Pett

Pett has only a handful of places to stay within the village itself, which is part of its appeal: this is a spot for visitors who want peace and a sense of the real Sussex countryside rather than a resort atmosphere. The Two Sawyers, the village's historic freehouse, has a small number of characterful en-suite double rooms above the bar, ideal for a short stay built around walking and pub food. Beyond the pub, self-catering cottages in and around Pett and Pett Level offer more space and privacy, many with views over the marshes towards the sea or the wooded ridge behind the village.

Because Pett is so close to Rye, Winchelsea and Hastings, visitors also often base themselves in one of those towns and treat Pett as a day-trip destination for its beach and walking, or do the reverse and use a quiet Pett cottage as a base for exploring the more built-up coast nearby. Cottages here suit couples and families looking for a rural retreat with the coast, the Royal Military Canal and Rye Harbour Nature Reserve all within easy reach, and a car is useful for making the most of the wider area. Booking ahead is worthwhile in summer and around school holidays, when the limited stock of village accommodation is in demand, particularly for the pub's rooms.

Pett is small, but its position between Rye, Hastings and Rye Harbour Nature Reserve gives it a good spread of things to see and do, mostly within a short walk or drive.

• Pett Level beach — a broad, quiet shingle and sand beach below the village, popular with dog walkers and birdwatchers, with views along the coast towards Dungeness on a clear day.
• The fossilised forest — at especially low spring tides, the preserved stumps of trees from an ancient forest are exposed on the beach at Pett Level and neighbouring Cliff End.
• Royal Military Canal — the canal's western end meets the sea at Cliff End; the towpath makes for an easy, level walk with views across the levels towards Rye.
• Rye Harbour Nature Reserve — a few miles along the coast, this large reserve of shingle, lagoons and saltmarsh is one of the best birdwatching sites in the south-east, with breeding terns, avocets and a network of way-marked trails.
• Winchelsea Beach — a peaceful, largely undeveloped beach a short drive north-east, backing onto the dunes below the hilltop town of Winchelsea.
• Hastings Country Park — the sandstone cliffs, gorse-covered glens and coastal path at Fairlight, immediately south-west of Pett, offer some of the most dramatic clifftop walking on the Sussex coast.
• Rye — the cobbled lanes, timber-framed houses and Norman castle of one of the Cinque Ports, a few miles from Pett and easily reached by car or bicycle.
• Hastings Old Town — with its net shops, funicular railways and seafront, Hastings is a lively contrast to Pett's rural quiet, and close enough for an easy day out.

The village's social hub is The Two Sawyers, a 17th-century freehouse on Pett Road with log fires, guest ales — including beers once brewed on site by the Pett Brewing Company — and a menu of pub classics and Sunday roasts, plus a handful of en-suite rooms for overnight stays. Pett also has a village shop and post office for essentials, and for a wider choice of cafes, restaurants and seafront chippies, Rye and Hastings are both a short drive away.

Pett Level's open shingle beach, the Royal Military Canal and the flat, quiet lanes around the village make this a pleasant part of Sussex for camping, though options in the immediate village are limited and mostly small and informal rather than large holiday parks. As everywhere in England, wild camping without the landowner's permission is illegal, so pitch only on a recognised campsite or with explicit permission from whoever owns the land.

The terrain around Pett is low-lying coastal marsh giving way to higher, more sheltered ground inland towards Fairlight and Guestling, so exposure to wind and weather varies a good deal depending on where a site sits; anyone camping close to Pett Level itself should be prepared for a breezier pitch, especially in shoulder-season months. Spring through early autumn is the most comfortable and reliable stretch for camping on this part of the coast, when the marshes and nearby Rye Harbour Nature Reserve are at their best for walking and birdwatching, though the sea wall and canal towpath make for good walking well into autumn too.

For those who prefer more comfort than a tent but still want to be close to the marshes and the sea, glamping options — from bell tents and shepherd's huts to static safari tents — can be found scattered around the wider Rye, Winchelsea and Hastings area, giving easy access to Pett's beach and countryside without the need to carry full camping kit. Given how small Pett itself is, it is worth checking availability and exact location carefully before booking, and considering sites a short drive away in Fairlight, Winchelsea or towards Rye if nothing suitable is available in the village.