things
to do

Walking

Seven Sisters Country Park offers a range of excellent opportunities for walkers to enjoy this beautiful landscape.

There are a number of footpaths and trails on the Park – further information and trail maps can be found near the Visitor Centre.

New for 2023 is the Cuckmere Audio Trail, a series of five audio stories located on benches along the easy access trail down to the beach, and We Hear You Now, a spoken word audio series embedded in the landscape presenting contemporary speculative fiction, poetry and new myths by nine Sussex-based writers of colour.

Visitors are welcome to explore all of the Country Park on foot. Well behaved dogs are also welcome – please keep dogs under close control at all times.

The South Downs Way National Trail stretches for 100 miles from Eastbourne to Winchester and passes through the Country Park and can be followed over the Seven Sisters cliffs. It offers spectacular views of Cuckmere Haven, Belle Tout and Beachy Head lighthouses.

Walks across the Sussex Heritage Coast and villages

• Alfriston and Cuckmere Circular

  Distance: 6-7 miles
  Location: East Sussex
  Type: Moderate
  Duration: 4-5 hours

  A mix of quiet roads, forest tracks and uneven footpaths with stiles and several short steep climbs.

  Getting Here

  By bus: There are regular services between Seaford and Eastbourne, visit traveline.info/se
  By rail: Nearest stations are Seaford and Eastbourne. Visit nationalrail.co.uk

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  Points of Interest

  Seven Sisters Country Park

  This Park comprises 280 hectares of chalk cliffs, a meandering river valley and open chalk grassland. Named after the famous Seven Sisters that form part of the chalk cliffs on the Sussex Heritage Coast, one of Britain’s finest unspoilt coastlines, it is a great place to explore. Check the Visitor Information Centre opening hours on the website – sevensisters.org.uk

  Litlington

  This picturesque village lies about a mile from Alfriston and is surrounded by the chalk hills of the South Downs. Here you will find the Plough and Harrow, a 17th century pub with a lovely garden; Litlington Tea Gardens, one of the oldest tea
  rooms in Sussex created 150 years ago; Litlington Church, originally built in 1150 AD and the Long Man Brewery (not open to the public) based at Church Farm – a site
  where brewing can be traced back to 1538!

  Alfriston

  This pretty historic village in the heart of the Cuckmere Valley was named after Aelfric tun the ‘farmstead of Alfric’ in Anglo Saxon times. The village was recorded in the Domesday Book and the area is thought to have been occupied since Neolithic times as a number of long barrows can be found in the surrounding Downs. During the Napoleonic Wars, Alfriston was home to a large number of troops stationed to repel any invaders who got past the Martello towers and cliffs on the coast. Following these wars, the village turned to smuggling, and the Alfriston gang, well known for  their violence, used the Cuckmere river to bring illegal goods in to the village.

  White horse of Litlington

  This chalk figure on High and Over Hill was carved in 1924 by a man called John T  Ade, allegedly overnight by the light of a full moon so as to startle the locals with the sudden appearance of the horse in the morning! Camouflaged during WWII it was restored in the early 1980s and since then has been kept clear of vegetation (and occasionally topped up with chalk to keep it white) with the help of volunteer work parties organised by the National Trust.

