A quick Margate guide – what we did

I’m playing catch-up today. A couple of weeks ago I mentioned that we were off for a short break as part of our summer of music project. And I’ll start with an apology for the photos – we really didn’t take very many because we just switched off and pottered around but I’m pulling together what we have. Our destination was Margate, it’s a resort that you hear a lot about but it’s a long way from a lot of places! So was it worth the trip? I’ll tell you in this quick Margate guide – what we did. And for those who are asking, just a reminder that I’m not covering fashion as a standalone until new season – there’s no point in digging through the rag ends of the summer sales but I’ve added a packing capsule here as a small salve.

First a little bit of context as to why Margate. As I think I’ve mentioned, our nearest seaside town is Morecambe. It takes us about half an hour to walk there and it has to be one of the most topographically beautiful spots on the UK’s coastline, especially when (if!) the sun shines. Like most British seaside towns though it’s been neglected for years. However, change is afoot, work has begun on the new Eden Project North and so before too long it will have a new lease of life. We’re involved in the regeneration from a work perspective and so for a while I’ve been keen to see how Margate has succeeded with a similar campaign of reinvention.

The problem is that it’s always seemed too far to go until… I spotted the line-up for this year’s funk and soul weekender which included Horse Meat Disco and Sophie Ellis-Bextor along with Chic and Nile Rodgers. As I thought about it in the dark days of January I concluded that going so far south in the middle of July surely guaranteed warm sunshine and booked it as the longest of our music breaks.

London Wednesday

So, I’ve been looking forward to it. We’re travelling by train as much as possible (a small way of offsetting some of the flying we did last year) and as we pulled into London the weather was glorious, just as I’d hoped. I hadn’t realised just how much further on from London Margate is until I booked the trains so I ended up splitting the journey with an overnight stay in town. I was hoping to stay near our departure station, St Pancras, but as it was Wimbledon fortnight prices everywhere were sky high – £400 plus for a room, even the Premier Inns were over £275.

In the end I found a rather unusual little hotel in Kings Cross, The Rokxy Townhouse and actually it was superb (I should add that I wasn’t travelling as a blogger, I booked incognito with my work email so this wasn’t any kind of special treatment). There were cucumber sandwiches waiting for us on arrival, a little Fortnum’s giftbag in the room with cherry jam and other goodies inside, the minibar was well stocked and free of charge and the following morning we were surprised by a breakfast tray outside our door. The rooms are small but I’d highly recommend it as a reasonable but nice place to stay.

Anyway we spent our afternoon exploring Coal Drops Yard. Wimbledon was being broadcast live in the small Everyman arena there so the atmosphere was buzzy.

There were interesting shops and boutiques to explore.

Halter top; trousers (now in the sale)

And later that night England were playing in the semi-finals of the Euros so the mood was even more electric, especially with the exciting result. It was all topped off with a salsa festival and lots of people, young and old, dancing in the streets.

A quick Margate guide – what we did

So it was a lovely first night and the following afternoon we relaxed on a long journey through the Kent countryside. It was interesting looking out at all of the arable farming – for me, coming from my dairy and sheep farming world, the rolling fields of wheat and maize felt more like France than England. We arrived in Margate and walked through the pretty old station only to emerge into what looked at first sight just as rundown as Morecambe.

Margate Thursday

The first thing you spot is the iconic Dreamland building – you’ll recognise it from Empire of Light, the brilliant Olivia Coleman movie that was based and filmed there. It was a fifteen minute walk to the AirBnB and at first we were both a bit quiet, wondering how we were going to fill a four day break with slot machines and Wetherspoon’s pubs. But as you go on, you come to the stretch that has been gently regenerated. From a distance the shop fronts still look a bit decrepit but as you draw closer you realise that they’re actually small bistros and micro-breweries, all independently and creatively run. This is a seaside town that has been restored by hand rather than by design and it’s actually rather lovely for it.

Our apartment was right on the seafront, close to the old town and I can’t recommend it enough – here’s a quick glimpse with full details here if you’d like to see more.

So we spent a bit of time settling in and then headed out for something to eat, thinking that a July Thursday in a resort town would be busy but… almost everything was closed. Mal was doing a mock TV interview with me here and he’d just said, “so Nikki, tell me all about a summer evening in Margate?”

A few of you were sad to miss these jeans but the good news is that they’ve released them today on pre-order in a new wash that I think is the best yet – you can find them here (I find a 28 is bang on a size 12).

Cardigan and jeans Me+Em past season, blouse

We found somewhere open for a drink… not a Brewdog… that sign behind us actually says ‘F&@# Brewdog’ which gives you an idea of the level of independence among traders here.

And after that we fortunately happened upon an Aldi so we bought pizzas to cook back at the flat!

