Pier to Pier in Bournemouth

The promenade between the Bournemouth and Boscombe piers is as flat as the proverbial pancake so everyone can enjoy the goodies packed into this bustling segment of the south coast. With sea cliffs, beach huts, end-of-the-pier amusements, and Blue Flag sand beaches, Bournemouth has everything you want from a traditional English seaside resort. You can roll up those trousers for a paddle, tuck into fish and chips, and even build sandcastles.

Or you can leave those comfortable clichés behind for a more bracing experience. If you look beneath the surface, quite literally, you’ll discover the northern hemisphere’s first artificial reef which lies about a mile to the east of Boscombe pier. If you think you’re the next Kelly Slater (a ten time world surfing champion) then paddle out 200 metres into the swell and wait for the perfect wave or simply watch the action unfold from the comfort of the Urban Reef bar. Be careful not to lose yourself in the hypnotic ebb and flow of the tide for too long, there’s still the rest of the walk to complete. The pier-to-pier walk combines the past and present seamlessly.

From the surf dudes and tea-drinking pensioners walking the promenade to the wooden beach huts and futurist pods designed by Wayne Hemmingway that line the way - old and new hasn’t gone together this well since Michael Douglas and Catherine Zeta-Jones.