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  Directions

  1. From the bus stop at Seven Sisters Country Park Visitor Centre, carefully cross the A259 and turn right. With the cycle hire barn on your left, follow the South Downs Way (SDW) signs through the kissing gate and up the hill.
  2. At the top of the hill, cross over the wall into Friston Forest and down a series of steps to Westdean.
  3. With Westdean pond on your left, follow the SDW signs straight on, past some houses and uphill back into Friston Forest.
  4. Turn left at the path junction and follow the SDW signs through the forest until you reach a set of steps.
  5. Go down the steps and follow the SDW round to the left.
  6. Turn right at the path junction, cross the stile and follow the SDW/Vanguard Way uphill, over the brow and down into Litlington village.
  7. Turn left at the kissing gate behind the village hall and then right into Litlington. Walk through the village passing the Plough and Harrow pub, Litlington Tea Gardens, Litlington Church and Church Farm where the Long Man Brewery is based (not open to the public).
  8. At a property called ‘The Ham’, take the raised public footpath on the left side of the road. After 200m branch left over a stile into a field and follow the field edge
     footpath.
  9. Cross the stile and follow the footpath diagonally left. Cross a second stile near Lullington Road and bear left.
  10.  Go through the kissing gate and keeping the fence on your right, follow the footpath to the corner of the field. Cross the stile and after 60m turn left onto
      the SDW bridleway to the White Bridge at Alfriston. (To visit nearby Lullington Church, reputed to be the smallest church in Sussex (1.1km return trip), instead of turning left onto the SDW, turn right to reach Lullington Road. At the road edge, turn right then almost immediately (10m) left and follow the public footpath up
      behind Plonk Barn. Keep straight ahead at the path junction and follow the footpath through the trees. At the back of the house turn left up a narrow  surfaced path to reach the church. Return via the same route, enjoying views of
      the White Horse/Frog Firle and Rathfinny Wine Estate, with lower lying Alfriston and St Andrews Church below.)
  11. Before the bridge turn left through a kissing gate, following the SDW/Vanguard Way with the river on your right. (To visit Alfriston village cross the White
      Bridge.) Continue for 1.1miles (1.8km) passing through a series of kissing gates until you reach Litlington.
  12. At the SDW path junction continue straight ahead along the tarmac path to Litlington Bridge. Carry straight on with the River Cuckmere on your right to a
      kissing gate.
  13. Go through the kissing gate and follow the riverbank footpath for 635m.
  14. At the path junction carry straight on and follow the riverbank footpath. Look up to your right to see the High and Over hill and Litlington White Horse.
  15. After 0.6mile (1km) continue straight on at the path junction, following the meandering riverside path for a further 1.04miles (1.7km) over a series of
      stiles to the A259 at Exceat bridge.
  16. Cross the A259 and either turn left, following the pavement to return to Seven Sisters Country Park Visitor Centre, or finish at the bus stop at Exceat Bridge by The Cuckmere Inn.
• Beachy Head to Birling Gap

  Distance: 5-6 miles
  Location: East Sussex
  Type: Moderate
  Duration: 3-4 hours

  Mainly undulating downland paths with some uneven tracks and public road crossings. Several gradual climbs.  Optional additional 2.1 mile route to return to start point.

  Getting here

  By bus: There are regular services between Seaford and Eastbourne, visit traveline.info/se
  By rail: Nearest stations are Seaford and Eastbourne. Visit nationalrail.co.uk

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  Points of Interest

  Belle Tout Lighthouse

  Petitions for a lighthouse were first made around 1691 due to the number of shipwrecks and sailors losing lives on this dangerous stretch of coastline. The current lighthouse, Belle Tout, was built in 1832 and decommissioned in 1902 when the new lighthouse was built at the base of the cliffs. In 1999, with erosion threatening its future, it was moved 17 metres (56 feet) back from the edge of the cliff – an impressive feat of engineering work – and by 2010 it had been lovingly restored to its former glory.

  The Beachy Head Story

  Discover more about the beautiful landscape of Beachy Head and the South Downs at The Beachy Head Story exhibition (free entry).

  Birling Gap

  Part of the world famous Seven Sisters chalk cliffs, Birling Gap offers ancient downland, a marine nature reserve, a visitor centre and café. The wild forces of the sea create unusual chalk platforms and huge heaps of gleaming white chalk as the cliffs erode at up to one metre a year. With over 500 acres of open chalk grassland the area is rich with butterflies and downland flowers.

  Stay safe

  Please take notice of warning signs. Rock falls can happen at any time and there are overhangs and faults that you can’t see from the cliff tops. Use your common sense and keep a safe distance from cliff edges and the cliff face when on the beach. If you see anyone in danger or witness someone who has fallen, do not to attempt to rescue them. Dial 999 and ask for the Coastguard.