Margate Friday

When we looked out the next morning it was grey – you know how summer 2024 has been. Luckily we’d planned to spend some time at The Turner Contemporary first thing so off we went. It must have been such a coup for Margate to build this but it’s hard to appreciate the architecture. It photographs well in the sunshine like this but on a dull day it’s just a drab grey building surrounded by grey sea and grey skies.

Anyway once you’re inside it has great light. It was much smaller than I’d expected but it was a good place to spend an hour. As you can imagine a lot of the work is very abstract which is always more pleasing for Mal than it is for me. He enjoys analysing the materials and the method; I like to know more about the meaning behind things but this artist, Ed Clark’s whole point was that there was no meaning behind his work, his was purely a integrative creative process.

At least it provoked a spirited conversation about the point of art over lunch afterwards – and I suppose provocation is, in itself, the point of contemporary art really isn’t it? So it’s worth going to The Turner, even if you have a more classical eye.

Hush jacket (SS16); John Lewis tee (S24); Me-EM jeans (SS23); Stories sandals (SS19)

We spent the afternoon mooching around exploring, stopping for coffee here and there. And of course Margate’s most famous artist had been on my mind since we arrived. I’d spotted this woman in the grey jacket walking past us a few times and I pointed her out to Mal who had his back to her, saying she really reminded me of Tracey Emin.

“That’s because it is Tracey Emin,” he replied.

It just hadn’t occurred to me that she’d be out shopping just like anyone else. A couple of days later we were chatting to some people who’d been swimming in the sea and they’d had a similar experience when she’d popped up out of the water and said “hello”.

Of course she’s best known for her Turner prize winning piece of art – My Bed – very powerful when you have the opportunity to scrutinise the detail up close. We saw it at Tate Liverpool a few years ago…

… but it’s her ink sketches that blow me away whenever I have a chance to see them (and we couldn’t be sure but there seemed to be an original amongst the great art in our AirBnb. I know she owns a lot of the holiday flats in Margate so maybe…).

So Friday was more about art than we’d expected and with a big day ahead, we had a relaxing evening in.

Margate Saturday

You see Saturday was our day of music. We spent the morning chilling in the apartment which had a nice little sunken patio that caught the sun.

Blouse and jeans both Me+Em (sold out)

And at 3pm we headed out for Dreamland which was perfectly decked out for the arrival of Chic. Look at the announcement board on the front – it made me smile.

It was still a bit grey but at least it was warm. A word about this t-shirt before I link it, I absolutely love it but I have to say that because of the metallic gilded effect, you have to go bra-less and just pray for no chill winds! I tried everything but even the smoothest of smoothlines has every strap, seam and line accentuated and silicone nipple covers just looked like breastfeeding pads. If Grece Ghanem goes bra-less all summer then so can we.

Gold tee (more sizes here); Me=Em jeans (SS23)

I’d planned to wear my lighter jeans but after a summer of fun they were feeling very tight so I filed that as a ‘future me problem’ and wore the bigger pair!

Dreamland looks drab from the outside but when you go through the gates you find the most beautifully restored old fairground with all of the rides still operating. We were so immersed in it all that we did a hopeless job of taking photos, all I have is this…

… but it’s a great venue for live acts. It’s on a smaller scale than most headline set-ups so it feels relatively intimate and it wasn’t just a midlife crowd, there were all ages there, from babes in arms… to a very jolly young Welsh stag party… to grandparents grooving along to the disco tunes. As the clouds cleared away, the collective effervescence soared. It’s such an inspiration watching these older performers still giving it everything they’ve got and sounding as good as they ever did.

It ended at 10.30pm so we went on to the afterparty with some of the people we’d been chatting to. Horse Meat Disco were doing a whole new set at Margate’s Lido which was a lot of fun although we discovered that we need to work on our stamina because by 2.30am we were flagging and ready for bed.

Margate Sunday

And so we had one more day left. After a lazy morning we spent the Sunday afternoon exploring again.

I thought there was wordplay in this oversized road sign that leads off from the Turner Contemporary but Mal’s view was that it was just about graphic splendour. I don’t know what you think but either way it has a dramatic urban beauty.

We had a bit of fun with the Gormley statue that submerges and reappears according to the tide

It’s beautiful and it made me realise how lucky we are to have his drama on a larger scale in the North.

We wandered along the Harbour Arm and found a great DJ playing outside the Lighthouse Bar at the very end. It was Euro cup final day so there was nobody else there – even though the match wasn’t due to start until the evening.

Theatre performers set up on the sand in the sunshine and everywhere tension was building as the time for the big match came around…

… but we all know the result.

This was a quick photo as we were walking back afterwards; dejected fans decked out in red and white were pouring out of the bars as Margate closed its disappointed doors on the weekend.

