We checked 10 Boxing Day walks near Brighton, from the Undercliff Walk to the Seven Sisters, for what is open on 26 December and how to get there. Updated November 2026.
There are 10 Boxing Day walks in and around Brighton for 2026, and this guide puts them in one place with what is open on Saturday 26 December, how to get there and what parking costs. Most people head for the Undercliff Walk to Rottingdean, Devil’s Dyke, Ditchling Beacon or, further east, the Seven Sisters. Every entry was checked against the owner’s own site on 11 November 2026.
Plan around the light. The sun sets at about 4pm in Brighton on Boxing Day and rises at about 8am, so start anything longer than two hours by 1.30pm.
Plan around the transport too. Southern runs one train an hour between Brighton and London Victoria on Boxing Day, and no Thameslink trains run; our Christmas trains page has the detail. Last year Brighton & Hove Buses ran a special Boxing Day timetable on 22 routes, among them the 77 to Devil’s Dyke, the 79 to Ditchling Beacon and the 12 along the coast. Its 2026 festive timetable is due in late November. The first four walks start from a city bus stop or on foot.
From the city, no car needed
1. The Undercliff Walk, Brighton Marina to Rottingdean
The flattest Boxing Day walk in the city: a sea-wall path along the foot of the chalk cliffs, shared with cyclists. The council’s page gives it as just over 5km, about 3 miles, from behind Asda at the Marina to Saltdean, with Rottingdean about halfway.
Ramps come down from the east end of Madeira Drive, opposite Roedean Café, at the bottom of Rottingdean High Street and by Saltdean Lido. The council warns that waves come over the wall at high tide in rough weather and that chalk falls from the cliffs, and it closes stretches when the cliffs are unstable, so check its page on the morning.
Rottingdean’s pubs and cafes are at the halfway point, and the 2 and 22 buses run back from the High Street.
Open all year, unless the council posts a closure
Price free
Address start behind Asda, Brighton Marina, BN2 5UT
Toilets at the Marina, Ovingdean Gap, Rottingdean and Saltdean
Access level concrete path; ramps at several points, steps at Ovingdean Gap
Website brighton-hove.gov.uk/libraries-leisure-and-arts/seafront/undercliff-walk
Good for pushchairs, a flat walk, sea views, no car needed
2. Beacon Hill and the windmill, Rottingdean
A short climb that pairs well with the Undercliff Walk. Beacon Hill rises behind Rottingdean with the village’s windmill on top, built in 1803, and has been a Local Nature Reserve since 2004. Rottingdean Parish Council says most of the reserve is open access land crossed by three bridleways and several footpaths, so a loop of half an hour or a longer one towards Ovingdean both work.
Sheep graze part of the hill: the parish council asks for dogs on the paths and on a lead in the sheep enclosure.
Open open access land, all year
Price free
Address Beacon Hill, Rottingdean, BN2 7
Access grass and chalk bridleways, steep in places
Website rottingdean-pc.gov.uk/beacon-hill
Good for sea views, a short climb, dogs on leads
3. Stanmer Park
The most popular park walk on the city’s edge: an 18th-century landscape around Grade I listed Stanmer House, with woodland, the estate village and the old walled garden. The council signposts a Woodland Walk, a Historic Walk and a Monument Walk within the park, and its Stanmer loop is 4.1 miles, about an hour and 50 minutes, from the Hollingbury Asda stop. Stanmer Tea Rooms in the village says it opens seven days a week all year round, 10am to 4.30pm at weekends; One Garden Brighton gives winter hours of 9.30am to 4pm.
Neither has published separate Christmas hours, so ring ahead if lunch depends on it. For a tea-room stop near the gates there is also Circa in the Park.
Open parkland open daily
Address Stanmer Village, BN1 9PZ
Parking car parks at Lower Lodges and Upper Lodges
Toilets by the tea rooms, at the Circa kiosk and in One Garden
Access Stanmer Greenways trail is 0.75 miles of compacted gravel for wheelchairs and pushchairs
Website brighton-hove.gov.uk/libraries-leisure-and-arts/parks-and-green-spaces/stanmer-park-0
Good for woodland, children, a tea room, dogs
4. Castle Hill, Woodingdean
For a quieter walk on the eastern Downs. Castle Hill is a National Nature Reserve of old chalk grassland, and the council’s Walk 4 circles it in 4.9 miles, about two hours ten, from the Downs Hotel stop in Woodingdean (buses 2 and 22).
