Whilst it's nice to visit the beach, we often enjoy the contrast of walking along the cliffs and being up high. Luckily for us, we are only about 30/40 minutes away from the National Trust maintained coastline that is the Seven Sisters/ Birling Gap and Beachy Head. There is no entry charge to explore the area and parking is just £2 for a half-day or £4 for the full day so great value.
We have been here more times than I can count and we often take the mini-bus so we have a ton of people with us to enjoy the glorious views and fresh air. At the beginning of July, we took a party of 16 people and had a great time skimming stones on the beach, jumping the waves and then walking the cliffs of the Seven Sisters.
One thing I can't fail to say is that you MUST stay away from the edge. Please keep at least 10 metres back from the edge as chalk cliffs are prone to falling away and there has been so much erosion over the last few years. You really can't be too careful!
Let me share a few photos from our fun day -
You can see the National Trust cafe, shop and Visitor Centre in the bottom right corner and the metal steps that extend out from the cliffs and allow you to walk down to the pebbly beach. When the sea is out this is a wonderful place for rock-pooling.
You can get a great cream tea here with amazing views, it is worth the drive up for that alone!