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  Directions

  1. Opposite Eastbourne Downland golf course, on the seaward side, take the sunken track towards the trig point, which comes into view as you walk along the path.
  2. At the pond bear right of the trig point and keeping on the Downs follow the road to your right.
  3. Cross the road at the turning for Birling Gap, Beachy Head and the Countryside Centre. Keep on the seaward side and follow the Downs over the brow of the hill.
  4. With the sea on your left continue to Birling Gap, via Beachy Head and Belle Tout  Lighthouse.
  5. Immediately past the entrance to the car park at Birling Gap, take the chalk track  up towards the houses on your left.
  6. At the top of the track, go through the gap beside the gate and follow the blue  bridleway sign up the hill in the direction you have just been walking.
  7. Follow the path to the right of the red tin roofed barn. Keep the scrub on your  right, and keep on the level.
  8. Take the first path that drops down the side of the hill, on the right and head  straight on into the village, through a gate into the field and then a gate onto the
     access road for the houses.
  9. Go across the village green, by the Tiger Inn, and turn right down through the car  park. Turn left onto the road out of the village and return to the bus stop on the main road.

     Optional return route back to start – (adds on 2.1 miles and takes extra 50 mins approx). Cross the main road using the pedestrian crossing and turn right  following the pavement uphill.

  10. Turn left into Downs View Lane and follow the tarmac road ahead.
  11. At the end of the road take the grassy track to the right of the metal farm gate.  Passing a metal vehicle barrier follow the path for around 0.9 miles (1.5km)  through the dry valley of Ringwood Bottom.
  12. After passing flint walled fields on your left, bear right at Ringwood Farm to follow a concrete track uphill towards Eastbourne Downs Golf Club.
  13. At the end of the concrete track, turn right and follow the South Downs Way blue bridleway signs to return to the A259 East Dean road and your starting point.
• Seven Sisters easy access trail

  Distance: 1-2 miles
  Location: East Sussex
  Type: Easy. Miles without Stiles
  Duration: 1-2 hours

  The Easy Access Trail at Seven Sisters Country Park is suitable for people with impaired mobility, wheelchairs, mobility scooters and push chairs and it’s great for walking or cycling.

  The trail follows the valley floor down to the shingle beach and the mouth of the River Cuckmere which is approximately 1.3 miles (2.6 miles return). It takes in spectacular views of the valley and Seaford Head.

  Getting here

  Seven Sisters Country Park is situated at Exceat, near Seaford, East Sussex, BN25 4AD.

  By bus: The Park is well served by buses from Brighton/Seaford/Eastbourne, and from further along the coast. All buses stop at the Park entrance. There are regular rail services from London to Brighton, Seaford and Eastbourne. View the timetable for the Coaster 12, 12A and 12X services.  The 40 runs from Berwick, Litlington, Seaford via Exceat. The 47 service runs from Berwick station via Alfriston, Seaford, the Seven Sisters Country Park and Wilmington traveline.info/se
  By train: The nearest railway stations are Eastbourne, Seaford and Berwick. Visit nationalrail.co.uk  to plan your journey.
  By car: There are two pay and display car parks on site. Both of these car parks are locked overnight.  The car parks will be open 7am until 6pm between November and February. Between March and October the car parks will be open 7am until 9pm.

  To avoid crossing the busy A259 at the start of this route, please park to the south of the road, near the Buzz Active Watersports centre and use the pavement to join the trail.

  Seven Sisters Country Park

  This Park comprises 280 hectares of chalk cliffs, a meandering river valley and open chalk grassland. Named after the famous Seven Sisters that form part of the chalk cliffs on the Sussex Heritage Coast, one of Britain’s finest unspoilt coastlines, it is a great place to explore. Check the Visitor Information Centre opening hours on the website – sevensisters.org.uk

