Lewes and around

The perfect base for exploring Sussex

A Norman castle at the top of the street, the South Downs Way twenty minutes' walk away, opera at Glyndebourne, the Bloomsbury Group at Charleston, and England's best sparkling wine within half an hour.

The guides

Written by the people who host you

Historic Lewes
A Norman castle at the top of the street, a Cluniac priory at the bottom, Anne of Cleves House, Thomas Paine's lodgings and a Tudor house you can sleep in. Lewes wears its history in the open.
Read the Historic Lewes guide →
South Downs walks
Mount Caburn from the door, the Downs by bus to Ditchling Beacon and back on foot, Firle Beacon, the Seven Sisters and a flat riverside stroll. The best walks from Lewes, with honest times and where to end up for a pint.
Read the South Downs walks guide →
Glyndebourne
The opera house is ten minutes from the apartment. Festival 2027 dates and productions, the Autumn Season, the long interval, what to wear, and how to do it from a base with a kitchen for the picnic and parking for the car.
Read the Glyndebourne guide →
Charleston and the Bloomsbury Group
Charleston, Monk's House, Berwick church and Charleston's own gallery in Lewes: the Bloomsbury Group's Sussex, all within fifteen minutes of the apartment, with the festival in May and the quiet months when you have the house to yourself.
Read the Charleston and the Bloomsbury Group guide →
Lewes with children
A castle to climb, a zoo twenty minutes away, beaches with rock pools, a flat riverside walk, and a cinema for the rainy afternoon. Lewes for families, from a flat that takes two of them.
Read the Lewes with children guide →
Lewes Bonfire Night
The biggest Fifth of November in the country happens on the street outside. What it is, how the evening runs, why the town tells outsiders not to come, and why staying in the apartment is the one way to do it properly.
Read the Lewes Bonfire Night guide →
Sussex wine and breweries
Harvey's has brewed by the river in Lewes since 1790 and you can walk to it. The chalk under the Downs is the same chalk as Champagne, and the vineyards that prove it are within half an hour. A drinks itinerary with a sober driver built in.
Read the Sussex wine and breweries guide →
Where to eat in Lewes
The pubs, restaurants and cafés we send our own guests to, all within a short walk of the apartment, plus where to shop for a night in. The list from the guest handbook, in more detail.
Read the Where to eat in Lewes guide →
Getting to Lewes
By train from London Victoria in about an hour, from Gatwick in forty minutes, from Brighton in fifteen; by car off the A27 with two parking spaces waiting; or by ferry into Newhaven, twenty minutes away. How to arrive, and how to leave the car behind once you have.
Read the Getting to Lewes guide →