Brightlingsea on the River Colne is rich in seafaring history and is one of the Cinque Ports. The town is a haven for yachting and hosts international sailing events annually. Sailing barges offer pleasure trips to visitors. Its sandy beach runs along Western Promenade next to Bateman’s Tower, a historic local landmark. A parade of beach huts line an attractive and enjoyable waterside walk where you can join the nature trail along the site of an old railway line to Alresford Creek. A range of sports and leisure activities are available along the promenade.
If you require assistance please contact us on 01255 686702 or 01255 222022 (out of hours).
To help plan your journey the postcode for Brightlingsea beach is CO7 0HH.
There is no train station in Brightlingsea, the best option is via bus or to travel in your own vehicle.
The main bus stop is located in the town centre near Victoria place. The post code for this is CO7 0BX.
There are several taxi firms operating in the area should you need them.
The nearest car parks are listed below:
Both car parks operate with pay and display and have blue badge holder spaces.
Promenade Way Car Park has 40 spaces. Western Promenade Grass Car Park has over 300 spaces.
Western Promenade Grass Car Park is not open in the afternoons.
There is also minimal on street parking available close to the awards beach.
Access to the Brightlingsea award beach is via a path that leads directly onto the beach. It is easily accessible for all users. There is one slope by the Batemans Café and there’s a ramp by the wardens hut at the carpark in Promenade way. Additionally, there is access either side of Lido and by the sailing club.
The promenade consists of a hard paved surface extending the length of the awards beach.
Vehicular access is not available on the promenade.
The Warden Hut is located on the path leading from Promenade Way Car Park to the awards beach.
Next to the awards beach is Bateman’s Tower. This is a listed building which was previously used as a bathing house.
There is sheltered seating available next to Bateman’s Tower, as well as seating available around the perimeter of the tower.
On the promenade dogs must be kept on leads and under control.
The award beach is the beach either side of Bateman’s Tower. This includes the safe paddling area. There are multiple groynes in the area to help control coastal erosion, these are not on the safe paddling area.
First aid is available from the Wardens when operating. They operate from May Half Term to the end of the summer school holidays, during school holidays and weekends. The hours are 11am – 5pm.
This award beach is a designated dog free zone area from May to September. This is clearly marked on the map which can be found on the Beach Information Board at the entrance to the beach. It is also signposted along the sea wall at the access points onto the beach.
There are no barbeques allowed on the beach.
Please take your litter home.
The nearest public toilet is located on Promenade Way in Promenade Way Car Park. This has disabled toilets available.
Directly next to this there is a changing places facility. To access this facility, please fill in the Access Key application form.
There is also a public toilet located on Waterside opposite of Sydney Street. This has disabled toilets and baby changing facilities available.
There is a Café with seating available located between Batemans Tower and the Promenade Way Car Park.
Brightlingsea Lido also offer food and drink services. This is located between West Promenade Car Park and Brightlingsea Sailing Club.
Dogs are not allowed on the award winning beach from May to September with the exception of Guide Dogs.
The nearest General Hospital with an A&E unit is located at Clacton-On-Sea. The address is Clacton & District Hospital, Tower Road, Clacton-on-Sea CO15 1LH.
For further information on public toilets, car parks, beach toy libraries and dog banned beach locations please download the Love Tendring app. This information can be found in the interactive map section.
To download, please use the following links:
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.tendringdc.LoveTendring
https://apps.apple.com/gb/app/love-tendring/id1571283893
For any other information please visit the link below: Seafronts (tendringdc.gov.uk)
We have made several adaptations to our website to ensure it is accessible to all.
Some of the tools used on the website include the webReader and ReadSpeaker.
The webReader tool allows users to:
ReadSpeaker allows users to click a listen link underneath the title of each page. This service will then read out the text on the web page.
More information can be found at: Tendring District Council | Accessibility (tendringdc.gov.uk)
