Brighton has got to be the most difficult/annoying place to visit! I want to go to a jazz weekend there, but the tourist office charges 50p a minute for the privilege of letting them promote their town to you (thanks, but no thanks); and the box office put me on hold saying that there was a "high number of callers", only to be followed by a subsequent message saying the box office was only open Mon-Friday anyway. From 10am-2pm.... And if you can't get through, there's no queuing system and they won't take messages, they just tell you to keep ringing back. I can only assume that Brighton has so many tourists, it doesn't want any more.

And the hotels.... My AA guide listed what sounded like a nice little hotel, but when I looked up on the internet what visitors had said about it, they seemed to be offering services which, let's say, don't fall into the mainstream hotel services Another (plush) hotel turned out to be sponsored by a leading, er, rubber manufacturer and had some very unusual rooms .... Hmmm! I hadn't appreciated that Brighton's reputation was quite so widespread. Aren't there any "ordinary" hotels in Brighton any more?

The attractions are Ray Gelato, Enrico Tomasso, Ken Peplowski et al, but does Brighton deserve my custom? Hmmm.

Just thought I'd share this little rant with you!

Heavens, with three brothers-in-law and their respective families living down there, I am very familiar with Brighton and love it. With children we have used a variety of hotels and had no problems. Parking can be a nightmare but we usually take the train and use public transport when we get there.

My suggestion is that you go on-line for your bookings rather than being left on hold frustrated. Hope it works out and you enjoy the gigs.

I love Brighton - it is very cosmopolitan and cool - great for vegetarian restaurants too!

Not only do they not have an online booking service, they don't even have a box office email address either. So whether you want to book or you just want to clarify something, you have to telephone them. Or not. Between 10 and 2 is a very limited (and inconvenient) time to ring, let alone keep ringing if I can't get through. I can't think of any other box office that doesn't open till 6pm minimum, many till 8pm, most open Saturday and some on Sunday as well. Nope, they just don't want the custom ....

Maybe they only want the really dedicated people

Yes, it's a bit naive isn't it, to expect a tourist office and a box office to make it easy for people to use their services and buy their products


Edit: Sorry, I sound very cynical, don't I, but I do think it's very bad customer service to make it so difficult!

And I've been inundated with PMs asking for the names of the hotels!



(No that's totally untrue, I'm just trying to get my sense of humour back after my wasted efforts this morning made me a bit sour )

Wouldn't surprise me that much

Thanks for making me laugh!

you're welcome (your post made me laugh - so thank you, too!)

We like Brighton - sorry they messed you about - but there are parts that are really tacky and parts that are nice. I love the alternative feel of the place, and actually most people are really friendly (!) no, really.

Daughter and I stayed at the ?Ship ? Old Ship ? one or other on the sea front a few years ago - it was ok, we got a two for one deal, didn't book just turned up having gone on the spur of the moment. Have lunch at Terre a Terre in East st. Wander round the Lanes for a spot of shopping - even if it's just the shop window type.

And I've been inundated with PMs asking for the names of the hotels!

That was a lovely rant!

Thank you .... But I'm still not giving you the names of those hotels!


Thanks for that hotel recommendation Maggie. If ever I can get through to the box office, I'll give the hotel a call.

Very entertaining, thank you skyers!!

I like Brighton although the Lanes with all the antique shops aren't as good as they were. I'm hoping to get to the Brighton festival this year. It's very good by what people tell me. Oh and I'll be looking for a hotel to stay in......

I could be open to bribery

I'm worried now about the one you found for us in Leeds....!!

I assure you, such a clientelle is too posh for Leeds!

She's not booked you in Blossoms has she? Other half stays there all the time, says it's not half as bad as when seen on TV

I seem to remember telling you all about it and you couldn't wait to book a room

It's what you haven't told me I'm worried about!!

Have you tried searching online, skylark?

If all else fails, I'm just north of Gatwick Airport, so can easily reach Brighton by train. PM me if you want to stay overnight in Valhalla (not sure I'll have finished decorating the spare room though!).

I have fond memories of a week in Brighton when I was a student



There's what promises to be a stonking performance of the Faure Requiem at St Peter's on 19th May [/plug]

Brighton is very much overrated. It sells itself as "cool" but you can equate that with high prices, unfriendly people and a general lack of class. Much of the hinterland behind the sea front is dirty and tatty. If you want to spend your day treading in dog faeces, paying over the odds for food and drink and getting abused by the ne'er-do-wells who litter the beach, highways and byways then enjoy your trip!

I agree with Mr Bouffant, I have never enjoyed my visits to Brighton. For south coast resorts give me Bournemouth every time. (Staying there Wed night!)

well I'm sorry Mr B - you have obviously missed the people I've come across in Brighton - I almost always find them friendly when we visit .

Granted there are parts of the town that are tatty and not very clean. If you arrive by train, the main road down to the seafront from the station is not a very promising start ( head towards the sea but turn left at the first junction and then right so you're walking parallel to the main road but down through North Laine - it's more pleasant).

Maybe I've been fortunate - I can't remember having been abused by anyone there - (on the other hand where I live it's a different story )...

Blimey Mr B! Having been going to Brighton regularly for years, yes there are areas where standards have deteriorated a trifle, but that may be aslo due to my age as I now want to be comfortable. However my teenage children spend New Years there, yes partying on the beach! They certainly enjoy themselves and they cant recognise the Brighton you are refering to. And I can assure you those of us coming from London find everywhere else quite cheap in comparison. As to being abused by ne'er-do-wells, so far this has never happened and we are usually on foot as we travel down by train. I do find that young people and young married couples with the 1.5 children and huge buggies are in abundance but the Brighton you refer is unknown to me and mine. But then again I have heard London, in particular Camden where we live, refered to in similiar tones and just dont recognise the place people are refering to either To each his own

Guess it depends on why you want to go there...
if you wanted to visit the site of the Brighton bombing of the Grand Hotel way back now, I don't suppose you would choose anywhere else, would you?

If you wanted to swim in the sea, well, you could choose other places around the coast -

That's really kind of you Deborah, thank you. Unfortunately though, the concerts don't seem to finish until the early hours so it would really be too late for me to travel back. I was trying to get a hotel within walking distance of the venue, partly using the AA book and partly internet searches, and that's how I came across the hotels mentioned earlier, the second hotel complete with pictures of each room