It uses farm tracks, gravel and a terraced grass track along the steep hillside, with bridleway gates throughout. There is no public toilet in Woodingdean.
For something gentler, the council’s Woodingdean to Ovingdean trail is 1.2 miles downhill on a paved path along Old Parish Lane.
Open all year
Price free
Address start at the Downs Hotel stop, Warren Road, Woodingdean, BN2 6
Toilets none on the route
Access rutted tracks, grass and gates; steep terraced section
Website brighton-hove.gov.uk/hop-venture-out/walk-4-woodingdean-castle-hill-national-nature-reserve-loop
Good for quiet downland, a two-hour loop, views
Up on the Downs
5. Devil’s Dyke
The classic Boxing Day walk for Brighton, and the National Trust lists the countryside as open year round. The Trust says the valley is nearly a mile long, the longest, deepest and widest dry valley in the UK, and Iron Age ramparts sit a few minutes from the car park.
The South Downs National Park’s Devil’s Dyke circular, 2 to 3 miles and one to two hours, drops from the pub through woodland to Poynings and climbs back along the valley bottom; it has one stile and a steep wooded track that is slippery when wet. The 77 bus ran on Boxing Day last year. The Devil’s Dyke pub sits by the car park.
Open open countryside, all year
Price parking £1.50 for 1 hour, £3 for 2 hours, £4 for 4 hours, £6 all day; National Trust members and Blue Badge holders free
Address Devil's Dyke Road, BN1 8YJ
Access one stile, gates, steep slippery track in the valley
Website nationaltrust.org.uk/visit/sussex/devils-dyke
Good for the big view, a pub at the start, dogs on leads near livestock
6. Ditchling Beacon and the Jack and Jill windmills
The highest point in East Sussex, at 248 metres, with views to the sea on one side and across the Weald on the other. The National Park’s Miles Without Stiles leaflet has two circular routes from the free car park by the Jack and Jill windmills at Clayton: 5.7 miles taking in the Beacon, and 4.5 miles along the South Downs Way to the Chattri.
Neither has steps or stiles, though the leaflet warns of loose stone and mud in winter. The Trust asks for dogs on leads at all times at the Beacon.
The 79 bus ran on Boxing Day last year.
Open open countryside, all year
Price Jack and Jill car park free (height barrier); Beacon car park £1.50 for 1 hour to £6 all day, National Trust members free
Address Ditchling Beacon car park, Ditchling Road; Jack and Jill car park, Mill Lane, Clayton
Toilets none at the Beacon; nearest in Ditchling village
Access no steps or stiles; steep in places, muddy in winter
Website nationaltrust.org.uk/visit/sussex/ditchling-beacon
Good for the highest view in East Sussex, windmills, a long loop
Along the coast to the Seven Sisters
7. Seven Sisters Country Park, Cuckmere Haven
The walk on every Sussex postcard: from the visitor centre at Exceat down the Cuckmere valley to the beach at Cuckmere Haven, with the Seven Sisters cliffs across the water. Seven Sisters Country Park, run by the South Downs National Park, says it is open all year round; in winter the visitor centre and the Grab and Go kiosk open 10am to 4pm, and the toilets and car parks 7am to 6pm, when the barriers lock. It has not published separate Christmas hours.
The 12, 12A and 12X Coaster buses from Brighton stop at the visitor centre, and route 12 ran a Boxing Day timetable last year.
Open all year; winter car parks 7am to 6pm; visitor centre 10am to 4pm
Price parking £3.50 up to 2 hours, £5 up to 4 hours, £7 over 4 hours; no Blue Badge concession
Address Exceat, Seaford, BN25 4AD
Toilets 7am to 6pm in winter
Website sevensisters.org.uk
Good for the famous view, a bus from Brighton, a riverside walk to the beach
8. Birling Gap and the Seven Sisters
The other end of the cliffs, owned by the National Trust, and one of the few places on the coast with a café open on Boxing Day. The Trust lists the countryside open dawn to dusk every day, including Christmas Day, and the café, shop and toilets open 11am to 4pm on Saturday 26 December, an hour later than usual.
A walk west along the clifftops over the first of the Sisters and back takes about an hour; steps lead down to the beach. The Trust warns that the cliffs are fragile and can collapse without warning, so keep well back from the edge and away from the foot of the cliffs.