So let’s finish with a bit of ‘outfittery’ (and I put this together just before I packed to go home so forgive me if it’s all a bit crumpled). I haven’t done a packing post for a while but this is what I had in my bag for a five-day break in the very unpredictable summer that is 2024. I wore (but didn’t photograph) everything apart from the blue halter so it all worked out perfectly.

L-R in columns

• Jeans – X 2 from Me+Em
• Day tops – navy shirt from IdLF at Uniqlo, Doublecloth blouse from Me+Em, Striped tee from John Lewis, Silky vest from Zara, Gold tee
• Night tops – Red halter from Boden, Blue halter from Arket, Lace blouse, Sequin blouse from Free People
• Travel outfit – Top; Trousers (now in the sale, gifted)
• Warm layers – Navy jacket from Hush, Orange cardigans from Me+Em, Pink cardigan
• Bag – Midlifechic collection
• Trainers – Adidas Continentals, Gold and Cream Sambas; sandals – And Other Stories

Quick Margate guide – where to shop, eat and visit

I’m sharing the guide that our AirBnB owners gave us. We didn’t visit all of these places because the flat was so nice that we spent a lot of time just relaxing there but here you go.

Quick Margate guide – shopping

The Old Town is the place to go for vintage clothing and furniture, cafes, boujie gift shops and contemporary art galleries.

• Albion Stores – men’s and women’s clothes, shoes and accessories  from independent designers handpicked by the friendly owners
• Werkhaus – mostly women’s vintage and new utility wear. One-off pieces. Staff friendly and knowledgeable
• Breuer & Dawson – men’s and women’s vintage clothing
• Margate Superstore – vintage unisex utility wear and sportswear at great prices
• Haeckels – independent skincare and home fragrance products made using Margate seaweed

Quick Margate guide – eat and drink

• The Rose in June – just around the corner from the apartment. Cosy friendly pub with a roaring fire in winter and outside seating in summer. Independent restaurateur serving delicious food with a selection of local ales and ciders
• The George and Heart – cool, lively pub with cosy nooks and big sharing tables. For music and food lovers. Very friendly owner and staff
• The Wasteland Bar at The Albion Rooms Hotel – the hotel is owned by The Libertines’ frontman Carl Barratt. Wastelend Bar is a cool hangout joint – a music bar and venue where the good times roll Indie style.
• The Tap Room – great quirky local bar. Like sitting in your front room but in a bar. You will almost definitely end up chatting to a new random person – no place like it
• Angela’s restaurant – beautiful dishes using freshly caught fish of the day. Recently awarded a green Michelin star for sustainability. Book ahead
• Dory’s fish bar – Angela’s sister restaurant. Cold fish counter, lovely tapas style dishes and good wine. No booking option, walk-ins only
• Barletta Margate – on the rooftop of Dreamlands. Good quality food alongside personable hospitality. Mediterranean dishes along with comfort food classics
• Dalby Cafe – a great greasy spoon about 10 minutes’ walk from the flat, unpretentious, like going back in time and the perfect place for breakfast
• Bottega Caruso – incredible, authentic Italian food, described by Grace Dent as ‘heroically wondrous’ – if you can get a table!
• Peter’s Fish Factory – traditional seaside chippy with lovely tables outside. Tried and tested by us, absolutely recommended
• The Old Kent Market – a covered marketplace filled with street food vendors

What to do

• The Walpole Bay Tidal Pool – go for a dip in this seawater pool, best at low tide and two hours either side. Known for its healing and well-being powers!
• Turner Contemporary – see above
• Margate Museum – quirky local history museum in the Old Town – £2 entry fee
• The Margate Caves – run by the local community who campaigned for their reopening
• The Shell Grotto – discovered in 1835, nobody knows who built it or why but it’s an underground passageway with over 4 million shells decorating tunnelled walls – pretty impressive
• Dreamland – lovely old fairground with an events venue that hosts all kinds of bands and events at different times of the year

So is Margate a good place to visit? If you’re tired of the curated honeypots in Devon, Cornwall and the south coast then it makes a refreshing change. It’s a bit rough and ready but it feels individual and personal, very little has been touched by a ubiquitous brand. The regeneration has been realistic, slow and steady with a focus on local business – a good example for us with our work heads on. Four days is probably long enough and if you go with realistic expectations it feels a little like going back in time. But with great food!

One last note – there was a huge restock of the M&S jeans today, the first time for ages and I finally managed to get a size 12. Be quick if you want them, they’ve become such a cult style that they’re disappearing as fast as I type.

Superwide jeans

We’re going over to Newcastle now for some family time and then home via the Lake District so it will be a short post next week. Have a lovely weekend and make the most of the sunshine – isn’t it a shock that it’s August already?

Disclosure: ‘A quick Margate guide – what we did’ is not a sponsored post

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