ENGLAND’s ‘biggest village’ is right on the beach – and has it’s own train station and hotels right on the seafront.
Lancing in West Sussex has the largest population of any other village in England, with close to 19,000 people calling it home.
While it is larger than some towns, it remains a village as it does not have a “market charter” which was required in older times to become a town.
Found between Shoreham-by-Sea and Worthing, the coastal town has a huge 10mile long beach.
During high-tide, the beach is mainly shingle, but when the sea goes back out again, large stretches of soft wet sand, perfect for building sand castles, are uncovered.
Along with pastel coloured beach huts lining the back of the promenade, it’s a great spot for with surfing, wind-surfing and sailing too.
There is even The Perch, an award winning cafe serving pizzas and hot drinks among a number of other treats right on the beach.
It was previously known to have the best vegetarian roast in the country, among a number of other items on its menu well worth ordering.
There is also the Widewater Lagoon, popular with wildlife fans who can spot herons, swans and other wildfowl.
Other popular activities in the area include mountain bike tours of the nearby South Downs National Park, as well as E-Karting race tracks and a visit to the beautiful Lancing College Chapel.
Swimmers can even pretend to be mermaids for the day at the Sussex Mermaid School – with tails provided.
It is even right next to an airport – being Brighton City Airport.
Sadly you can’t hop on a plane to Spain from here, being used primarily as a flying school.
One person especially sold on the village was Robert Luff, who wrote on his housing blog: “Lancing is a lovely extra-large village in West Sussex that nestles between Worthing and Shoreham-by-Sea.
“It has the gentle slopes of the South Downs as its backdrop and the English Channel in front, as far as the eye can see.
“There is a shingle and sand beach that stretches nearly ten miles that is perfect whether you are a walker, water sports enthusiast or simply enjoy relaxing with a good book listening to the waves.”
The village is full of pubs and bars, as well as restaurants and, of course, fish and chip shops.
If you fancy staying, you’ve got a surprising amount of choices for a village.
There is the Beach Green Hotel right on the seafront, or the Eastern Sands Holiday Park.
Otherwise there are a number of campsites and B&Bs to choose from too.
Lancing has it’s own train station which is on the West Coastway Line.
Connecting to both Brighton and Southampton, direct trains from London Victoria take around 1hr20.
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