  Facilities

  The Seven Sisters Visitor centre is open every day and includes a shop which stocks leaflets, maps and local craft items.
  A Changing Places toilet can be found near the Visitor Centre and North Car Park. The toilets are open every day from 7am until 6pm, including Christmas Day.
  At Seven Sisters Country Park, we are endeavoring to cater to the needs of all visitors.
  The Seven Sisters Country Park Accessibility Guide provides detailed information to visitors with extra access needs. If you have a query not addressed in the Accessibility Guide, we would love to hear from you. Please call us on 01730 819341 or email sevensisters@southdowns.gov.uk

  Refreshments

  Whether you’re looking for something to grab and go or for a sit-down meal, visitors to Seven Sisters are well catered for. The Grab and Go, located inside the courtyard behind the Visitor Centre, offers a selection of snacks, light lunches, hot and cold drinks and pots of ice cream to take with you. It is open every day except Christmas.

  The Trailer, found in the South Car Park, serves up hot and cold drinks and soft scoop ice cream. Opening times may vary depending how busy we are but look for notices when you arrive or ask a member of the team.

  Also to be found at Seven Sisters Country Park is independently-run Saltmarsh Café, which offers visitors relaxing sit-down dining.  The Cuckmere Inn, located just over the other side of Exceat bridge, overlooks the river and valley, giving visitors Seven Sisters traditional pub food in a tranquil setting. Nearby Litlington has several options, including the Plough and Harrow pub, the Long Man Brewery tasting room and Cadence hub and café.

  Directions

  The route to the beach and back is just over 1.3 miles (2km) while the branch into Foxhole will add an extra 0.5 miles (0.8km).

  To get on to the top of the shingle beach there is a short incline of more than 1:8 at the end of both forks of the route. The eastern fork to the beach is over undulating grass.

• Seaford Head easy access trail

  Distance: 1-2 miles
  Location: East Sussex
  Type: Easy. Miles without Stiles
  Duration: 0.5-1 hour

  The Easy Access Trail at Seaford Head is suitable for people with impaired mobility, wheelchairs, mobility scooters and push chairs. Offering spectacular views over Cuckmere Haven, the iconic coastguard cottages and the Seven Sisters. The starting point is South Hill Barn car park, Seaford Head, East Sussex BN25 4AR

  Getting here

  By bus: Brighton & Hove bus number 12 travels from Brighton to Eastbourne along the coast and stops in Seaford. Check traveline.info/se for details.  Alight at Chyngton Lane bus stop on the A259, turn down Chyngton Lane and follow the path to South Hill Barn (0.8 miles). The gradient of the path is 1:9 at its steepest.
  By rail: The nearest railway station is Seaford. Visit nationalrail.co.uk to plan your journey.
  By Car: South Hill Barn car park can be found by turning down Chyngton Lane from the A259.

  Seaford Head Nature Reserve

  Seaford Head Local Nature Reserve (LNR) covers an area from Seaford Head Golf Course eastwards to the Cuckmere Valley and north to Exceat Bridge.

  Facilities

  There are no toilets, cafés or pubs at the site of the route but nearby Seven Sisters Country Park Visitor Centre has refreshments and a Changing Places accessible toilet. Check the Visitor Centre opening hours on the website – sevensisters.org.uk

  Directions

  This page gives users the choice of three routes.

  The two Access for All routes are on hardstanding surfaced paths which are wide enough for two mobility vehicles to pass.

  The circular route (A) is relatively level, a short distance and offers several benches at key viewpoints.

  The linear route (B) with a turning point at the terminus has a slight incline, though this affords better views over the coast. Route B has a turning point at the end of the surfaced track near the golf course/mast. All are wide, surfaced paths.

  The Access for Some trail (C) is a circular route along a surfaced path to the coastguard cottages which then continues along a well maintained public right of way along the coast and joins back up with the original path. There are some benches along the route.

Walking times – Approximate distances and times

• Visitor Centre to West Dean: 0.5mi/0.8km (15 mins)
• Visitor Centre to beach: 1mi/1.6km (30 mins)
• Visitor Centre to Coastguard Cottages: 1.5mi/2.4km (40 mins)
• Visitor Centre to Birling Gap: 3.5mi/5.6km (2–3hrs)
• Visitor Centre to Beachy Head: 5mi/8km (3–4hrs)