Nadia Fauzi

Like most people this year, we decided to not travel abroad and booked our holidays locally. We were looking for seaside towns or beach hotels that we haven’t been to when we came across the newly opened Port Hotel. Situated smack on the town’s Royal Parade, Port Hotel stands out with its jet black facade. Opened in April this year, the Victorian townhouse has been converted to house 19 modern bedrooms and a contemporary restaurant serving a mixture of locally sourced small plates. Its focus on sustainability chimes with this: cork floors, Faith in Nature products, ingredients sourced from within 30 miles, and room service run through WhatsApp.

Six of the rooms look seaward, including the Studio Apartment, a luxury suite with sea views from the bath, where we stayed in. Compact and designed with minimalism and sustainability in mind – a clothing rail instead of a wardrobe, milk available on request rather than wasting away in the fridge – it manages to fit in a desk, a Nespresso machine, a HAY kettle, a Crosley record player and a Netflix-ready TV without feeling cramped.

You might want to potter around the town’s antique shops, stroll along the pier, take a walk to Beachy Head or have a day trip to Rye and Camber Sands. Or you might just prefer to while away a long weekend in the cosy confines of the hotel, ordering breakfast to the room and soaking up those sea views from your bed. We did a little of both and loved every minute.

What I really love about Port Hotel is how it facilitates the most easy-breezy weekend away. There’s no need to craft an itinerary or figure out how to get from A to B. Put Eastbourne on your radar and make Port Hotel your first port of call. I have no doubt it will soon be all booked up.