AndAlso: Things to Do in Brighton – Your Local Guide
- From a 30-min quick bit to a day of wandering!
- 1+
- Brighton
🌊 Explore Brighton
Our favourite places to eat, drink and explore
One of the best things about coming to Brighton for an Intensive, corporate away day, show or specialist class is that you’re not just experiencing the joy of improv – you’re spending time in one of the UK’s most creative, colourful and welcoming cities.
From independent coffee shops and award-winning restaurants to beach walks, hidden pubs, live music, comedy, improv and everything in between, and did we mention the spectacular coastal views, Brighton has something for everyone. Whether you’ve got an hour between classes, an evening to explore, or you’ve added an extra day to your trip, we hope you’ll have the chance to experience a little of what makes this place so special.
We’ve pulled together some of our favourite local recommendations to help you make the most of your visit. None of these are sponsored – they’re simply the places we genuinely love and recommend to friends and family.
Whether you’re joining us for an Improv Course, a Specialist Guest Class, a Summer Intensive, a Shorething: The Brighton Improv Show or a Corporate Workshop, we hope this guide helps you discover a little more of Brighton while you’re here.
If you stumble across somewhere wonderful that we’ve missed, we’d love to hear about it. This guide is always growing, thanks to recommendations from our students, performers, clients and visitors.
🥪 Quick Lunch Near BHASVIC
Need something tasty between classes? Here are the places we recommend most often, all within a 5-10 minute walk.
£ = Budget (under £10)
££ = Mid-range (£10–20)
£££ = Treat (£20+)
💡 Top tip: Most students grab lunch together, so if you’re coming on your own, don’t worry, you’ll almost certainly find a group heading out each day.
🥐 The Flour Pot Bakery | ££
Our go-to for excellent coffee, pastries, sandwiches and salads. Great if you fancy something fresh and quick.
🥕 Kindly of Brighton (formerly HISBE) | ££
An independent supermarket with freshly made sandwiches, salads, hot food, snacks and plenty of vegan and vegetarian options.
Perfect if you’re stocking up for the day.
🥪 Co-op | £
Meal deals, snacks, drinks and picnic supplies. Cheap, easy and just a few minutes away.
🛒 Tesco Express | £
Another handy option for meal deals and essentials.
☕ BOAT Café | ££
A lovely independent café attached to Brighton Open Air Theatre.
Ideal if you fancy sitting outside in the sunshine.
🍜 Seven Dials
Just 8–10 minutes away, Seven Dials has loads of independent cafés, delis and takeaways if you want to hunt out your own favourites.
🍽️ Dinner & Evening Meals
Once class is over, you’ve earned it…
🍕 Fatto a Mano | ££
Quite simply our favourite pizza in Brighton.
Perfect for groups.
🥟 The Pond | ££
Outstanding bao buns, dumplings and Asian street food.
One of Brighton’s hidden gems.
🥙 We Love Falafel | £
Brighton institution.
Veggie, fresh, filling and excellent value.
🍔 The Lion & Lobster | ££
Classic Brighton pub with brilliant food, hidden rooms and loads of character.
🍺 The Urchin | £££
Award-winning Brewery & Shellfish Pub.
Booking advised; they get busy at peak times.
🌱 Terre à Terre | £££
Brighton’s famous vegetarian restaurant.
Even committed meat-eaters love it.
🍝 Ventisei Pizzeria Napoletana | ££
Authentic family-run Italian on Brighton’s best-kept foodie secret, Preston Street.
Fantastic pasta and pizzas at Ventisei, but do wander along Preston Street, as the choice is better than anywhere else in the city.
🌯 Carlito Burrito | ££
Award -winning Mexican street food company and Brighton’s first Mexican-owned restaurant.
Lel’s pick: If you like a little heat, don’t miss the Spicy Mezcal Margarita; it’s genuinely one of the best in Brighton. Pair it with a beef birria taco and thank me later. 🌶️🍹
🍻 Brighton Pubs We Love
Brighton loves a good pub. In fact, there are around 340 pubs across the city, roughly 11 pubs per square mile, making it one of the UK’s great pub cities.
Whether you’re after a cosy local with a roaring fire, a sunny beer garden, live music, craft beer or a pint by the sea, you’ll never be far from somewhere brilliant.
Here are a few of our favourites…
🍺 Good Companions | ££
Our regular AndAlso pub and home to many post-class chats, celebrations and spontaneous games.
A proper community local.
🌊 Fortune of War | ££
Brighton’s oldest seafront pub, with unbeatable views across the beach.
Perfect for a sunset drink after a day of improv.
🪵 The Basketmakers Arms | ££
One of Brighton’s best traditional pubs. Cosy, characterful and packed with great local beers.
A favourite with locals. Make sure you find and leave a note, in one of the tobacco tins on the wall!
🌿 Open House | ££
A huge beer garden, friendly atmosphere and excellent pizzas.
Ideal if you’ve got a larger group.
💙 Top tip: Brighton’s pubs all have their own personality. If somewhere catches your eye, pop in! Some of our favourite evenings have happened completely by accident. Let us know your favourites!
One of Brighton’s oldest and most atmospheric pubs, dating back to the 1500s. Local legend has it that Jack the Ripper once stayed in the upstairs rooms while visiting the city… Whether it’s true or not, it certainly adds to the pub’s wonderfully spooky charm.
🎸 Green Door Store | ££
Craft beer, live music and one of Brighton’s best independent music venues.
Great if you’re looking to carry on the evening.
