Worthing

Worthing is the largest town in West Sussex. The town lies nestled between the English Channel and the South Downs National Park. It is a seaside town with a pier, a prom and pleasant seaside parks. Since the 19th century, it has been nicknamed 'Sunny Worthing' thanks to its reputedly sunny and mild microclimate.

Understand
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.

Local information

 * Worthing local information website

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

By train
Trains to Worthing run from Victoria and London Bridge stations in London, taking about 75 minutes, while Gatwick Airport is about 45 minutes away. There are also trains which run along the coast to Brighton (around 20 minutes). To the west lie Chichester (around 30 minutes) and Portsmouth (an hour).

Southern Railway tickets to London and some other destinations can be purchased from as little as £3 (£2 with rail cards) one way, if purchased online from their website. The tickets can then be collected form the automated machines at your departure station.

The main railway station is located just northwest of the town centre.

By car
The A27 also runs through the north of the town so, it is very easy to get to from Brighton and Chichester (depending on the direction). The A24 links Worthing to the M25 and London and is dual carriageway for much of its length. The A264/M23 provides a dual carriageway link from the A24 to Gatwick Airport.

By bus
National Express operates services to the town's bus station on the seafront close to the Dome Cinema. The journey from London to Worthing takes about 2 hr 40 min. Tickets are much cheaper if booked in advance online.

Cycling
To the east of Worthing the South Coast Cycle Route runs along the coastline, so you can cycle along the promenade down to Lancing and Shoreham. A cycle route also goes from the train station to the seafront.

On foot
The main pedestrian shopping centre on Montague and South Streets is only one block from the seafront.

By bus
Stagecoach operates bus services throughout the town and local area. The Pulse is a service running every 10 minutes in the daytime between Durrington and Lancing via Worthing town centre. The 700 Coastliner runs between Brighton and Littlehampton, every 15 to 20 minutes, with a stop in Worthing just outside the Dome Cinema.

Compass Buses also provides buses in the town.

By train
Southern Railway runs trains across Worthing's main station (known simply as ) and four suburban stations (from east to west these are, , and ).

See

 * is free to stroll 6AM-10PM.
 * 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.
 * 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.

Do

 * 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.
 * 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.
 * 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.

Golf

 * Worthing GC has two 18-hole courses on the South Downs. The Lower Course is reckoned to be one of the best downland courses in England. The Upper Course boasts some spectacular views across much of the south coast, from the Isle of Wight to Beachy Head.
 * Hill Barn GC is a nice 18-hole course on the South Downs. Former municipal course in private hands and benefiting from their investment. The club hosted European Tour events in the 1970s.
 * Brooklands Golf Centre  is a municipal, nine-hole learners course. Looks good now the trees have grown and has a nice water feature. Close to the seafront east of town.
 * Splash Point Mini Golf is Worthing's only crazy golf course, near seafront behind Splash Point.
 * Marine Gardens Putting Green is a small putting green close to the seafront west of the town centre.

Events

 * Worthing Music & Arts Festival has try-outs Feb-March and the main event in June.
 * Worthing Pride is next held 5-6 Juty 2024.
 * Worthing Birdman  competition is in August: see grown men jumping off Worthing Pier in their attempts to 'fly' the furthest, and with the wackiest costumes. If the weather's good you can expect to be joined by 20,000 to 30,000 others.

Buy
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.

Eat
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.

Drink
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.

Sleep
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.
 * Premier Inn is at 127 Marine Parade next to the Burlington.
 * Sleep is a budget hotel at 37 Richmond Rd, 100 yards west of the Museum & Art Gallery.
 * Premier Inn is at 127 Marine Parade next to the Burlington.
 * Sleep is a budget hotel at 37 Richmond Rd, 100 yards west of the Museum & Art Gallery.
 * Sleep is a budget hotel at 37 Richmond Rd, 100 yards west of the Museum & Art Gallery.

Stay safe
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.

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

Go next

 * 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.