This guide covers four of Broadstairs’ bays and two small museums. It helps you decide what to do now and what to leave until spring. The two museums, Dickens House and Crampton Tower, both end their 2026 seasons on Sunday 1 November, and the 2026 lifeguard seasons on the bays ended in September. The cards below link to each place’s InKent page.
What closes after 1 November
Dickens House Museum and Crampton Tower Museum both list their 2026 seasons as ending on Sunday 1 November. Visit Thanet’s page for Dickens House lists no opening days after Sunday 1 November and gives no 2027 reopening date. Crampton Tower lists other times by appointment. If you read this after 1 November, treat both museums as closed until their own pages say otherwise. The four bays are open beaches, so they stay available all year.
Dickens House Museum
Dickens House Museum is at 2 Victoria Parade. Thanet District Council owns it and volunteers staff it, and it is in the cottage linked to Betsey Trotwood’s home in David Copperfield. It shows items that belonged to Charles Dickens, including letters about Broadstairs, his writing box and a sideboard, plus prints by Phiz and Victorian costumes.
- Opening: Wednesday to Sunday, 1pm to 4.30pm, with last entry at 4pm, to Sunday 1 November 2026.
- Cost: Visit Thanet lists 2026 admission as adult £5 and child £2.50.
- Access: one step at the entrance, where staff can assist. There are two floors with 14 stairs and no lift. Two accessible parking bays are about 50 metres away.
Crampton Tower Museum
Crampton Tower Museum is on The Broadway, beside Broadstairs station. It is a volunteer-run charity museum, partly in a Victorian flint water tower, telling the story of railway engineer Thomas Russell Crampton, with transport and local history. Its own site lists Friday, Saturday, Sunday and bank holiday Mondays, 2pm to 4.30pm, with last admission at 4pm, from 3 April to 1 November 2026, with other times by appointment.
- Cost: its own site lists adult £5, child aged 4 to 16 £3 and family £13.
- Access: the tower has a winding staircase with no lift or ramp alternative. The rest of the building is accessible to wheelchair users, and the toilets are wheelchair accessible.
Viking Bay
Viking Bay, off Victoria Parade, is a horseshoe of sand backed by a cliff-top promenade and boardwalk. Thanet District Council lists toilets, a first aid point, deckchair and beach hut hire, beach shops, a refill station and a cafe, and says the surf school runs from March to October. Visit Thanet lists a 2026 Seaside Award. Seasonal lifeguards in 2026 covered 23 May to 6 September daily, then weekends to 27 September, so outside those dates the beach is unguarded. The council publishes an access statement for the bay, so read it if access matters.
Joss Bay
Joss Bay is a 200 metre sandy bay surrounded by fields and a golf course, which Visit Thanet lists as a surfing bay. Thanet District Council lists a Blue Flag and Seaside Award for 2026. Awards are made each season, so check the current list. It also lists a cafe and beach shop, rockpooling, seasonal toilets, disabled toilets and disabled access to the beach. The beach is cut off at both ends at high tide. Dogs are not allowed between 10am and 6pm from 1 May to 30 September. Lifeguards covered 23 May to 6 September 2026.
Botany Bay
Botany Bay is the northernmost of Broadstairs’ seven bays, with white chalk cliffs and chalk stacks. At low tide the council points to fossil hunting and rock pools, and the ends of the beach are cut off at high tide. Thanet District Council lists a combined Blue Flag and Seaside Award for 2026 (awards are made each season), seasonal toilets, a first aid point and lifeguards from 23 May to 6 September. Dogs are banned from 10am to 6pm between 1 May and 30 September. Visit Thanet says parking is limited, with no free parking on Kingsgate Avenue or Fitzroy Avenue (permit holders only), and advises Palm Bay Avenue, where it lists over 200 free spaces.
Kingsgate Bay
Kingsgate Bay is a sandy bay about 150 metres wide with sea caves, reached by steep steps. Kingsgate Castle, built in 1763 and now private homes, stands on the clifftop. Thanet District Council says the beach is dog-friendly all year, has no lifeguards or public toilets, and is cut off by the sea at both ends at high tide. The council says Joss Bay and Botany Bay are about a 15 minute walk away, with lifeguard cover and toilets in season.
Choosing between them
- Dickens: Dickens House, before it closes on 1 November.
- Railway and local history: Crampton Tower, with a stair to climb.
- A main beach with facilities: Viking Bay.
- Chalk cliffs and rock pools: Botany Bay, at low tide.
- Dogs in summer: Kingsgate Bay is dog-friendly all year, while Joss Bay and Botany Bay ban dogs from 10am to 6pm between 1 May and 30 September.
- Winter: the bays have no lifeguards outside their seasons, and the ends of Joss Bay, Botany Bay and Kingsgate Bay are cut off at high tide, so check the tide times.
Planning the day
From Friday 30 October to Sunday 1 November both museums list opening days, so you can begin at Dickens House, which opens at 1pm, and finish at Crampton Tower, which opens at 2pm. After that date, plan around the bays. Joss Bay and Botany Bay list seasonal toilets, so do not count on them in winter, and Kingsgate Bay has none. We have no distances between Viking Bay and the northern bays, so check a map.
Getting there
Crampton Tower Museum is beside Broadstairs station. Use the train operator’s journey planner for current services. Parking near Botany Bay is limited, with over 200 free spaces on Palm Bay Avenue according to Visit Thanet, and we have no parking details for the other bays, so check Thanet District Council’s pages.
Frequently asked questions
Is Dickens House Museum open in winter?
No. Its 2026 season ends on Sunday 1 November, and no 2027 reopening date is published, so check the council’s page.
What should I know before visiting Kingsgate Bay?
Thanet District Council lists steep steps to reach it, no lifeguards, no public toilets, and the sea cutting off both ends at high tide.
Can I take a dog to Joss Bay?
Not between 10am and 6pm from 1 May to 30 September. The listing mentions no ban outside those dates, but check the council’s page.