The Perfect Seven Sisters Cliffs Walk from London

You are never too far away from a beautiful walk if you are living in or visiting London. While there are closer options such as Epping Forest or Richmond Park available, you will struggle to find a more beautiful choice than the Seven Sisters Cliffs walk.

The majestic beauty of the white limestone cliffs makes for a wonderfully unique hiking option that you simply won’t find anything else like in the world.

If you’re wondering about how to plan the perfect day trip to the Seven Sisters including transport options and which hiking route to take then we’ve got you covered!

How to Get to Seven Sisters Cliffs from London

The best hiking route to take if visiting the Seven Sisters from London is the Seaford to Eastbourne walk. It’s easier to cut this 13 mile/21 kilometre shorter if you start from Seaford (while also seeing the main highlights of the walk) so I, therefore, suggest starting the walk there.

The best way to get to the beginning of the walk is to take the train. Trains heading towards the Seven Sisters from London depart from Victoria Station in South London.

There are regular trains departing from London Victoria to Seaford taking around 1 hour and 30 minutes with a quick transfer in Lewes.

If you end up doing the whole route, then you can take a direct train back from Eastbourne to London Victoria which also takes 1 hour and 30 minutes. If you want to do the Seaford to Eastbourne walk in reverse then both these routes also run in the opposite direction.

It’s worth booking tickets in advance, particularly if going on the weekend, as ticket lines can get quite long at London’s busiest train stations.

You can also get cheaper deals online if you book far enough in advance which is particularly important when visiting an expensive city such as London! Click here to view timetables and book tickets.

There aren’t regular buses from London to the Seven Sisters and those that do run also make more stops, so I suggest relying on the train if you don’t have your own transport.

It is possible to drive, however, this isn’t ideal if doing the Seaford to Eastbourne Walk as it’s not a circular route. This means that you’ll need to take a local bus back to wherever you park.

However, if you only want to visit the Seven Sisters for a leisurely drive and stroll then having your own transport is the best option. You’ll be able to drive fairly close to the Seven Sisters Cliffs, take a short walk and see the highlights without doing a long hike.

If you’re visiting London and planning a longer road trip through the UK then you can find great deals on renting a car through Rentalcars.com. This platform aggregates many major international and local rental companies so you can compare prices when hiring a car.

Finally, for those that prefer to go in a group, there are several organised tours that you can join. This full-day tour takes you down to the Seven Sisters & Brighton via train, while this small group tour uses a minibus.

Seven Sisters Cliffs Walk Route

The Seaford to Eastbourne Walk is iconic and while it can be a challenging walk due to the ups and downs of the cliffs, it should be fine if you have a reasonable level of fitness. The majority of the walk also follows the coastline making it incredibly difficult to get lost on the way!

While it’s pretty difficult to get lost on this walk, it’s worth it to download the Maps.Me app that allows you to access detailed offline maps during the walk including various trails that branch off the main Seven Sisters hike.

If taking the train from Seaford, simply head towards the beach, take a left and start walking towards the cliffs. Within a few minutes, the town will be behind you and you’ll be walking along the coast surrounded by nature. It also won’t be too long before you start to get your first sightings of the iconic Seven Sisters Cliffs!

It’ll take approximately one hour to walk along the coast for the first 2.6 miles/4.2 kilometres until you reach the Cuckmere River where you’ll see the famous Coastguard Cottages. This also presents you with your first opportunity to shorten your walk!

Experience hikers who don’t mind getting a bit wet can cross the river to avoid having to walk the 2.3 mile/3.6 kilometre detour around the river.

Please only attempt this if it’s low tide and you are an experienced hiker who feels confident in undertaking the crossing. If like us, you prefer to stay dry, then simply start walking along the river until you come across the Exceat Bridge next to the Cuckmere Inn pub.

If you decide at this point that you’ve already had enough of the walk (though I wouldn’t advise it as the best is yet to come!) you can pop into the pub for a pint and some food and then take the local bus that goes along the highway either back to Seaford or to Eastbourne. Alternatively, simply cross the bridge and start walking back along the river towards the coast.

You don’t need to walk all the way along the river as at some point you’ll be able to cut across the open fields until you are back walking along the coast. The next stretch going towards Birling Gap is some of the most spectacular of the whole Seven Sisters Cliffs walk. You’ll be treated to some iconic views of the cliffs as you deal with the ups and downs of the cliffs.

Once you reach Birling Gap, you can walk down to the beach if you fancy a swim or, alternatively, enjoy a drink or a meal at the Birling Gap cafe. You can once again choose to cut your walk short here by walking along the Birling Gap road to East Dean and then taking a bus to Seaford or Eastbourne.

If you think you still have a bit of energy, then I suggest you keep walking to Beachy Head, walking past the famous Beachy Head Lighthouse.

There is also a pub at Beachy Head if you feel now the time is right for a pint. From Beachy Head, you can keep walking to Eastbourne if you plan to take a train back to London from Eastbourne station.

However, if you’re planning on going back to Seaford or a simply too tired and want to shorten the walk then along Beachy Head Road until you get back to East Dean Road where you can once again take a bus to either Seaford or Eastbourne.

There aren’t a lot of highlights from Beachy Head to Eastbourne so you don’t need to feel like you’re missing out on much if you decide to shorten the walk here!

Once you’re back in either Seaford or Eastbourne, reward yourself with a beer or a meal at one of the many pubs or restaurants in these towns. We tucked into a calorie-heavy Sunday Roast and a pint to cap off a spectacular day doing the Seven Sisters Cliffs walk from London!

A Seven Sisters day trip from London is one of the best places to visit if you love seeing iconic nature sites and want to get a bit of peace and serenity from the chaotic British capital!

Are you planning to visit the Seven Sisters? Have any questions? Let us know in the comments below!