🎭 The Brunswick | ££
A Hove favourite with good food, live entertainment and a lovely relaxed atmosphere. Oh, and escape rooms too!
Perfect before or after a stroll along Hove seafront.
Independent shops, cafés, vintage stores and street art. Perfect for an afternoon wander and a spot of people watching!
🎬 Duke of York’s Picturehouse
One of the oldest working cinemas in the world, complete with its famous giant stripy legs on the roof. A wonderful place to catch an independent film or blockbuster in beautiful surroundings.
Once you watch a film here, you’re practically a Brightonian!
🌊 Attractions & Experiences in Brighton
🚤 Brighton Boat Trips
See Brighton from the sea! From leisurely sightseeing cruises to thrilling RIB rides, or a spot of fishing, there’s something for everyone.
🏰 Royal Pavilion
Brighton’s iconic palace, famous for its extraordinary architecture and fascinating royal history.
🎭 Komedia
One of the UK’s best-loved comedy and live entertainment venues. Expect stand-up, cabaret, music, theatre and, of course, some improv!
Worth checking what’s on while you’re in town.
🌳 Brighton Open Air Theatre (BOAT)
A beautiful outdoor theatre nestled in Dyke Road Park. During the summer you’ll find comedy, theatre, music and family shows in one of Brighton’s most unique venues.🌳 Brighton Open Air Theatre (BOAT)
A beautiful outdoor theatre nestled in Dyke Road Park. During the summer you’ll find comedy, theatre, music and family shows in one of Brighton’s most unique venues.
🌿 Brighton Walks, Beaches & Hangouts
Whether you’re looking to clear your head between classes, stretch your legs after a workshop or simply soak up some sea air, these are a few of our favourite ways to spend time outdoors.
🌊 Take a Dip in the Sea
Feeling brave? Join the locals for a swim! The sea can be… refreshing… whatever the weather, but there’s nothing quite like it.
🚶 Walk the Undercliff
Stroll between Brighton Marina and Saltdean (or the other way around) along the stunning Undercliff Walk. It’s one of the best coastal walks in Sussex, with spectacular sea views all the way.
🚲 Cycle the Seafront
Hire a bike and cruise along Brighton & Hove’s famous promenade. It’s a fantastic way to see the city and stop off at cafés, beaches and pubs along the way.
🍟 Fish & Chips on the Beach
You’re by the seaside… it would be rude not to! Pick up some fish & chips, find a spot on the pebbles and enjoy the view.
⚠️ Seagull warning: Brighton’s seagulls are clever, fearless and have absolutely no respect for personal boundaries. If you’re eating outside, keep one eye on your lunch at all times. We speak from experience. 🐦🍟
🌅 Watch the Sunset from Hove Lawns
Grab a drink, find a patch of grass and watch the sun disappear behind the iconic West Pier. It’s one of the best places in the city to end the day. Keep an eye on the skies too – you may spot Brighton’s famous starling murmurations, where hundreds (and sometimes thousands) of birds swoop and swirl over the pier before roosting. It’s a proper Brighton moment.
🚆 Easy Day Trips from Brighton
Whether you’ve got a free afternoon or an extra day before heading home, here are a few of our favourite places to explore.
🌊 Seven Sisters & Birling Gap
One of the UK’s most spectacular coastlines, with iconic white cliffs, coastal walks and stunning sea views.
🚍 Bus 12, 12A or 13 from Brighton
🚗 Parking available at Birling Gap (National Trust)
🎾 Eastbourne
A lovely Victorian seaside town with beaches, cafés and independent shops. Every June it hosts the Lexus Eastbourne Open, one of the UK’s biggest grass-court tennis tournaments in the week before Wimbledon.
🚆 Around 40 minutes by train
⚔️ Hastings
Steeped in history, with a charming Old Town, fishing beach, castle ruins and plenty of independent pubs and cafés.
🚆 Around 1 hour by train
☠️ Rottingdean
Our manager, Lel’s home village! Wander the pretty High Street, visit the famous windmill, go rockpooling at low tide or brave a swim in our nippy sea, discover Kipling Gardens and explore the quirky little lanes. Local legend even says smugglers and pirates once used the village’s secret tunnels in the seafront chalk cliffs to bring contraband ashore.
✨ Find the Rottingdean Wishing Stone
Hidden in the wall beside Kipling Gardens is one of Rottingdean’s best-kept secrets. Keep your eyes peeled for the mysterious carved stone face, then touch it, turn three times and make a wish. (Just don’t wish for money… that’s apparently against the rules!)
🚍 Bus 2, 12, 12A or 14 from Brighton
🌿 Devil’s Dyke
Rolling South Downs countryside with breathtaking views over Sussex. Great for a walk or simply a picnic with a view.
🚍 Bus 77 (summer weekends) or
🚗 Free if you’ve got a car.
🏰 Sheffield Park & Garden
If you’ve hired a car, this National Trust garden is beautiful throughout the year, especially in summer.
🚗 Around 40 minutes by car
🌳 Nymans
A stunning National Trust garden and romantic ruins nestled in the Sussex countryside.
🚗 Around 35 minutes by car
🌼 Kemptown & Volk’s Electric Railway
Wander through colourful Kemptown before hopping aboard the world’s oldest operating electric railway for a nostalgic ride along the seafront to Brighton Marina.
🚍 Bus 2 or 7 from the city centre to Kemptown, or enjoy a 20–25 minute walk along the seafront. The Volk’s Electric Railway starts near the Sea Life Centre and Palace Pier.