphere. Be sure to make a reservation if you want an evening meal there on a Friday or a weekend night. For Chinese food, try either China Palace or Fortune Inn on Chapel Road; the first is somewhat more expensive than the second, but both offer good food. China Palace has both a traditional a la carte menu and also a 'buffet' menu - for a fixed price, you can eat as much as you like, but it is cooked to order rather than being displayed in open gastronorms in the self-service style. Good Indian food can be found slightly away from the town centre on Goring Road at Shafiques. Ask for the window seat here and watch the local world go by.

For a bite to eat during the day, head to Bath Place, just off the east end of Montague Street, where you will find two very interesting cafés: Thai Lunch Box and Parklife. Thai Lunch Box offers a fairly traditional sandwich menu backed up by an extensive menu of Thai food. Look out for the oriental supermarket next door - pop in and have a look round if you have time. Parklife (almost directly opposite TLB) serves all sorts, including milkshakes in over 50 different flavours.

• Crabshack is a seafood restaurant at 2 Marine Parade, open Su Tu-Th noon-3PM, F Sa noon-8:30PM.
• Level One is a food court on the first level of a multistorey car-park, on Marine Parade 100 yards west of the pier. It's open F Sa noon-9PM, Su noon-7PM.
• Tern is a restaurant at the end of the pier open Th-Sa 12:30-2PM, 7:30PM-10PM.
• Coast, 6 Beach Parade (On seafront 20 yards east of Splash Point), ☏ +44 1903 216937. The only cafe on the beach in central Worthing. Situated next to the East Beach artists' studios. In warmer times of year often has a piano or guitars available outside for customers' use. Organic ice cream, Illy coffee, tea in china cups, cakes and foccacia sandwiches are served. 
• Crescent Road Cafe Restaurant, 14 Crescent Rd, BN11 1RL (Just off the west end of Montague Street, west end of town), ☏ +44 1903 204194. With a reputation for excellent food and service, it has contemporary decor. Tucked away in the town's West End, west of the town centre. £6-20. 
• 🌍 The Fish Factory, 51 Brighton Rd, BN11 3EE (50 m east of corner of High Street and Warwick Street), ☏ +44 1903 207123. Popular fish restaurant, with noisy, bustling atmosphere. Worth booking ahead for evening meal. Not place for a quiet dinner. Nice decor with simple wooden tables and chairs. Good variety of fish. 
• Food, 6 New St (Off the west end of Montague Street), ☏ +44 1903 227780. 11:30AM-. Popular restaurant in contemporary surroundings. Live jazz every night. £5 express lunch menu particularly good value. Plush, light and airy restaurant spread over two floors. 
• Pestle & Mortar, 44 Portland Rd (100m north of Marks and Spencer), ☏ +44 1903 820189. Deli-style cafe serving organic and locally-sourced food. Rustic feel. Also open on Saturday evenings. 

Although the South Street drinking strip is typical, there are many good pubs dotted around the centre. Worthing has become known for its micropubs, running to as many as ten.

• 🌍 Hare & Hounds, 79/81 Portland Rd, BN11 1QG (200m north of Marks & Spencer), ☏ +44 1903 230085. Bar hours: M-Sa 11AM-11PM, Su noon-10:30PM. Worthing's 2009 Pub of the Year. A thriving traditional pub, serving good cask ales and food. Also known for its jazz nights every Tuesday. A pub since 1857, the building used to be three fishermen's cottages. 
• 🌍 Indigo Bar & Restaurant, Steyne Gardens, BN11 3DZ, ☏ +44 1903 230451. Stylish but informal restaurant, specialising in local fresh seafood, seasonal ingredients with monthly changing menus. Excellent cocktails served in the bar. 
• Brooksteed, 38 South Farm Rd BN14 7AE (100 yards NW of Worthing Station), ☏ +44 7394 622572. M 4PM-7:30PM, Tu-Sa noon-10PM, Su noon-6PM. Charming micropub with stylish interior. (updated Oct 2023)
• 🌍 Selden Arms, 41 Lyndhurst Rd, BN11 2DB, ☏ +44 871 951 1000. Revitalised craft beer pub with up to 16 cask and keykeg offerings. 

There are good Bed and Breakfast establishments in East Worthing along and just off the Brighton Road. Sea front rooms here offer excellent views of the picturesque fishing beach and the English Channel beyond.

• Ardington Hotel, Steyne Gardens, ☏ +44 1903 230451, reservations@ardingtonhotel.co.uk. Excellent family-run hotel, established in 1928 and Worthing's highest rated with an AA 80% 3 Star award. Some rooms just newly refurbished which feature flat screen TVs, crisp white cotton duvets and stylish interiors. Includes the popular Indigo Restaurant and Bar. £89. 
• Burlington Hotel, Marine Parade BN11 3QL, ☏ +44 1903 211222. Plush sea-front hotel; good rooms and cuisine, but poorly adapted to anyone with impaired mobility, in Worthing of all places. B&B double £250. (updated Oct 2023)
• Premier Inn is at 127 Marine Parade next to the Burlington.
• Chatsworth Hotel, Steyne (50 yards east of the pier), ☏ +44 1903 236103, hotel@chatsworthworthing.co.uk. Superb traditional family-run hotel in Georgian building dating from 1807, full of character. Central location. Has its own lounge and cocktail bar. Also snooker and pool tables. £85-110. 
• Sleep is a budget hotel at 37 Richmond Rd, 100 yards west of the Museum & Art Gallery.
• Heenefields Guest House, 98 Heene Rd (mile west of town centre), ☏ +44 1903 538780, info@heenefields.com. Popular four-star bed and breakfast, 5-10 min walk from sea. Free Wi-Fi. Winner of 2010 Worthing Tourism Award. £64-66. 
• 🌍 The Lamb at Angmering, The Square, Angmering BN16 4EQ, ☏ +44 1903 774300. Spruced-up old pub with eight rooms and good dining. No dogs in rooms. B&B double £120. (updated Aug 2020)

Although Worthing is generally a very safe place to be, like many large towns, the town centre can get fairly rowdy on Friday and Saturday nights.

As of Feb 2023, Worthing and its approach roads have 4G from EE, Three and Vodafone, and 5G from O2.

• Arundel is a pretty town, steeped in history and famed for its castle and cathedral. 11 miles (18km) west of Worthing along the A27. Stagecoach's 700 bus will take you there. By train you need to change at Ford or Barnham
• Brighton lies 11 miles (18km) along the coast to the east. Brighton is often congested to drive through so you may find it easier to take the train (20 minutes) or use Stagecoach's 700 bus.
• London is an hour and a quarter away via train or 2 hours via coach.