Berwick to Birling Gap Walk

Berwick to Birling Gap: 18.9km (11.8 miles)

Berwick to Friston: 15.2km (9.4 miles)

Berwick to East Dean: 16.2km (10.4 miles)

Berwick to Birling Gap and back again to East Dean: 21.3km (13.3 miles)

Berwick to Exceat via Flagstaff Point: 21.1km (13.1 miles)

5 out of 10: two well-graded climbs up onto the South Downs, and three short steep climbs onto the Seven Sisters at the end, but otherwise flat or undulating

OS Landranger 199; Explorer OL25 (formerly 123).

This walk uses the same start as the Berwick to Seaford walk also on this site, following a relatively flat route across fields to the village of Wilmington at the base of the downs, with fine views of its famous chalk cut figure, the Long Man of Wilmington. After Wilmington you go right to the base of the Long Man and climb up onto the downs, crossing their lonely centre to the picturesque village of Jevington, with stunning views en route. After that you climb onto long ridge, with more fine views, to the village of Friston, and descend to the sea at Flagstaff Point, the central point in the Seven Sisters chalk cliffs, walking over three of the Sisters to Birling Gap.

Finishing the walk at Birling Gap depends on the 13X bus being in operation: see Transport below. However, if the 13X is not running, you can do this walk in a slightly modified form using the very frequent 12/12A/12X route (also on www.buses.co.uk) which runs daily and year round along the main road from Friston and East Dean to Eastbourne till late in the evening. Using this you can:

• finish the walk at Friston after 15km (9.4 miles) or at East Dean (where there are various tea options) after 16.2km (10.4 miles).

• walk to Birling Gap and then inland to East Dean, making a total walk of 21.3km (13.3 miles).

• walk from Flagstaff Point to Exceat and get the 12 bus from there, making a total walk of 21.2km (13.1 miles) .

Take a train from London Victoria to Lewes, and change there for hourly trains to Berwick. The online rail timetable usually suggests changing at Polegate, but there is no advantage in this. Catch the first train after 9am to get to Berwick in time (currently the 9.47). Buy a day return to Eastbourne.

At the end of the walk you need to catch a bus to get to Eastbourne railway station. Ideally this should be the 13X, which serves Birling Gap, Beachy Head and Eastbourne in one direction, and Seaford in the other. It operates year round on Sundays, with frequencies of up to every half hour in the summer months. From June to August it also operates hourly on Saturdays, and six times a day on weekdays. The last bus is about 7pm. Check the latest on www.buses.co.uk.

If the 13X is not running, or if you end the walk at Friston or East Dean, the 12, 12A and 12X buses run very frequently to both Eastbourne. There can be buses as often as every ten minutes in the day: later in the evening the service is half hourly but continues till very late. From Exceat it is quicker to get the bus to Seaford rather than Eastbourne and get the train from there. Again see www.buses.co.uk for details.

Trains back from Eastbourne are every half hour until late. A return train ticket to Eastbourne is usually accepted from Seaford if you end up there: trains from this station are half hourly, changing at Lewes for London.

An early lunch option is the Long Man Inn in Wilmington (01323 368 525), 4.8km (3 miles) into the walk, which has a friendly interior, a pleasant outside terrace, and serves a simple but quite inventive menu of pub favourites from 12pm-2.30pm and 6-8pm Monday to Friday, 12pm-8pm Saturday and 12pm-6pm Sunday. It is open daily for drinks from 11am to 11pm.

More centrally located on the walk is the very characterful Eight Bells in Jevington (01323 484442), 9.8km (6.1 miles) into the walk, which serves food to 3pm and from 5pm to 9pm Monday to Saturday (plus drinks all afternoon) and all afternoon to 8pm on Sundays. It won a Best Sussex Pub award in 2024, so booking might be a good idea, but in summer it also has a large garden.

There used to be a tea room (in summer at least) in Jevington - the Jevington Tea Gardens - but there was no evidence of it being in still business in September 2025. However the Eight Bells (see Lunch) serves drinks all afternoon and according to some reports also offers cakes.

If you can reach it in time, the National Trust café at Birling Gap is open until 5pm in summer or 4pm in winter.

If ending in East Dean, refreshment options include the excellent Tiger Inn on the village green, and the adjacent Hikers Rest cafe, which is open until 4.30pm in winter and 5pm in summer.

If finishing the walk at Exceat, the Cafe round the Corner by the Seven Sisters Visitor Centre is open daily till 5pm in summer, Thursdays to Sundays till 4pm in winter. Nearby is the Grab and Go kiosk cafe, open till 4pm daily and serving hot drinks, sandwiches and light lunches. Alternatively, 400 metres along the main road, by Exceat Bridge, is the Cuckmere Inn, which has a fine outside terrace and serves hot drinks and food all afternoon and evening, but note that you then have to retrace your steps to the Seven Sisters Visitor Centre to catch the bus.

Birling Gap is a lovely place for a dip, with the white cliffs of the Seven Sisters as a backdrop. But in the lower half of the tide there are sharp underwater rocks (the remains of eroded cliffs), which make swimming impossible. When the tide is higher there is no problem at all, unless the sea is choppy, when it can break abruptly onto the shingle. At very low tide you may be able to cross the rocks to the sand beyond and swim from there, but only do this if the rocks are completely uncovered: otherwise shallow water may cover rocks and they can be treacherous to cross.

After the walk, please leave a comment, it really helps. Thanks!

You can also upload photos to the SWC Group on Flickr (upload your photos) and videos to Youtube. This walk's tags are:

National Rail: 03457 48 49 50 • Traveline (bus times): 0871 200 22 33 (12p/min) • TFL (London) : 0343 222 1234

Oct-25 Peter