Holiday rentals in Deal

The picturesque seaside town of Deal has looked out over the English Channel for more than 1,000 years. Its strategic location on the east Kent coast made it a busy port community — and a target for invading forces, as the sturdy Deal Castle attests. Narrow cobblestone streets lined with Georgian townhouses will take you back in time, even though contemporary restaurants, shops, and bars now occupy many of the historic buildings.

Deal is an ideal spot to enjoy beach life and freshly caught seafood. Venturing out on the pebble beach or wandering amid the fishing boats on the shore is a pleasant way to take in the fresh salty air and build up an appetite for fish and chips from one of the town’s fish bars or vans.

Thanks to its temperate maritime climate, Deal is a comfortable town to visit at any time of year. As spring turns to summer, the beach gets livelier, and you’ll find the shore well populated all through the season — though true hot spells are rare and typically don’t last. The long summer days make it possible to spend lots of time outdoors, including the two-week Deal Music and Arts Festival in July. Autumn is a beautiful time to visit east Kent, as the foliage transforms into brilliant shades of red, orange, and yellow. Despite the cold weather conditions from late autumn into winter, Deal remains a lively place, and the town turns out for the annual Christmas Carnival and Christmas markets in December.

Deal Castle

The well-preserved Deal Castle sits close to the pebbly beach. This Tudor artillery fort was built for Henry VIII during a period when Deal was seen as at risk of attack by invaders from Europe. As you wander among the bastions, built of Kentish ragstone, you’ll appreciate the strategic design, which concentrated the heavy cannons on the Channel side, as well as the moat.

Deal Beach

Deal’s three-mile-long pebble and shingle beach sits along the English Channel; on a clear day, you can see the coastline of France, just 25 miles away. The 1,000-foot-long pier offers a great vantage point for enjoying the sea as well as the long expanse of historical homes bordering the beach.

Middle Street

Deal’s Middle Street is a road preserved in time. The terraced houses that line the narrow cobblestone street are largely Georgian, with a small number of 17th-century timber-framed cottages. In 1968, the street was designated the first conservation area in Kent.