Pubs and Bars

Half-timbered inn or retro-cool bar, skittle alley or live band, a pint of Harvey’s or a killer vodka martini – the choice is yours. In East & West Sussex you’ll find classic country pubs, fashion-forward cocktail bars, rustic gastropubs and relaxed waterside taverns.

In winter, choose a cosy old inn serving guest ales from local microbreweries and relax by the blazing log fire for an evening of cribbage and dominoes. In summer, sit outside a wisteria-clad pub with widescreen downland views. Visit a pub with a past, like the Mermaid Inn, Rye, once the HQ of notorious smugglers the Hawkhurst Gang. Many  Sussex pubs have live music nights too – see local listings magazines for details.

Pubs offer good value, hearty nosh with a traditional slant from a ploughman’s platter to pie and mash, perfect for a mid-walk refuel. If you're looking for something special, then why not head for one of the county’s gastropubs!

For an evening out, check out the bars. Brighton’s best include glamorous hotel hangouts like the Neo Hotel, with its white leather banquettes and sleek copper bar, and the funky, punky, music-themed Pelirocco; buzzy pre-club places with guest DJs and quirky little joints where the mixologist makes a mean Manhattan. Elsewhere, you’ll find chilled out bars with squashy sofas, vodka bars with internet access, mellow wine bars with over 300 wines and candlelit bars serving Polish tapas.