Open countryside dawn to dusk; café, shop and toilets 11am to 4pm on 26 December, closed 24 and 25 December
Price parking £2 up to 1 hour, £4 up to 2 hours, £8 all day
Address Birling Gap, East Dean, BN20 0AB
Toilets 11am to 4pm on 26 December
Website nationaltrust.org.uk/visit/sussex/birling-gap-and-the-seven-sisters
Good for clifftop walking, a café open on Boxing Day, the beach
Gardens open on Boxing Day
9. Sheffield Park and Garden, near Uckfield
About 20 miles north of Brighton, and the pick for a garden walk with a hot drink at the end. The National Trust’s calendar lists the landscape garden open 9am to 4pm on Saturday 26 December, with the Coach House Café open the same hours; the garden and café are shut on Christmas Day, but the parkland is open dawn to dusk on both days.
Paths circle four lakes laid out in the 18th century, with the house, which is private, reflected in the water. Parking is free to everyone.
Last entry to the garden is 30 minutes before closing.
Open garden and café 9am to 4pm on 26 December; parkland dawn to dusk; garden closed 25 December
Price adult £19, child £9.50, family £47.50; National Trust members free; parking free
Address Sheffield Park, Uckfield, TN22 3QX
Website nationaltrust.org.uk/visit/sussex/sheffield-park-and-garden
Good for lakeside paths, a café, children, free parking
10. Nymans, Handcross
A garden around the ruins of a country house, about 17 miles north of Brighton off the A23, open on Boxing Day with the house dressed for Christmas. The National Trust’s calendar lists the garden open 10am to 4pm on 26 December, the house 10.30am to 3.30pm, the café 10am to 3.45pm and the car park 9am to 5pm; everything is shut on Christmas Day.
There is no need to book. Dogs are allowed in the garden only between 1.30pm and 4pm in winter.
Anyone who arrives by bus between 21 November and 4 January can claim a free regular hot drink by showing their ticket, the Trust says.
Open garden 10am to 4pm, house 10.30am to 3.30pm, café 10am to 3.45pm on 26 December; closed 25 December
Price adult £21, child £10.50, family £52.50; National Trust members free, RHS members free (main cardholder)
Address Handcross, near Haywards Heath, RH17 6EB
Website nationaltrust.org.uk/visit/sussex/nymans
Good for a garden walk, a Christmas house, dogs in the afternoon
On the day
- Preston Park, Boxing Day morning: Brighton & Hove Athletic Club has held its Boxing Day Races, a road run with a race walk, in Preston Park for more than 90 years; the club calls it the longest-running road race in the country, and 128 runners and 8 walkers took part last year. It has not yet posted 2026 details on its site, so expect runners on the park paths in the morning if it goes ahead.
- Monday 28 December is the substitute Boxing Day bank holiday, with a reduced train service. Our Christmas trains page has the detail.
How we chose
These are the Boxing Day walks people around Brighton search for: the seafront and the downland on the city’s doorstep, the two big viewpoints on the Downs, the Seven Sisters, and the two National Trust gardens that open on 26 December. Opening hours, prices and parking come from the National Trust’s own calendars, Seven Sisters Country Park, Brighton & Hove City Council, the South Downs National Park and Rottingdean Parish Council. Paths change with the weather, so check the owner’s page on the day. Run one of these places, or spot something that has changed? Email newsdesk@brightontimes.co.uk. Taken a good photograph of any of these places? Email it to newsdesk@brightontimes.co.uk and we will add it with your name as the credit.
For more ideas, see our year-round guide to walks near Brighton, Brighton days out, pubs and restaurants open on Christmas Day, the Christmas Day swim, things to do in Brighton and what’s on this month. For somewhere to eat afterwards, see our guides to Brighton pubs and Sunday roasts.
Frequently asked questions
Can you get a bus to Devil’s Dyke or Ditchling Beacon on Boxing Day?
Last year Brighton & Hove Buses ran a special Boxing Day timetable on 22 routes, including the 77 to Devil’s Dyke, the 79 to Ditchling Beacon and the 12 along the coast to Seven Sisters. The 2026 festive timetable is due in late November, so check buses.co.uk before you go.
Is Sheffield Park open on Boxing Day?
Yes. The National Trust lists the garden at Sheffield Park open from 9am to 4pm on Saturday 26 December 2026, with the Coach House Café open the same hours. The garden is shut on Christmas Day, but the parkland is open dawn to dusk on both days. Parking is free.
What time does it get dark in Brighton on Boxing Day?
Boxing Day 2026 is a Saturday. The sun rises at about 8am and sets at about 4pm in Brighton, so set off by 1.30pm for anything over two hours. The Seven Sisters Country Park car parks lock at 6pm.
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