Millions of visitors will enjoy the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games in the UK. Sussex is an ideal base. Explore West and East Sussex as well as spending a few days at the Olympic Park cheering on the competitors and taking in the buzz of the games. Whether you are visiting on business or purely for pleasure, in Sussex you will find perfect places to stay; from boutique hotels and beautiful country house accommodation to cosy, personal bed and breakfasts all over the county.
Sussex mixes beautiful countryside, stunning seaside towns, picture postcard scenes and a vibrant and eclectic city. Ideally situated to the south of London, there are fantastic transport links direct into the heart of London and to the games in less than an hour. Gatwick Airport welcomes hundreds of internatonal flights a day and the integrated train station whisks you away to your chosen Sussex destination. Coming in by Ferry brings you to the Sussex town of Newhaven with integrated train and bus connections to the rest of Sussex and beyond.
Visit Sussex for culture vultures: Sussex has everything you need for sightseeing and a taste of British culture; 11th century Arundel Castle, Napoleonic Newhaven Fort, protecting the Sussex coastline for centuries and the opulent Royal Pavilion in Brighton.
Visit Sussex for families: have fun at Drusillas, widely regarded as the best small zoo in the UK, at Fishers Farm Park and at Harbour Park Littlehampton, where all the family can enjoy the rides and games.
Visit Sussex for foodies: relax in our award winning restaurants, bars and cafes, where the focus is on locally sourced ingredients and the quality of your expereince.
The Games may initially bring you here but Sussex will keep you coming back!
Getting to Sussex
By Air -
International travellers can fly into any London Airport with good transport links into Sussex. Gatwick Airport is located in Sussex and is served by many international airlines. This is your gateway to Sussex by air. Heathrow Airport is located further away but is well served by rail and road links to Sussex.
Click here for more information on getting to Sussex
Getting to the Olympic Park
With hundred of thousands of visitors travelling to the Olympic Park and other venues throughout the country, Sussex is perfectly situated to get you there quickly and easily.
We are served by fantastic rail links from all our major towns and cities, some of which will take you less than an hour to get into London -
- Gatwick – 29 mins
- Brighton – 50 mins
- Horsham - 56 mins
- Lewes – 67 mins
- Worthing – 82 mins
- Eastbourne – 90 mins
- Hastings – 91 min
- Chichester – 93 mins
- Littlehampton – 102 mins
Our main train providers are Southern Railway, South Eastern Railways and First Capital Connect. Click on the links to plan your journey and buy tickets.
Plan your door to door journey from Sussex to the Olympic Park here.
Once you are in London, the Olympic Park is served by 12 rail services through three ‘gateway’ stations – Statford Regional, Stratford International and West Ham. You can download your maps here.
Rail services also run to venues in outer London and throughout the UK. Where the distance between the main rail link and venue is too far to walk, shuttle buses will take spectators to the venue’s front door.
There are also plans to run coaches from parts of Sussex directly to the Olympic Venues, so watch this space for details!
National Express runs a great service of coaches to the Capital and throughout Sussex.
Other Olympic sites around the UK can be found here.
