48 Hours in Brighton: Guide

The best wine bars, coffee shops and antique markets in the seaside town of Brighton, this was our weekend itinerary with timestamps!

For G’s birthday last weekend I booked us a two night trip to Brighton! He has never been to this vibrant sea-side town before but I knew he’d love it -and he did, thanks to the wonderful itinerary I had planned!

Wether it’s your first time in Brighton or you want some recommendations on where to shop and eat, here is our 48 hour travel guide for you to recreate!

DAY ONE

Arrive in Brighton between 11.30-12pm and drop bags to hotel.

Artist Residence

This is the only hotel I’ve stayed in in Brighton and one I’d keep going back to because I just LOVE the decor and the staff are so lovely. They usually have an early bird rate on if you book in advance so I got a cosy room for £331 for two nights, and they kindly upgraded us when we got there as it was my husband’s birthday. We lucked out with a roll top bath and a view of the sea which was a dream. They have a cosy lounge that’s the perfect spot to bunker down with tea and a book or you can copy us and enjoy a nightcap in before bed (their winter negroni cocktail was delicious).

The location is great - really near to the beach but it’s a 10ish minute walk away from the Lanes and 20 minutes from the North Lanes and about 20 minutes along the beach to Brighton Pier so you do need to factor in time to walk there and back.

Note: This hotel doesn’t have on-site parking but there are multiple car parks nearby. I booked us into Regency Square Mews Car Park which is private and a little cheaper than the council car park, paying £52 for 2 days.

1pm Lunch at Dishoom Permit Room

Permit Room is an all day bar-café from the team behind Dishoom (so you know it’s going to be good!) I don’t know anyone who isn’t a fan of the Indian restaurant Dishoom and Permit Room is no exception - they have some incredible dishes that are solely made for Permit Room branches including the Crispy Spinach Chaat which is absolutely unreal - crunchy, umami and sweet with the pomegranate seeds.

We tried their special was is a Chicken Ruby Quesadilla which I’ve been dreaming about ever since and I just loved the paneer curry, Chicken Pick me Ups and also of course the Dishoom Black Dahl is a must order. There’s also a heavy focus on cocktails at Permit Room - my favourite is the Mango Lassi Punch - it’s served on the rocks but tastes exactly like a sweet mango lassi - incredible.

There’s rumours of a Permit Room opening in London this spring which I am SO excited about!

3pm - Meet some Sugar Gliders at Cuddly Colony

So the main reason I took us to Brighton was to take G to Cuddly Colony - the UK's 1st dedicated sugar glider educational center which is run by the loveliest couple. G is obsessed with sugar gliders and we’ve never met them in real life before so it seemed like the best birthday present!

I booked us a Sugar Glider experience where you learn all about these animals AND you can have some dedicated time to meeting and interacting with them in their pouch. Cuddly Colony rescue and care for these nocturnal marsupials, emphasizing that sugar gliders require specialized care and are not suitable as typical pets. It was so fascinating and it makes me so sad that people in the uk buy these from breeders without proper knowledge of what it takes to care for them beforehand.

You can't take photographs as the main mission here is to focus on the educational aspect and to protect the little eyes of the gliders but G and I just had the most incredible 45 minutes with the sugar gliders and would recommend the experience to everyone!

4pm - Pick up a hot chocolate and mooch back to hotel to check in, have a bath and unpack!

We literally can’t walk by a Knoops without getting a hot chocolate - my order is either a 43% milk or 52% dark hot chocolate, with oat milk and a pinch of sea salt - simple but utterly perfect. We got ours to go for our 15 minute walk back to the hotel.