Eastbourne's buzzing university community and compact town gives it a laid back and friendly feel. The town combines the traditional seaside attractions with modern nightlife, a wide range of sporting activities and an exciting arts scene.
- Whether you are new to the area or you are already based here, make the most of student discounts and free events. With numerous things to do and see all year round, make the town your campus.
- Great live music, numerous cafes, bars, clubs, entertainment venues and restaurants.
- Eastbourne has great sport facilities, including a sports park with a synthetic athletics track, floodlit all-weather pitches and a grandstand.
- Enjoy the surrounding area – as well as the beach and the sea there are also country walks and cycling across the South Downs.
- Shopping to suit everyone, from high street shops in the Arndale Centre to the quaint Victorian shopping streets of Little Chelsea or quayside shopping, dining and drinks at the cosmopolitan Sovereign Harbour.
Aerial view of the Eastbourne coastline
Events throughout the year
Autumn / winter term
One of the biggest off-road marathons in the UK is the Beachy Head Marathon, which takes the 1,750 runners across the stunning landscape and challenging terrain of the South Downs.
Eastbourne has a bonfire tradition that goes back almost four centuries and the Eastbourne Bonfire Society holds an annual procession and firework display along Eastbourne seafront.
The biggest beer festival in East Sussex is the annual Eastbourne Beer Festival, featuring 150 real cask ales, a cider bar, wine bar and live music.
Spring term
The Eastbourne Music & Arts Festival is a competitive festival to help to promote and encourage the study and practice of the arts of music, dance, speech and drama.
If you would rather spectate than participate, the Eastbourne Festival, aims to celebrate the unique qualities of Eastbourne and offers a broad programme of traditional, contemporary and experimental visual arts, music, literature, dance, comedy, film and performance events.
March sees the return of the legendary Towner Club Nights, in association with Brighton's Melting Vinyl.
Summer term
Eastbourne's Magnificent Motors is one of the biggest free motor spectaculars on the couth coast, featuring more than 500 vintage and classic cars motorbikes and buses. If bikes are more your thing, then there is the Eastbourne Cycling Festival, which offers cyclists the chance to take part in a variety of events, from time trials to road races.
Airbourne Eastbourne is the world's biggest free seafront airshow which provides four days of flying with displays from acrobatic teams, parachutists, historic aircraft, helicopters and international military jets. Sovereign Harbour plays host to the annual Eastbourne RNLI Regatta, which includes a full programme of racing as well as a funfair, live bands, craft fair and a beer festival.
One of the main sporting highlights in Eastbourne, is the AEGON International tennis tournament. It attracts some of the world's top men and very best women tennis players who make their final preparations before The Championships, Wimbledon. Recent stars have included Kim Clijsters, Caroline Wozniacki, James Blake and Feliciano Lopez.
Get your adrenaline pumping with Eastbourne Extreme, the UK's largest free extreme sports festival on Eastbourne's seafront. Includes air, land and water-based pursuits. For something more relaxed, try the Eastbourne Lammas Festival - a family-oriented free festival of music, dance and entertainment. The highlights of the weekend include a seafront procession, drumming, an open air ceilidh and a variety of live bands.
