It’s that time of year again: the end-of-year-rankings time of year. At Time Out, we wanted to put together a definitive list of the absolute best places to visit in 2023, right here in the UK. But we wanted to do it properly. So we went to our local experts across the country to figure out which cities, towns and regions have the most exciting stuff going on – from thriving culinary scenes to massive arty openings and blockbuster events.
As it turns out, there’s a lot to get excited about. It also turns out that some of the buzziest places aren’t even the most obvious. Sure, Manchester and Glasgow made the list (because, duh), but a seriously underrated coastal destination beat them to be crowned number one. The southern seaside town of Eastbourne top our ranking of the country’s 15 best places to visit, thanks to its plethora of live-music venues, big cultural events and jaw-droppingly beautiful landscapes.
The town is home to the Towner Eastbourne, an extremely Insta-worthy gallery which was selected as the official host of the 2023 Turner Prize (from September 28), to tie in with the venue’s centenary year. Nature-wise, you’ve got the nearby South Downs National Park and the seaside views of Beachy Head, as well as a variety of up-and-coming festivals like Crossing The Screen International Film Festival, Beach Life Music Festival and the Eastbourne Walking Festival. Sounds pretty lush, right?
You can check out our full list of the best places to visit in the UK here.
Stay in the loop: sign up to Out There, our free newsletter about all the best stuff to do across the UK.