Walks from Hastings

Highly recommended

Coastal: three quarters along the coast.

Hastings

Time: 4h–8h30

2 lunch spots: the New Beach Club (1h30–3h in), or the Cove (2h–4h in)

8 end-of-walk rewards: the Jolly Fisherman, the Lord Nelson, the Royal Standard, the London Trader, the Hastings Arms, Ye Olde Pumphouse, the Cutter, or the Albion

Adapted from: The Rough Guide to Walks in London & the South East (3rd edition).

Similar walk: the Saturday Walkers Club.

Highly recommended: Clifftop coastal path, steep climbs, remote naturist beach, flat marshland, ancient hilltop towns and panoramic viewpoints.

Coastal: three fifths along the coast.

Time: 5h30–11h30

Warnings: Crumbly cliff edges.

Walk details: the Saturday Walkers Club (tips, local insights and turn-by-turn directions).

Similar walk: Slow Ways (inc. GPX).

Reverse direction: Railwalks.

Hilly clifftop path, steep glens, shingle and sandy beach, forested inland valleys, coastal headlands, bracken and eroding cliffs.

Warnings: Crumbly cliff edges.

Walk details: the Saturday Walkers Club (tips, local insights and turn-by-turn directions).

The greener inland side of town: a Victorian park, wildlife-rich woods, a waterfall chine, a museum and the seafront.

Hastings

Walk details: Travelog Lewes (tips, photos, local insights and turn-by-turn directions).

Undulating ridge, pastureland, farms, woods, hilly territory with fine views, coastal cliff path with steep ascents and descents and historic walled town.

Warnings: Steep ascents and descents.

Walk details: the Saturday Walkers Club (tips, local insights and turn-by-turn directions).

Flat coastal seafront promenades, shingle beach, sandy beach at low tide, sea wall paths, quiet coast roads and low cliffs.

Warnings: Shingle heavy going.

Walk details: the Saturday Walkers Club (tips, local insights and turn-by-turn directions).

A walk in three contrasting sections, largely along the waymarked 1066 Country Trail: a paved seaside promenade, then green spaces and the Combe Haven wetlands and finally rural High Weald with small steep valleys and wooded farmland. Expect very slippery mud in Combe Haven and heavy going elsewhere; kissing gates en route. Largely follows the 1066 Country Trail; passes the Combe Haven SSSI and the RSPB reserve at Fore Wood. Crowhurst, Crowhurst station and West St Leonards station allow the route to be split.

Woodland: a fifth under tree cover.

Battle Abbey: An abbey founded by William the Conqueror on the site of the 1066 battlefield.

Time: 4h–8h

1 lunch spot: the Plough

End-of-walk reward: Numerous pubs, cafes and shops in Battle, though some are aimed at Abbey visitors so check times.

Warnings: Combe Haven has very slippery mud (a pole helps). Road walking up Chapel Hill in Crowhurst is on bends with poor visibility and limited room to stand aside, so use hi-vis. Crossing the fairly busy Powdermill Lane needs care, as visibility is poor heading north.

Walk details: Slow Ways.

Clifftop coastal path, steep climbs, Hastings Old Town, caves and castle.

Time: 3h

Warnings: Crumbly cliff edges.

Source: A shorter variant of Hastings to Rye – the Saturday Walkers Club (tips, local insights and turn-by-turn directions).

Clifftop coastal path, steep climbs, naturist beach, flat marshland and ancient hilltop town.

Warnings: Crumbly cliff edges.

Source: A shorter variant of Hastings to Rye – the Saturday Walkers Club (tips, local insights and turn-by-turn directions).

Varied hilly terrain, woods, cliff-top coast path, steep ascents and descents and old town.

Warnings: Steep ascents and descents.

Source: A shorter variant of Winchelsea to Hastings via Three Oaks – the Saturday Walkers Club (tips, local insights and turn-by-turn directions).

Seafront promenade, sandy paths, secluded bays, low cliffs and Hastings promenade.

Source: A shorter variant of Eastbourne to Hastings via Bexhill – the Saturday Walkers Club (tips, local insights and turn-by-turn directions).